Investigating the Effects of Cu, Pb, Zn and Mn Concentrations in Artemisia spp. Above Ground Biomass in the Rangelands of Darreh Zereshk Copper Mine - Taft

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of some heavy metals concentration (Cu, Pb, Zn and Mn) in shoots of Artemisia aucheri and Artemisia sieberi in the surrounding rangelands of Darreh Zereshk copper mine. The study area was stratified based on the wind direction, sub-catchments, distance from mine and etc. into 10 relatively homogeneous sites, and 10 samples were then collected from each site randomly. After acid digestion of the collected samples, the metal concentrations were measured using ICP-OES instrument. The one way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to compare the metal concentrations in the studied sites. According to the results, the average concentrations of Cu, Pb, Zn and Mn in the area were 8.34, 5.96, 36.67 and 49.82 respectively. The heavy metals concentrations across the sites differ significantly. The results indicated that the observed metal concentrations in the area were in the normal range for plant species; however the Pb concentration was slightly higher than the normal range due to high transportation activities in the area and the effects of Yazd-Shiraz road.