Accumulation of heavy metals by different representatives of biota in the operation zone of the Prydniprovska thermal power plant

Abstract Among the consequences of technoecogenic stress caused by the activity of industrial and energy complexes, dust and gas emissions, containing toxic to representatives of biota substances, including heavy metals, have a particularly negative impact on ecosystems. Different types of organisms have different mechanisms to absorb and accumulate heavy metals, that can be used for ecotoxicological studies. The peculiarities of the accumulation of heavy metals in various components of the ecosystem such as soil – plant – animal in the area of operation of the thermal power plant (TPP) of the Dnipro region were investigated. Test samples of soil, sod-forming grasses, and soil-litter invertebrates were collected from artificial plantations of Robinia pseudoacacia L., located in the immediate vicinity of the Prydniprovska TPP in the city of Dnipro, and control samples – at a distance of 30-40 km from the TPP. Determination of the content of heavy metals, which are priority pollutants for the Dnipro region, was carried out by the method of atomic adsorption spectrophotometry according to the standard method. The invertebrates accumulate Fe and Mn in the largest amount at all test sites. From all functional groups, only representatives of saprophages perform the functions of heavy metal accumulators (Fe, Cu, Cd, Mn), contributing to the intensification of the biological cycle (Ni) and the purification of trophic chains (Zn, Pb). The features of the accumulation of heavy metals by the main sod-forming cereals depending on the contamination level in the soil under the influence of the Prydniprovska TPP have been established. The concentration of heavy metals in both the above-ground mass and the underground part of the plants was determined in the experimental and control plots. The different intensity in the elements accumulation by the vegetative organs of the experimental plant species was revealed. The obtained results can be used in bioindication to assess environmental pollution.