HEAVY METALS ACCUMULATION IN LICHEN PARMELIACEAE AND MAHOGANY BARK (KHAYA ANTHOTECA AND SWIETENIA MACROPHYLLA) AS AN INDICATOR OF AIR POLLUTION LEVEL IN SEVERAL LOCATIONS IN BANDUNG CITY

• Main Author: Nurul Fitriyyah, Putri
• Format: Theses
• Language: Indonesia
• Online Access: https://digilib.itb.ac.id/gdl/view/66510
• Institution: Institut Teknologi Bandung

Increasing number of motor vehicles and industrial sector in Bandung city is one of the sources of air pollutants that very harmful to living beings is heavy metal, so air quality monitoring is needed. Lichen and tree bark can be used as indicators of the level of air pollution in a location due to their ability to absorb heavy metals from air pollutants emitted by motor vehicle. The aim of this study are to measure accumulation of several types of heavy metals in lichen Parmeliaceae and mahogany tree bark, analyze correlation of heavy metal accumulation to lichen cover and diversity; analyze the influence of microclimates, lichen substrates and anthropogenic factors i.e. the number of vehicles on the accumulation of heavy metals by lichen Parmaliaceae and mahogany tree bark; and identify the type of lichen on the sampling point tree at the study site. The study was conducted from March to December 2021. Sampling was carried out by plot-less sampling on 25 Mahogany trees distributed to 5 locations in Bandung, that are Taman Persib (TP) on Jalan Supratman, Taman Pustaka Bunga (TPB) on Jalan Citarum, Taman Maluku (TM) on Jalan Ambon, Terminal Leuwi Panjang (TLP), and Taman Hutan Raya Ir. H. Djuanda Dago (THR) as the control locations considered the most natural conditions. Lichen foliose samples from the parmeliaceae family and tree bark were taken from mahogany trees of the family Meliaceae at a height of at least 1 meter above the ground using a square measuring 20 x 32 cm². At each sampling location, microclimate data measurements were carried out which included light intensity, air humidity, air temperature; substrate profile data observations of the texture of the bark of the tree trunk, measurement of the pH of the bark of the tree trunk, canopy cover and diameter of the tree trunk; also data on anthropogenic factors in the form of vehicle volume on weekdays during peak hours in the morning and evening. The accumulation of heavy metals suc s As, Cu, Cr and Pb from lichen and tree bark samples was measured using AAS (Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometry). The data was analyzed using SPSS statistics and PAST 3.0 software. The results showed that there was a significant correlation between the accumulation of heavy metals Cr and Pb in lichen and tree bark samples. The accumulation of heavy metal Cr in the bark of the tree trunk (30,034±0.363 ?g g^(-1)) was higher than the accumulation in the lichen (17,080±0.322 ?g g^(-1)), while for the accumulation of Pb in the bark of the tree trunk (15.488 ±0.344 ?g g^(-1)) had a lower concentration than the lichen (24.377±0.478 ?g g^(-1) ). Heavy metal concentrations as (0.03±0.002 ?g g^(-1)), Pb (24.377±0.478 ?g g^(-1)) and Cr (17.080±0.322 ?g g^(-1)) in the lichen sample were highest accumulated in TP, while the highest concentration of Cu (34.943±0.380 ?g g^(-1)) accumulated in TLP. The accumulation of heavy metals As (1,131±0.041 ?g g^(-1)), Pb (15,488 ±0.344 ?g g^(-1)) and Cr (30,034±0.363 ?g g^(-1)) in the bark of the trunk was highest accumulated in TP, while the highest concentration of Cu (18,682±0,283 ?g g^(-1)) accumulated in TPB. At the THR site, the concentration of all heavy metals in the lichen and on the bark of the tree was recorded to be the lowest. There is a negative correlation between the concentration of heavy metals in lichen and bark to lichen diversity, lichen cover area in trees and the pH of tree bark. The diversity of lichens decreases as the concentration of heavy metals increases, as well as the pH of the bark of the trunk decreases as the concentration of heavy metals increases. It was identified that there were 12 species of lichen in 5 sampling sites with the morphological form of talus foliose (7 species), those are Parmeliasp. 1, Parmelia sp. 2, Parmelia sp. 3, Parmelia sp. 4 Parmotrema sp., Dirinaria sp., Xanthoparmelia sp.; and crustose (5 species), those are Lepraria sp., Cryptothecia sp. 1, Cryptothecia sp. 2, Graphis sp. and Lecanora sp. The highest lichen diversity index with a moderate category is found in THR (H' = 1.39), followed by TM (H' = 1.13), TLP (H' = 0.51), TPB (H' = 0.21). TP has the lowest lichen diversity index (H' = 0.02). In THR the species Parmotrema sp. which belongs to the sensitive category was found, while the species Parmelia sp. found at all sampling sites, also dominating the lichen cover area at TP, which is 93,233 cm² of the total cover area of 93,395 cm² and in TPB covering an area of 44,066 cm² of the total cover area of 46,300 cm². The average volume of vehicles around the observation site on weekdays during peak hours is highest at TP, which is 17,776 vehicles/hour, followed by TLP: 10,224 vehicles/hour, TM: 6,007 vehicles/hour, TPB: 3,501 vehicles/hour, and THR has the lowest average vehicle volume of 589 vehicles/hour. Based on the results of the PCA analysis, the accumulation of heavy metals in lichen and tree bark samples is thought to berelated to the level of traffic density, pH of the bark, temperature, and texture of the bark. The accumulation of heavy metals in the lichen and bark of the trunk has a negative correlation to the diversity of the lichen and the area of the lichen cover on the bark of the trunk. An increase in the accumulation of heavy metals will lead to a decrease in the diversity index and decrease the area of lichen cover.