Determination of total contents of Cd, Pb, Cr, Ni, As, Cu, Zn, Co, V, Mo in some Slovak soils

Total soil metals can be used to estimate the degree of soil exposure to heavy metal pollution. The total contents of potentially dangerous elements were determined in 1996 in four monitored localities of Slovakia. The samples were taken from surface horizons of arable soils in Dvorniky, Topolniky, Stakcin, and Macov and basic soil characteristics were determined. The results of Inductively Coupled Plasma Atomic Emission Spectrometry (ICP-AES) analysis of the soil samples after microwave digestion with mixture of acids HF, HCl, HNO3 are presented. We verify the accuracy using Certified Reference Materials: Soil Eutric Cambisols S-VM, Orthic Luvisols S-MS, and Soil Rendzina S-SP. A new sampling was made in the same localities in 2000 and analyzed using the ICP-AES method. Total metal contents in 1996 ranged from background levels to gross pollution in the locality Dvorniky. Other localities were mostly well due to topography and geological structure. When we compare the obtained results in 2000 with those obtained in 1996 we arrive to the statement that in the locality Dvorniky much higher content of all measured elements was found and the pollution by Pb Zn, Cu, Cd, As was confirmed. This locality has been assigned to the location of an ore mine, which could explain these contents.