95 Mobilization of heavy metals in polluted soils of Baia Mare area (Romania) Cristina-Laura BIG 1 , Essaid BILAL 2 , Gheorghe DAMIAN 3 , Fernando Machado de MELLO 4 1- University. of Iaşi, Geography and Geology Faculty, Dept of Environmental Science,Romania, (cristinalaura_pop@yahoo.com) ; 2- Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Mines de Saint Etienne, CNRS UMR 6425 (bilal@emse.fr) ; 3- Nord Univ. of Baia Mare ; 4- IA-Departamento de Geociências da UFRRJ (fermamll@ufrrj.br) RESUMO A poluição do solo por metais pesados na Baia Mare (noroeste da Romênia) é reconhecida atualmente como um sério risco a saúde da população e do sistema ecológico. Ela se deve à mineração e metalurgia.Este trabalho pretende avaliar a influência na qualidade ambiental dos metais pesados gerados atualmente pelas atividades mineiras na area estudada, e, para isso, aplicar o método do Índice de Poluição Global, tanto na sua forma convencional como também na forma desenvolvida aqui. A qualidade do solo da area de Baia Mare foi avaliada em 2010 e comparada com resultados de 2001 a 2005, focando nos principais poluentes, especialmente Cu, Zn, Pb. O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar a influência de metais pesados na qualidade do solo, portanto a decisão com respeito a futuras pesquisas podem ser feitas. Realizou-se também a medição dos valores de pH em diferentes níveis do solo para mostrar que a mobilidade dos metais pesados é influenciada pela diminuição de pH. Os resultados obtidos ilustram que o meio ambiente têm sido modificado pelas atividades industriais dentro de limites admissíveis. Palavras-chave: Solo, Metais-Pesados, SC Romplumb SA, SC Cuprom SA ABSTRACT Soil pollution by heavy metals in Baia Mare (north-western Romania) is now recognized as a serious risk to the health of the population and the ecological system. It is due to mining and metallurgy.The current paper had the purpose to assess the influence of heavy metals generated in time by mining activities on the environmental quality of the studied area and, in order to do so, the method of global pollution index, in both its conventional and improved forms, was applied. The soil quality of the Baia Mare area was evaluated in 2010 and compared with the results from 2001 and 2005, focusing on the main pollutants, especially Cu, Zn, Pb. The aim of this paper was to assess the influence of heavy metals on soil quality, so that the decision regarding further research could be made. We also performed the pH values of the different soil levels to show that the heavy metals mobilization is due to the pH decreases.The final results illustrated that the environment has been modified by industrial activities within admissible limits. Keywords: soil, heavy metals, pH, SC Romplumb SA, SC Cuprom SA 1. INTRODUCTION Soil is one of great natural wealth of humanity and is rightly considered a complex ecosystem, a truly living organism, the specific activity of microflora and microfauna communities around the world depending on our planet live. Baia Mare, Maramureş county seat, is an important urban center in northwestern Romania Baia Mare area is a region that is constantly submissively to the pollution existed by mining and extraction and processing of non-ferrous materials. Baia Mare is a hollow-developed industry in the manufacturing of lead and gold, besides what brings satisfaction and dissatisfaction of the major pollution material. This pollution is felt both in soil, water and air. The main soil types from Baia Mare area are : Luvisols, Cambisols, interzonal soils (Damian et al. 2008). Baia Mare soils formed on parent material consists of specific volcanic