SGER: Regulation of Metal Bioavailability in Floodplain Continuum by Carbon and Sulfur Cycling

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0322042AdrianoThe spatial variabilities of contaminants, microbial activity, and community structure are being measured at a floodplain site on the Tisza River floodplain in Hungary in a search for relationships over a variety of scales between soil microbial activity and in situ concentrations of heavy metals (Pb, Zn, Cu, Cd & As), both in solution and as bound to solid phases. Stochastic modeling will be used to study metal availability to plants. The floodplain has experienced episodic discharges of heavy metal wastes from overflows from upstream storage reservoirs during major flood events in 2000-01. Researchers from the Univ. of Georgia, UC-Riverside and Oklahoma State are working in cooperation with colleagues from Debrecen Univ. and the Hungarian Academy of Science to assess how metal dynamics is being regulated by interactions between microbial communities and nutrients (C & S) and to evaluate resulting long-term ecological effects. The work would specifically generate data for understanding the role of microbial assemblages and carbon and sulfur compounds on metal dynamics in the context of heterogeneities in soil type and redox potential across the floodplain. Results will be integrated into the SREL and the Hungarian outreach programs to support research and education at all levels.