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Selected Trace Elements in Plants Grown on Retorted Oil Shales¹

ABSTRACT

Western wheatgrass (Agropyron smithii Rydb. ‘Arriba’) and fourwing saltbush (Atriplex canescens (Pursh) Nutt.) were sampled from oil shale revegetation plots in northwestern Colorado. Plants were growing on two types of retorted shales: TOSCO II, produced by the Tosco Corporation; and USBM, produced by the U.S. Bureau of Mines. Various treatments included leaching and different depths of soil covering over the retorted shales. Plant samples were analyzed for B, Mo, As, Se, and F on a dry-weight basis. Plant samples with elevated Mo concentrations were also analyzed for Cu.

Boron in western wheatgrass from the TOSCO retorted shale ranged from 85 to 202 ppm, compared with ranges of 4 to 15 ppm B in plants from the soil control. Analysis of variance indicated significant differences in B content due to site, aspect, type of retorted shale, and amount of soil cover over retorted shale. The concentration of B in western wheatgrass growing on retorted shales, especially TOSCO retorted shale, could affect plant growth. Fourwing saltbush samples, growing on USBM retorted shales, contained levels of Mo averaging 28 ppm, and low-to-moderate Cu content (4.8–6.8 ppm). This combination could make this species unacceptable as forage for ruminants. The concentrations of As (0.03–0.44 ppm), Se (0.02–0.94 ppm); and F (0.5–10.0 ppm) in the plant species investigated in this study were below limits usually set for either plant or animal toxicities and appear to be of little environmental significance.

Key Words: boron • molybdenum • arsenic • selenium • fluorine • retorted shale • revegetation

¹ Contribution of the Colorado State University Exp. Stn. as Sci. Ser. no. 2639, and supported in part by U.S. Department of Energy, Contract no. EY-76-S-02-4017.

² Graduate assistant and professor, respectively, Dep. of Agronomy, Colorado State Univ., Ft. Collins, CO 80523. Senior author is now soil chemist, Colorado School of Mines Research Institute, P.O. Box 112, Golden, CO 80402.

Received for publication May 4, 1981.