Biogeochemical response of Pinus brutia and Olea europaea to lithological variations and Cu mineralisation in Cyprus.

Regional geochemical mapping programs are predominantly based on regolith materials as the sampling media. The use of plant organs has been more limited, despite potential advantages demonstrated in more localised studies that have examined biogeochemical responses to various types of mineralisation or contamination, or sought to identify species with phytoremediation potential. This study investigated the effects of variations in lithology and mining wastes on the multielement chemistry of Pinus brutia (pine) needles and O. europaea (olive) leaves, obtained from low-density traverses across Cyprus and detailed sampling around two Cyprus-style VHMS Cu-deposits. A total of 476 samples were analysed by a combination of inductively-coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) and portable X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (pXRF). At the regional scale there are substantial differences in the composition of the pine needles, especially for Ni, Ba, Sr, Mn and Zn, between the major lithological groups that range from the ultramafic and mafic units of the Troodos Ophiolite to the mineralised pillow basalts and various marine carbonate units. Both pine needles and olive leaves display intense Re anomalies in areas with mine wastes and consistently low concentrations in background areas. The response for Cu and other macro- or micronutrient elements to contamination is less pronounced and may reflect barriers to uptake by the plants. The relative magnitude of variations between the different lithologies in median plant metal concentrations is equivalent to that displayed in soils of the Geochemical Atlas of Cyprus (e.g. REE, Zn and Sr), but for some elements the patterns differ substantially. There is close correlation between the ICP-MS and pXRF data for elements where most values are above pXRF detection limits. The study further demonstrates the potential of plants in regional geochemical mapping for a range of applications, in combination with or as an alternative to conventional regolith media.

Geochemical patterns in the soils of Cyprus.

The soil geochemical atlas of Cyprus is a recent addition to the series of national to continental-scale geochemical mapping programmes implemented over the last two decades for environmental and resource applications. The study has been conducted at the high sampling density of 1 site per 1km(2), with multi-element and multi-method analysis performed on samples of top soil (0-25cm) and sub soil (50-75cm) from a grid of over 5350 sites across a major portion of Cyprus. Major and most trace elements display sharp concentration changes across the main geological boundaries but a high degree of spatial continuity and consistency of values within those boundaries. Some elements display one to two orders of magnitude difference in median concentrations between the soils developed over ultramafic or mafic units and those developed over sedimentary rocks or alluvial units. The ratio of aqua regia-extractable to total metal contents provides an indication of the general mineralogical host for a number of trace elements. The majority of soils are near-neutral to alkaline with the small proportion of areas with soil pH<5 largely restricted to the major Cu deposits. There is strong correlation between top soil and sub soil geochemical values. Where the concentrations of some elements (including Pb, Hg and Sn) are indicative of contamination, the values are typically higher in the top soil samples in these areas. Variations in the concentration of elements with strong redox controls on mobility are linked to changes in sedimentary environment between deep and shallow marine conditions. Some element patterns can be related to the effects of urbanisation and sulphide mining operations; however the dominant control on soil geochemistry is the parent geology and regolith forming processes. The atlas demonstrates the effectiveness of high-density sampling in mapping local to regional-scale features of the geochemical landscape.