In this study, we present the results of the impact of abiotic environmental (chemical) stressors in the soil environment (salinity, acidification, inorganic elements from industry—red mud waste containing Al) on the content and fluorescence of chlorophyll in the assimilating tissues of Glycine max (L.) Merrill, cv. ES Mentor. Under controlled conditions of a pot experiment during the 2023 growing season, we applied graded doses of these stressors (salinity—doses of 20, 30, and 60 g NaCl per 2 dm³ of water used for plant irrigation; acidity—pH 6, pH 5, and pH 4; red mud—200 g, 400 g, and 600 g per pot) and assessed their impact on the effective and maximum quantum yield of photosystem II (PSII), yield Y(II), or the ratio of variable to maximum fluorescence—the Fv/Fm test. These tests are used to detect plant stress. The Y(II) test yielded values in the range of 0.627–0.800. Significant differences (variance analysis, 95% Least Significant Difference—LSD, post hoc test of analysis of variance—ANOVA) in reducing PSII chlorophyll fluorescence (Y(II)) were found between the medium and high doses of all three stressors compared to the control, indicating plant stress response. The Fv/Fm test yielded values between 0.668 and 0.805 and similarly detected stress responses in plants to all medium and high doses of stressors. The evaluated cultivar showed tolerance to moderately increased salt (NaCl) content and red mud levels. This was also confirmed by the chlorophyll content expressed as the Chlorophyll Content Index (CCI). The highest (significantly confirmed) chlorophyll content was found in the control variant and the variants with lower salt content and a soil pH of 6, with values of 35.633–37.467 CCI, compared to variants with higher red mud content (15.533–18.133 CCI) and higher soil acidity with pH 4 (22.833 CCI). Based on the results obtained, we conclude that the ES Mentor cultivar is tolerant to lower doses of the assessed stressors and can be cultivated in agricultural practice. However, medium to high doses of stressors trigger a strong stress response in plants and, therefore, we do not recommend cultivating this variety in contaminated environments.

Peter ANDRÁŠ, Pavol MIDULA, João X. MATOS, Giuseppe BUCCHERI, Marek DRÍMAL, Vojtech DIRNER, Zuzana MELICHOVÁ & Ingrid TURISOVÁ - COMPARISON OF SOIL CONTAMINATION AT THE SELECTED EUROPEAN COPPER MINES, Carpathian Journal of Earth and Environmental Sciences, February 2021, Vol. 16, No. 1, p. 163 – 174; Doi:10.26471/cjees/2021/016/164

Regional products are considered an important element of European cultural identity, contributing to the development and sustainability of rural areas. The article presents the research of regional labels from the territory of the Slovak Republic. Our research was aimed at determining the views of producers towards the regional product labeling scheme. The survey took place from January 2020 to April 2020 using an online questionnaire via Google Docs. The results obtained from the questionnaire survey were statistically processed: t-test, Fisher’s exact test, and Pearson correlation coefficient. We used Microsoft Excel and IBM SPSS Statistics 23 software. Based on the research results, we can state that two-thirds of producers (71.8%) are aware of the concept of a regional product. Most producers (82.0%) associate this concept with tradition and a specific region. They consider regional product labeling to be a tool to support the development of tourism (36.0%). A quarter of producers (25.7%) joined this scheme in order to add value to their products and help make consumers perceive them as safer products of higher quality. Based on the research results, we would recommend increasing the promotion of regional products on the part of the label coordinator.

The aim of the presented article was to determine the Hg content in the fruiting bodies of 13 generally consumed mushroom species (Boletus reticulatus, Clitocybe nebularis, Lactarius deliciosus, Macrolepiota procera, Russula spp., Suillus grevillei, Tricholoma spp.) growing at the area of abandoned mercury deposit Malachov. The Hg concentrations were analyzed by thermal decomposition-gold amalgamation atomic absorption spectroscopy, using AMA-254 Advanced Mercury Analyzer. The Hg concentrations in soil varied widely (ranging from 0.01 to 2.44mg·kg-1), furthermore, they were particularly depended on the mushroom species. The fruiting bodies of Russula ochroleuca contained the highest concentrations of Hg (up to 16.69mg·kg-1). The lowest concentrations were detected in Russula aeruginea (from 0.04 to 0.06 in stipe stems and from 0.05 to 0.06mg·kg-1 in pileus) and in Russula vesca (0.05 in stipe stems; 0.09mg·kg-1 in pileus). Mercury is preferentially accumulated in the mushroom pileus (ranging from 0.05 in Russula vesca to 16.69mg·kg-1 in Russula ochroleuca). The bioconcentration factor was calculated for the rate of the Hg content in soil substrate vs. its concentration in the mushroom pileus (ranging from 0.03 to 29.22). The results indicate that some investigated mushroom species can be referred as Hg excluders (e.g. Russula vesca) whereas some other species as accumulators (e.g. Russula ochroleuca or Tricholoma portentosum). The obtained results were compared with the Government Decrees of Slovak Republic, showing that the substantial part of the studied mushroom species exceed the legal tolerance limit (0.25 mg kg-1) suggested for Hg in plant food and therefore they can be considered as inappropriate for human consumption.

Repeated drought–rehydration episodes expose perennial fruit trees to alternating stress and recovery phases, while treatment-level averages can obscure genotype-specific response strategies. We evaluated seven biochemical markers in fourteen apple (Malusdomestica Borkh.) genotypes during two consecutive drought–rehydration cycles: proline, malondialdehyde (MDA), total phenolics, total flavonoids, and the activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and peroxidase (POX). Both drought cycles increased all measured markers, with the strongest overall response at the end of the second drought cycle (T6). Relative to the control, mean values at T6 increased by 272.4% for proline, 136.4% for MDA, 45.3% for total phenolics, 76.5% for total flavonoids, 109.1% for SOD, 89.0% for CAT, and 117.5% for POX. Genotype-specific log₂(Stress/Control) profiles at the first (T2) and second (T6) drought maxima revealed contrasting combinations of osmotic adjustment, oxidative damage, antioxidant-enzyme activity, and secondary-metabolite accumulation. B11 combined comparatively low MDA induction with strong antioxidant-enzyme responses, whereas HL1282 and HL1579 showed lower proline and MDA induction together with stronger phenolic, flavonoid, and selected enzyme responses. In contrast, ‘Idared’ showed strong proline and MDA induction. The first two principal components explained 75.1% of the total variance. Overall, the results identify distinct genotype-specific biochemical response strategies and show that coordinated marker profiles provide substantially more information than individual biomarkers or treatment averages alone.

Technosols from the heap of the abandoned Italian Cu deposit Caporciano contain important amounts of potentially toxic elements (Cr _tot. , Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, As, Cd and Pb). Copper contents exceed the Italian law limits for industrial/commercial sites. The studied metals in Pinus sylvestris and Quercus petraea (Matt.) Liebl. show strategy of excluders (bioconcentration factor < 1.0) except Ni and Pb (calculated for branches and leaves in Pinus sylvestris ) while the translocation factor indicates preferential metal accumulation to leaves/needles (translocation factor > 1.0) in both plant speciments.At the heap the contents of the chlorophyll in leaves in the photosynthetic tissues of Quercus petraea (Matt.) Liebl. (8.56 CCI—chlorophyll content index) are significantly lower as those measured at reference area (17.71 CCI). The goal of the study is to use a modified methodology for the fractional analysis of soils for the determination of the potential bioavailability of potentially toxic elements in six steps. The innovative steps of sequential analysis are adapted with respect to the release of PTEs from the clay mineral surfaces. (fraction I: 1 M ammonium acetate at pH 7; fraction II: ammonium acetate at pH 5; fraction III: H ₂ O ₂ in ammonium acetate buffer solution; fraction IV: acidic 0.2 M ammonium oxalate (pH 3.2); fraction V: 0.2 M ammonium oxalate and 0.1 M ascorbic acid mixture; fraction VI: 0.5 M ammonium acetate; pH 6). The best bioavailable metals are Cd, Cu, Zn and Pb. The obtained results enable international comparison with similar Cu-deposits.