Metals and nutrients in spruce wood

The Federal Environment Agency analyzed drill core samples of spruce in order to determine the occurrence and historical development of metal and nutrient contents largely error-free by a novel method. Due to the choice of locations and the age structure of the trees, the values collected are representative for Austria. The samples from the Dachstein region showed that during the last three centuries the content of heavy metals such as manganese and cadmium in spruce wood increased significantly. Since the beginning of industrialization, the wood has also become richer in nickel and sulphur. The results of the study close the survey gap of elemental contents for this main tree species of the native forest and thus provide data and an important basis for environmentally relevant mass balances and modelling.