Cen tu ries of gold-ar senic ore min ing ac tiv i ties in Czarnow vil lage within the Evelinens gluck mine (SW Po land) have left an enduring impact on the local environment, characterized by distinct geochemical anomalies and contamination in water and plants. We have com pre hen sivel y in ves ti gated the spa tial dis tri bu tion of ar senic and met als in soils, plants, and wa ter in close prox im ity to post-min ing dump sites. The find ings re veal strik ing anom a lies in the vi cin ity of the mine, no ta bly el e vated lev els of ar senic, zinc, lead, cop per and co balt. The high est re corded ar senic con tent sur passed 290,000 ppm, with co balt reach ing al most 18,000 ppm and cop per ex ceed ing 21,000 ppm. This con tam i na tion was most pro nounced around min ing ex ca va tions and in the im me di ate vi cin ity of min ing dumps. Ad di tion ally, pore wa ter anal y sis from the study area un cov ered elevated arsenic levels, surpassing permissible standards, with concentrations exceeding 600 ppb. Moreover, plant specimens (Rubus idaeus, Deschampsia flexuosa, Dryopteris carthusiana) in the re gion were ob served to ac cu mu late ar senic and other toxic el e ments, with Rubus idaeus recording the highest arsenic concentration at 19.0 ppm. These accumulations consistently exceeded established environmental norms. The presence of such elevated concentrations of toxic elements in both soil and plant life un der scores pro found con cerns for hu man health, with po ten tial im pli ca tions for a range of health is sues.
