Effects of Re-suspended Roadside Dusts and Its Elemental Constituents on the Phylloplane Microflora

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Ram, S.S.^{; ;} | Majumder, S. | Kumar, R.V. | Chaudhuri, P. | Chanda, S. | Santra, S.C. | Maiti, P.K. | Mukhopadhyay, U.K. | Sudarshan, M. | Chakraborty, A.

Affiliations: UGC-DAE Consortium for Scientific Research, III/LB-8, Salt Lake, Kolkata, India | Department of Material Science and Metallurgy, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK | Department of Environmental Science, University of Calcutta, Kolkata, India | Department of Environmental Science, University of Kalyani, Nadia, India | Allergy & Asthma Research Centre, Kolkata, India | Department of Chemical Technology, University of Calcutta, Kolkata – 700073, India | West Bengal Pollution Control Board, Kolkata ¨C 700098, India

Note: [] Corresponding author: E-mail: [email protected]

Abstract: In the present paper the effect of traffic generated dust pollution on phylloplane microflora of Polyalthia longifolia was studied. More dust and absence of micro-flora especially fungi was observed in the leaves from roadside site unlike that of non-roadside site. Elemental profiling of dust on leaves has shown the presence of trace elements like Al, Si, Cl, Ti, Cr, Mn, Fe, Ni, Cu and Zn and toxic elements like As and Hg. Presence of such elements in dust may be attributed to retardation of micro-flora on leaf surfaces exposed to traffic generated dust particulates.

Keywords: Air pollution, dust, phylloplane microflora, SEM-EDX

Journal: Asian Journal of Water, Environment and Pollution, vol. 10, no. 3, pp. 63-69, 2013