The Effects of Heavy Metals on Plants in Industrially Contaminated Ecosystems

The Effects of Heavy Metals on Plants in Industrially Contaminated Ecosystems
Many heavy metals exist naturally in soils as ions, held by interactions with soil colloids. Depending on the relative cation exchange properties of the particular soil, the concentrations of heavy metal ions available for uptake by plants will vary. If the ecosystem is not contaminated with toxic levels of heavy metals, the concentration of heavy metal ions remains at a constantly low level with optimum amounts being available to the plants within the ecosystem (Lepp, 1981). Certain heavy metals, such as co…