Detection and uptake of cadmium (Cd), chromium (Cr), lead (Pb) and mercury (Hg) in Ipomoea aquatica Forsk. (Water Spinach) in open canal road, Imus, Cavite

In the Philippines, anthropogenic activities continue to pollute water and landforms. To resolve this, plants have been found to have abilities in extracting and distributing heavy metals to its organs. Ipomoea aquatica Forsk. (water spinach), a semi-aquatic vascular plant has shown potential in the phytoextraction of various heavy metals. This study aims to determine heavy metals present in the soil samples of Open Canal Road, Imus, Cavite; to identify certain heavy metals absorbed by the I. aquatica Forsk. (water spinach); and to determine if the heavy metal concentrations in the soil and plant samples are within permissible levels set by the World Health Organization (WHO). The research procedure included plant identification, water spinach and soil sample preparation, soil analysis, metal analysis using Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy (AAS) and Cold Vapor Technique (CVT), data gathering, and interpretation. From the analysis, high levels of lead were detected from the soil, 18.37 ppm; 4.42 ppm in leaves, 4.25 ppm in stems, and 4.33 ppm in roots of I. aquatica Forsk. (water spinach) samples. Mercury was detected with values of 0.03 ppm in the soil and throughout the plant organs. Cadmium and chromium were not detectable with values less than 0.01 ppm and 0.03 ppm, respectively. In comparison to the set standards of WHO, the levels of heavy metals in the soil and plant were considerably normal. Meanwhile, the amount of lead in the plant organs (roots, stems, leaves) is twice the acceptable level of 2.0 ppm; mercury levels exceeded the standard by 0.01 ppm. Nonetheless, its ability to be a phytoremediating agent for Lead and minimal amounts of Mercury for the canal is still feasible since it is able to translocate significant amounts of heavy metals throughout its plant organs