Urban soils. Recent approaches in assessment of the soils quality in Bucharest City

Abstract

This study reports the degree of heavy metal pollution (Cu, Zn, Pb) in 36 urban topsoil samples from the metropolitan area of Bucharest City. The levels of heavy metals in the analized samples show a wide range of variation. Geochemical maps were produced to assess the spatial distribution of pollutants. It is concluded that emisions from the vehicles may be the major sources of the Pb contamination; furthermore, other small or large factories are possible sources in soil pollution (Cu, Zn). The assessment of the soil environmental quality in the metropolitan area of Bucharest City can be used as the basis for a monitoring programme for implementing suitable pollution control measures.