Abstract
This study was conducted in Halgheh Darreh waste disposal site in Karaj in order to determine the
concentration of Ni and Pb in Halimocnemis pilifera and in region’s soil. Three 50*50 m plots in
the direction of the prevailing wind were selected. The First plot was close to the leachate ponds
and the next two plots were located at 500 and 1000 m from the first plot, respectively. Ten random
samples from root and shoot of the plant and also from the soil were collected. The concentrations
of the metals were determined using a flame atomic absorption spectormetery (AA 240 (FS) Varian
Company, USA) after dry acid digestion. Two-way and one-way ANOVA were used to assess the
differences of metal concentrations in roots and shoots of the plants, and in the soil of the plots,
respectively. Duncan Test was applied to compare the average concentrations of metals in different
plots. The results revealed that the soil of the different plots do not have a significant difference in
Ni and Pb concentrations. No significant difference was observed between the metal concentrations
in roots and shoots of the plants. The plants in the second and third plots showed to have the highest
concentration of Pb (3.27 mg kg-1) and Ni (4.41 mg kg-1), respectively. Bioconcentration and
transmission factors for Ni and Pb (TF=1.21; 0.75 and BCF=1.11; 0.29, respectively) suggested that
H.pilifera is an appropriate plant to remove Pb and Ni from soil.
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