BIOMONITORING URBAN AIR POLLUTION BY USING LICHENS IN THE GREEN SPACE OF THE UNIVERSITY CAMPUS IN OSIJEK (CROATIA)

摘要

The city of Osijek is the administrative, educational and cultural centre of the Eastern Croatia. University of Osijek was founded in 1975, and the academic community consists of 17 337 students and 1134 teaching staff in 2015. University obliged to promote and implement principles and practice of environmental protection and sustainable development at all levels. University campus covers area of 23.2 ha, where construction of new buildings and urban planning started in 2002. In the green space of campus an inventory of trees was carried out in 2012, combined with survey of epiphytic lichen flora. A total of 365 trees classified into 21species were recorded. Planting of landscape trees and other woody plants is considered as an effective measure for increasing annual rate of carbon storage and sequestering in the campus. Epiphytic lichen flora recorded on trees consists of eight species. Foliose lichens dominates (75%), followed by crustose and fruticose lichen with equal shares of 12.5%. By applying the lichens as bio-indicators of air quality, the air in the university campus in the City of Osijek has been assessed as moderately polluted. Due to intake of dust and increased on-road emissions of nitrogen compounds, the trees are covered by nitrophilous lichens, resistant to higher eutrophication and tolerant to air pollution.