Table 4.
Permissible concentrations of metals in soils by Polish guidelines
| Permissible metals concentration classifications | As | Cd | Pb | Tl | Zn | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| mg/kg d.m. | ||||||
| Geochemical background (Kabata-Pendias and Pendias 2001) | ||||||
| Natural element concentration | 2 | 0.2 | 18 | 1 | 30 | |
| Chemical quality grades of soil by IUNG (Kabata-Pendias et al. 1995) | ||||||
| 0° | Soil not contaminated, the natural content of heavy metals | – | 0,3 | 20 | – | 50 |
| I° | Soils with elevated concentrations of heavy metals | – | 1 | 70 | – | 100 |
| II° | Weakly contaminated soils | – | 2 | 100 | – | 200 |
| III° | Medium contaminated soils | – | 3 | 500 | – | 700 |
| IV° | Heavily contaminated soils | – | 5 | 2,500 | – | 1,500 |
| V° | Very heavily contaminated soils | – | >5 | >2,500 | – | >1,500 |
| Types of ground Regulation of the Minister of the Environment (GJ No. 165/2002 pos. 1359) | ||||||
| Group A | Protected areas based on the Water Law Act and Protection of the Nature Act | 20 | 1 | 50 | – | 100 |
| Group B | Agricultural land, forest land and trees, woodland and shrubs | 20 | 4 | 100 | – | 300 |
| Group C | Industrial areas, minerals, communication areas | 60 | 15 | 600 | – | 1,000 |
(–) not determined