Air pollution tolerance indices of some plants around Ama industrial complex in Enugu State, Nigeria

Abstract

Green house gases pollute the atmosphere and cause global warming which has become a worldwide environmental problem. In order to evaluate the ability of plants to absorb such gases, the air pollution tolerance indices (APTI) of some plants around an industrial complex in Nigeria, were determined. The total chlorophyll, ascorbic acid, pH, and relative water content of the leaf extracts of Mangifera indica, Delonix regia, Bougainvillea spectabilis, Ixora coccinea, Anacardium occidentale and Duranta erecta were used to determine the APTI. Delonix regia gave significantly (p<0.05) highest APTI (5.308 ± 0.090), followed by Bougainvillea spectabilis (4.904 ± 0.001) and Duranta erecta (4.577 ± 0.166). Anacardium occidentale had the lowest (3.470 ± 0.001). Delonix regia was comparatively the most tolerant to air pollution. It is suggested that plants with high APTI values should be grown near pollution - prone areas to absorb and thus, screen off certain harmful gaseous pollutants which contribute to green house effect, global warming and climate change.

Keywords: Air pollution tolerance index, ascorbic acid, chlorophyll, pH, water, plants

African Journal of Biotechnology, Vol 13(11), 1231-1236