Comparison of Existing Legal Assessment Values for Heavy Metal Deposition in Western Europe and Calculation of Assessment Values for Luxembourg

The protection against eco- and human-toxicological impairments caused by atmospheric deposition of heavy metals requires legally defined assessment values. Since such values are missing for Luxembourg, the aim of this investigation was to evaluate different approaches to derive assessment values fo...

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Autores principales: Angela Schlutow, Winfried Schröder
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spelling oai:doaj.org-article:72d82766597c45068868ca3c651025902021-11-25T16:44:59ZComparison of Existing Legal Assessment Values for Heavy Metal Deposition in Western Europe and Calculation of Assessment Values for Luxembourg10.3390/atmos121114552073-4433https://doaj.org/article/72d82766597c45068868ca3c651025902021-11-01T00:00:00Zhttps://www.mdpi.com/2073-4433/12/11/1455https://doaj.org/toc/2073-4433The protection against eco- and human-toxicological impairments caused by atmospheric deposition of heavy metals requires legally defined assessment values. Since such values are missing for Luxembourg, the aim of this investigation was to evaluate different approaches to derive assessment values for the regulation of heavy metals that are in accordance with scientific and legal standards. To this end, assessment values for heavy metals were derived from the compilation of respective values implemented in European countries. In addition, (1) precipitation-related assessment values for the protection of soil for Cr, Zn, and Cu and (2) precautionary assessment values (critical loads for Cr, Zn, and Cu, as well as As, Cd, Ni, and Pb) for the protection of human health and ecosystems were calculated. The calculation of the regionally differentiated precipitation-related assessment values resulted in ranges of 17–272 g Cu ha<sup>−1</sup> a<sup>−1</sup>, 167–2672 g Zn ha<sup>−1</sup> a<sup>−1</sup> and 17–272 g Cr<sub>total</sub> ha<sup>−1</sup> a<sup>−1</sup>. The critical loads for drinking water protection vary in the ranges from 1.23 to 2.14 g Cd ha<sup>−1</sup> a<sup>−1</sup>, from 4.05 to 8.63 g Pb ha<sup>−1</sup> a<sup>−1</sup>, from 2.6 to 5.9 g As ha<sup>−1</sup> a<sup>−1</sup>, from 258 to 564 g Cu ha<sup>−1</sup> a<sup>−1</sup>, from 1292 to 2944 g Zn ha<sup>−1</sup> a<sup>−1</sup>, and from 12.9 to 29.9 g Cr<sub>total</sub> ha<sup>−1</sup> a<sup>−1</sup>. Ecosystems are significantly more sensitive to Pb, Cu, and Zn inputs than humans. For As and Cr, humans react much more sensitively than ecosystems. For Cd, the critical loads for drinking water, ecosystems, and wheat products are about the same.Angela SchlutowWinfried SchröderMDPI AGarticlecritical loads for drinking waterecosystemswheat productsMeteorology. ClimatologyQC851-999ENAtmosphere, Vol 12, Iss 1455, p 1455 (2021)
institution DOAJ
collection DOAJ
language EN
topic critical loads for drinking water
ecosystems
wheat products
Meteorology. Climatology
QC851-999
spellingShingle critical loads for drinking water
ecosystems
wheat products
Meteorology. Climatology
QC851-999
Angela Schlutow
Winfried Schröder
Comparison of Existing Legal Assessment Values for Heavy Metal Deposition in Western Europe and Calculation of Assessment Values for Luxembourg
description The protection against eco- and human-toxicological impairments caused by atmospheric deposition of heavy metals requires legally defined assessment values. Since such values are missing for Luxembourg, the aim of this investigation was to evaluate different approaches to derive assessment values for the regulation of heavy metals that are in accordance with scientific and legal standards. To this end, assessment values for heavy metals were derived from the compilation of respective values implemented in European countries. In addition, (1) precipitation-related assessment values for the protection of soil for Cr, Zn, and Cu and (2) precautionary assessment values (critical loads for Cr, Zn, and Cu, as well as As, Cd, Ni, and Pb) for the protection of human health and ecosystems were calculated. The calculation of the regionally differentiated precipitation-related assessment values resulted in ranges of 17–272 g Cu ha<sup>−1</sup> a<sup>−1</sup>, 167–2672 g Zn ha<sup>−1</sup> a<sup>−1</sup> and 17–272 g Cr<sub>total</sub> ha<sup>−1</sup> a<sup>−1</sup>. The critical loads for drinking water protection vary in the ranges from 1.23 to 2.14 g Cd ha<sup>−1</sup> a<sup>−1</sup>, from 4.05 to 8.63 g Pb ha<sup>−1</sup> a<sup>−1</sup>, from 2.6 to 5.9 g As ha<sup>−1</sup> a<sup>−1</sup>, from 258 to 564 g Cu ha<sup>−1</sup> a<sup>−1</sup>, from 1292 to 2944 g Zn ha<sup>−1</sup> a<sup>−1</sup>, and from 12.9 to 29.9 g Cr<sub>total</sub> ha<sup>−1</sup> a<sup>−1</sup>. Ecosystems are significantly more sensitive to Pb, Cu, and Zn inputs than humans. For As and Cr, humans react much more sensitively than ecosystems. For Cd, the critical loads for drinking water, ecosystems, and wheat products are about the same.
format article
author Angela Schlutow
Winfried Schröder
author_facet Angela Schlutow
Winfried Schröder
author_sort Angela Schlutow
title Comparison of Existing Legal Assessment Values for Heavy Metal Deposition in Western Europe and Calculation of Assessment Values for Luxembourg
title_short Comparison of Existing Legal Assessment Values for Heavy Metal Deposition in Western Europe and Calculation of Assessment Values for Luxembourg
title_full Comparison of Existing Legal Assessment Values for Heavy Metal Deposition in Western Europe and Calculation of Assessment Values for Luxembourg
title_fullStr Comparison of Existing Legal Assessment Values for Heavy Metal Deposition in Western Europe and Calculation of Assessment Values for Luxembourg
title_full_unstemmed Comparison of Existing Legal Assessment Values for Heavy Metal Deposition in Western Europe and Calculation of Assessment Values for Luxembourg
title_sort comparison of existing legal assessment values for heavy metal deposition in western europe and calculation of assessment values for luxembourg
publisher MDPI AG
publishDate 2021
url https://doaj.org/article/72d82766597c45068868ca3c65102590
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