Microbial biomass and tolerance of microbial community on an aged heavy metal polluted floodplain in Japan

The objective of the present study was to increase understanding of the effects of heavy metal pollution and soil properties on microorganisms in relation to the biomass and microbial functional community. Soil samples were collected from aged polluted and reference sites on a floodplain. The soil Cu, Zn and Pb total concentrations were much higher at the polluted sites (average 231.6-309.9 mg kg(-1), 195.7-233.0 mg kg(-1), and 72.4-86.0 mg kg(-1), respectively) than at the reference site (average 33.3-44.0 mg kg(-1), 76.7-98.0 mg kg(-1), and 30.8-41.6 mg kg(-1), respectively), while the available heavy metal concentrations in CaCl(2) extraction were similar in all sites. Small seasonal variations in the size of microbial biomass were observed. Ambient soil properties (e.g. total C, N, pH, moisture content, and CEC) affected the soil microbial biomass more than the heavy metal pollution. However, the aged pollution tended to impact on the composition of the microbial community. PICT (pollution-induced community tolerance) test using BIOLOG Ecoplates showed enhanced tolerance of the microbial community to Cu stress in the polluted site. In non polluted but low nutrient, low pH and low moisture soil, the microbial biomass was lower and the microbial community was more vulnerable to Cu stress. In spite of the low heavy metal availability due to ageing, the BIOLOG technique provided sensitive detection of microbial community level changes in PICT analysis.