Uptake of arsenic by selected plants and Deer at a former military base contaminated with organoarsenic-based warfare agents.

Frank-Albert Pitten*, Gerald Müller, Axel Kramer, Harald Below (Institute of Hygiene and Environmental Medicine, University of Greifswald, Hainstr. 26, 17489 Greifswald, Germany), Peter König (Botanical Garden, University of Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany) and Kerstin Thurow (Institute for Measuring and Sensor Systems Rostock, Rostock, Germany)

Organoarsenic-based chemical warfare agents (CWAs) such as diphenylchloroarsine (CLARK I), diphenylcyanoarsine (CLARK II) or phenyldichloroarsine (PFIFFIKUS) still pose a notable risk in countries where former military bases that have stored these weapons have not yet been reclaimed. In fact, this is the case for many countries of Eastern Europe and the CIS. One of the most important military bases of the former Third´ Reich, the Heeresmunitionsanstalt I and II, is situated close to the German-Polish border. The German army stored and decanted different compounds of CWAs at this military base until 1945. When the Soviet Army destroyed the base in 1946, large amounts of CWAs and other organoarsenic compounds polluted the soil. Today up to 250 g (!) arsenic may be found in 1 kg soil at some places in this area. Since 1991, a Government Working Group has been working on the risk assessment in order to define the scope of reclamation measures. This study investigates the contamination and the uptake of arsenic by terrestrial plants and deer because little is known about the bioavailability and metabolism of diphenylarsine compounds In spite of the considerable arsenic contamination of the soil (mean value 923 mg arsenic / kg soil) the plant contamination remained comparably low. The mean value was 4.3 mg/kg dry weight and the highest arsenic concentration registered was 26 mg/kg dry weight in a sample of H. lanatus, most probably due to adhering soil particles. The chemical structure of the arsenic compounds carried by the above-ground plant organs has been determined by gas chromatographic investigations and showed an uptake of triphenyl arsine by the plants.

Organ samples taken from wild deer living at the fenced area did not show elevated arsenic contents. Diphenylarsenic compounds were not identified in any organ sample of these animals.