Lichen-fungus as bioindicators: large scale atmospheric pollution zones in Bogota, D.C.

Abstract

The present work was developed as part of the ongoing research conducted by the scientific vice direction of Bogotá's Botanical Garden, José Celestino Mutis, with the cooperation of the Instituto Distrital de Recreación y Deporte IDRD. The main purpose of this research was to estimate the air quality in the urban perimeter of Bogota D.C., through the delimitation of macrozones of atmospheric iso-contamination using lichen-fungi as indicators. The chosen methodology was the one proposed by Rubiano (2002) and modified by Gonzalez and Salamanca (2004), supported in the application of the Atmospheric Purity Index, IPA. Forty monitoring stations, correspondent to urban parks, were established to find out the relative cover, resistance and diversity of the species. A total of 48 species of lichen-fungi were registered, for which a disturbance resistance scale was standardized, as a decision argument to put projects of social and environmental spirit into service. Five iso-contamination zones were defined, where IPA values go from 0.07121 for zones Type I «Maximum Contamination», up to 182.03221 for zones Type V «Minimum Contamination». It is notable the great proportion of Zones Type I and II, which comprise more than 70 per cent of the district's urban territory, and evidences the kind of management that is currently being given to the resource.