Includes bibliographical references and index.

Sect. 1. General Principles -- 1. Introduction / B. J. Alloway. 2. Soil processes and the behaviour of heavy metals / B. J. Alloway. 3. The origin of heavy metals in soils / B. J. Alloway. 4. Methods of analysis for heavy metals in soils / A. M. Ure -- Sect. 2. Individual elements. 5. Arsenic / P. O'Neill. 6. Cadmium / B. J. Alloway. 7. Chromium and nickel / S. P. McGrath. 8. Copper / D. E. Baker and J. P. Senft. 9. Lead / B. E. Davies. 10. Manganese and cobalt / K. A. Smith and J. E. Paterson. 11. Mercury / E. Steinnes. 12. Selenium / R. H. Neal. 13. Zinc / L. Kiekens. 14. Other less abundant elements of potential environment significance / N. W. Lepp, R. Edwards and K. C. Jones -- Appendix 1: Chemical properties of the heavy metals -- Appendix 2: Concentrations of heavy metals in soils and plants -- Appendix 3: Maximum metal concentrations allowed in soils treated with sewage sludge in different countries.

Appendix 4: US Environmental Protection Agency Part 503 Regulations for sewage sludge applied to land -- Appendix 5: UK Department of the Environment ICRCL 'trigger' concentrations for metals in contaminated land which is to be redeveloped for the uses specified -- Appendix 6: Guide values and quality standards used in the Netherlands for assessing soil contamination -- Appendix 7: Comparison between the US Soil Taxonomy and the FAO/UNESCO soil classification schemes -- Appendix 8: Common and botanical names of cultivated plants -- Appendix 9: Element concentrations in selected certified reference materials.