LAUSR

The impact of climate change (global warming) and associated extreme events on soil pollution and metal mobility in soils have received very little attention. Global warming leads to increased soil and atmospheric temperatures, more frequent and severe extreme events, and, consequently, soil erosion. Changes in soil characteristics and hydrology alter how metal(loid)s are transported around a terrestrial environment, diluted in water bodies, and mobilized in soil. Past studies show increases in blood lead concentrations during droughty periods when soil is dry and dusty and decreases in blood lead concentrations during rainy periods when soil is wet and dust is settled. Droughts lead to reduced soil microbial survival, colonization, diversity, and function. When plants are stunted under drought conditions, concentrations of trace metals can be elevated in the tissues to potentially contaminated agricultural produce or enhanced metal uptake by plants. Increased evapotranspiration rates could also lead to translocation of metals from deeper soil layers to the rhizosphere being more readily available for plant uptake. Crop metal concentrations increase when soil temperatures are higher. Even though there an increasing number of articles published on the topics of global warming/climate change and soil metal pollution, it is still not clear what will happen to metals with accelerated evapotranspiration, more rapid organic matter breakdown in soil, faster release from soil particles and diffusion to roots, etc. Thus, the effects of climate change on soil pollution by metals, i.e. their concentrations, mobility, and distribution, require immediate attention to prevent future human and ecosystem damage. We encourage studies that explicitly relate the effects of temperature on metal behavior in soils due to global warming/climate change. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.