Heavy Metal Concentrations along the Banks of the Sitnica River and in Four Types of Herbaceous Plants

This paper presents the results of the heavy metals accumulation (Cd, Cr, Pb, Cu, Zn, Mn, and Fe) in soils and plants (Typha angustifolia L., Urtica dioica L., Ranunculus sardous Crantz and Rumex Crispus L.) collected along the banks of the Sitnica River, which flows through various cities of Kosovo and is quite stressed due to the discharges of urban, industrial, and agricultural pollutants. The aim of this research was to verify the accumulation of heavy metals in water, soil and plants, since vegetables that used as food are cultivated in the vicinity of sample collection. The analyses were conducted with applied methodology in the analytic laboratory of Kosovo Agriculture Institute by using MP-AES 4200 for Cd and Cr, ASS-Scientific for Zn, Cu, Fe, Mn and Pb in plant samples, whereas 4100 MP-AES was used for determination of metals in soil. The results show variations in different metal values found in the samples of the analyzed soils and plants. The lowest values accumulation of the metals analyzed were recorded at A1 (Devetak Station) near the river source and did not contain anthropogenic influences, whereas the highest values were recorded at A3 (Kuzmin Station), which belongs to the middle flow of the Sitnica River that is polluted by wastewater (urban) discharges.