Rare-earth elements in soil and pine needle from northern terrestrial ecosystems

The experimental data on heavy metal and rare-earth element concentration in the environmental objects (pine needle and soil) caused by the enterprise for the production of mineral phosphoric fertilisers in Apatity (the industrial region in the Murmansk legion, Kola Peninsula) have been obtained. The investigation was performed by neutron activation analysis at the IBR-2 research reactor in the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research. The analysis of nearly 40 element distributions in pine needle and soil from different geographical sites testifies about their contamination by a spectrum of elements, including REEs. Their contamination levels in the soil in the vicinity of the enterprise are significantly high.