Integrated environmental assessment of iron ore tailings in floodplain soils and plants after the Fundão Dam disaster in Brazil.

Previous studies of the Doce River basin (Brazil) seem to be contradictory regarding the contamination of soils with potentially harmful elements (PHE). This research aimed to perform an integrated assessment of PHE in the soil-plant-tailing system from the area most affected by the iron waste after the Fundão Dam disaster in 2015. Different fractions of PHE (exchangeable, nonexchangeable, reducible, and pseudo-total) were determined on deposited iron waste (DIW), soil waste mixture (SWM), and control soil (CS) samples. Total contents of PHE in Poaceae were also determined, and Allium cepa bioassays were performed to determine DIW and CS cytotoxicity and/or genotoxicity to plants. The Fe and Mn contaminations were the only ones related to the deposition of DIW on floodplains, and other harmful element content (such as As, Hg, Ni, Cd, Cr, and Pb) was not found above baseline values for soils. In addition, a significant part of the Fe and Mn in DIW is readily available or subject to acidification and prolonged flood reduction processes. The high available content of Fe favored its excessive accumulation by Brachiaria. The DIW chemical conditions reduced biological functions of A. cepa under a controlled environment. However, more drastic effects, such as genetic damage, were not seen. The postdisaster action of covering DIW with CS resulted in undesirable enrichment of Pb on the floodplain soils. The integrated results allow the conclusion that the iron waste is not a time bomb for PHE contamination of soils between the Fundão and Risoleta Neves Hydroelectric Dam (~100 km away from Fundão). Integr Environ Assess Manag 2024;20:117-132. © 2023 SETAC.

Adventitious rooting of auxin-treated Lavandula dentata cuttings / Enraizamento adventício de estacas de Lavandula dentata tratadas com auxina

Lavandula species may be propagated by seeds. However, plants will present expressive variation both in size and essential oil content. Indole-3-butyric acid (IBA) is a growth regulator which efficiently stimulates rooting and the objective of this research was to observe the influence of different IBA concentrations on rooting of L. dentata cuttings. Herbaceous cuttings with approximately 10cm in length and around 1/3 of leaf retention had their bases submerged into 0 (control), 500, 1.000, 2.000 or 3.000mg dm-3 of IBA diluted in de-ionized water for 30 seconds and placed in polystyrene foam trays filled with commercial substrate and kept under intermittent mist system. Averages of root number, length of the longest root, fresh and dry root weight, and percentage of rooted cuttings were evaluated after 60 days. There was no significant difference between treatments for the length of root, fresh and dry root weight. The percentage of rooted cuttings increased with IBA concentrations. A quadratic regression was obtained to root number. The 2.000mg dm-3 dose increased the percentage of rooted cuttings and the mean root number per cutting. L. dentata cuttings are easy to root.

Espécies de Lavandula podem ser propagadas por sementes. Entretanto, as plantas apresentarão elevada variabilidade em tamanho e em produção de óleo essencial. O ácido indol-3-butírico (AIB) é um regulador de crescimento que eficientemente estimula o enraizamento. O objetivo deste trabalho foi observar a influência de diferentes concentrações de AIB no enraizamento de estacas de L. dentata. Estacas herbáceas com aproximadamente 10cm de comprimento e 1/3 de retenção foliar tiveram suas bases submersas em 0 (controle), 500, 1.000, 2.000 ou 3.000mg dm-3 de AIB diluído em água deionizada por 30 segundos e colocadas em bandejas de isopor contendo substrato comercial sob sistema de nebulização intermitente. As médias de número de raízes, comprimento da raiz mais longa, massa fresca e seca de raízes e porcentagem de estacas enraizadas foram avaliadas após 60 dias. Não houve diferença significativa entre os tratamentos para o comprimento da raiz e a massa fresca e seca de raízes. A porcentagem de estacas enraizadas aumentou com a concentração de AIB. Uma regressão quadrática foi obtida para o número de raízes. A concentração de 2.000mg dm-3 aumentou a porcentagem de estacas enraizadas e o número de raízes formadas por estaca. As estacas de L. dentata são de fácil enraizamento.