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Contamination and ecological risk assessment of toxic trace elements in the Xi River, an urban river of Shenyang city, China
- Source :
- Environmental Monitoring and Assessment. 185:4321-4332
- Publication Year :
- 2012
- Publisher :
- Springer Science and Business Media LLC, 2012.
-
Abstract
- The objectives of this study were to assess the enrichment, contamination, and ecological risk posed by toxic trace elements in the sediments of the Xi River in the industrialized city of Shenyang, China. Surface sediment and sediment core were collected; analyzed for toxic trace elements; and assessed with an index of geoaccumulation (Igeo), enrichment factor (EF) value, potential ecological risk factor (Er), ecological risk index (RI), and probable effect concentration quotient (PECQ). Elemental concentrations (milligram per kilogram) were 8.5-637.9 for As, 6.5-103.9 for Cd, 12.2-21.9 for Co, 90.6-516.0 for Cr, 258.1-1,791.5 for Cu, 2.6-19.0 for Hg, 70.5-174.5 for Ni, 126.9-1,405.8 for Pb, 3.7-260.0 for Sb, 38.4-100.4 for V, and 503-4,929 for Zn. The Igeo, EF, Er, and PECQ indices showed that the contamination of Cd and Hg was more serious than that of As, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, Sb, and Zn, whereas the presence of Co and V might be primarily from natural sources. The Igeo index for Cr and Ni might underestimate the degree of contamination, potentially as a result of high concentrations of these elements in the shale. The RI index was higher than 600, indicating a notably high ecological risk of sediment for the river. The average PECQ for As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb, and Zn ranged from 1.4 to 4.1 for surface sediment and from 5.2 to 9.6 in the sediment cores, indicating a high potential for an adverse biological effect. It was concluded that the sediment in the Xi River was severely contaminated and should be remediated as a hazardous material.
- Subjects :
- China
Geologic Sediments
Sediment
General Medicine
Management, Monitoring, Policy and Law
Contamination
Biological effect
Risk Assessment
Pollution
Trace Elements
Rivers
Environmental chemistry
Water Pollution, Chemical
Ecotoxicology
Environmental science
Ecological risk
Cities
Enrichment factor
Sediment core
Water Pollutants, Chemical
Environmental Monitoring
General Environmental Science
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 15732959 and 01676369
- Volume :
- 185
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Environmental Monitoring and Assessment
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....ef9d7334c713dda6dbb8d654f7e27b7a