Dispersion of chemical elements in an industrial environment studied by biomonitoring using Parmelia sulcata

Transplants of the lichen Parmelia sulcata Taylor were suspended in nylon bags within a rectangle of 15 km wide and 25 km long on a grid 2.5 kmx2.5 km, centred in a power station. In all of the 47 places two sets of four transplants each were hanged, one facing the wind and the other opposing the wind. Care was taken (1) in covering the two sets with a polyethylene roof to prevent leaching of elements in the lichen, (2) in building a hanging system that could rotate according to the wind direction, and (3) in orienting one set towards the wind and the other set opposite the wind. During. one-year period, one transplant of each set was taken for analysis after a 3 month exposure. Some results of the second campaign (after a 6 month exposure) obtained by INAA are shown and compared with the first campaign (after a 3 month exposure). Elemental contents are mapped and discussed.