Quantitative Assessment and Predicting the Effects of Soil Pollutants on Herbaceous Biomass Production in Reserved Forests.
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Date
2021-05-12
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Springer
Abstract
Heavy metal concentrations in surface soils of Reserved Forests (RFs) have a significant impact on understorey herbaceous layer. However, research on their effects on herbaceous productivity and ecological risk in Assam’s RFs is still scarce. Thus, we undertook an eco logical study to gain a better understanding of this. Levels of ecological risks were assessed using geostatistical indices, and the impacts of metals on productivity were predicted using Pearson’s correlation and regression analysis. Results identified a total of 64 herbaceous plants (13 grasses, 42 forbs, and 09 climbers) from 29 families and 61 genera. According to IVI, the dominating grasses, forbs, and climbers were Cynodon dactylon, Datura stramonium, and Piper betle, respectively. Herbaceous productivity was strongly negatively correlated with heavy metals (i.e. Cr (- 94%), Cd (- 83%), Pb (75%), Ni (- 65%), for grasses; and Ni (- 89%), Cr (- 74%), Pb (- 66%), Cd (- 59%) for forbs). This suggested that metals are strong predictors of herbaceous productivity with a significant impact. Meanwhile, the contamination and pollution levels ranged from slightly to severely contaminated and from moderately to highly polluted. Among the metals, Pb and Cd were highly contaminating with significant implications on productivity. Regression analysis found that metals exerted a considerable impact, accounting for approximately 43.4%, 61.7%, 80.0%, and 49.3% of the variances in Cd, Cr, Ni, and Pb, respectively. The empirical model for predicting metals’ Y effects on productivity is: ˆ = 24.977 ? 288.607Cd ? (- 149.635Cr) ? (- 6.534 Ni) ? (- 6.656Pb). Therefore, policymakers must devise efficient metal discharge mitigation techniques in the RFs
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This Journal of Science and Technical Education was Published by Springer.