Assessing Urban Habitat Quality Using Chemical, Physiological, and Spectral Leaf Properties in Abidjan (Côte d’Ivoire)

In the majority of African urban areas, there is a pervasive issue of air pollution that poses a significant threat to the environment. It is evident that air pollution has the capacity to exert an influence on the anatomy and physiology of plants. It has been demonstrated that plants are capable of absorbing gaseous pollutants and particulate matter, as well as heavy metals, through their leaves. The present study concentrated on the prospective value of leaf chemical, physiological, and spectral characteristics as straightforwardly quantifiable plant parameters in the cost-effective evaluation of urban habitat quality. The geographical area selected for the study was the city of Abidjan, located in the West African nation of Côte d’Ivoire. In the designated study area, two distinct land use classes were identified: namely, “main roads” and “parks”. The concentration of heavy metals (lead and copper), the total chlorophyll content, stomatal resistance, and leaf reflectance were measured in the leaf samples of Jatropha integerrima Jacq. The stomatal resistance of leaf surfaces was found to be significantly higher (p p p p > 0.05), relationship was observed between total chlorophyll content and heavy metal concentration, as well as between stomatal resistance and heavy metal concentration. It was determined that a range of leaf characteristics in plants can be utilised as bioindicators of air quality in urban environments.