Heavy metal enrichment and ecological risk assessment of surface sediments in Khorramabad River, West Iran

Abstract

The ecological health of rivers has often been threatened in urbanized catchments due to the expansion of industrial activities and the population growth. Khorramabad River which flows through Khorramabad city, west of Iran, is an example of such settings. The river water is used for agricultural purposes downstream. In this study, the effect of Khorramabad city on heavy metal and metalloid (Cu, Pb, Zn, Ni, Cr, and As) loads in Khorramabad River sediments was investigated. To evaluate sediment pollution and potential adverse biological effects, surface sediment samples were collected at selected locations along the river and were characterized for their geochemical properties. Contamination factor (CF), pollution load index (PLI), and ecological risk assessment (RI) were calculated. Also, sediment quality guidelines (SQGs) were used to screen contaminants of concern in the study area. The results showed that sediments were moderately polluted, with stations located in more densely populated areas showing higher pollution indicators. Copper, Zn, and Pb sources could be attributed to urban wastewater, whereas Ni, Cr, and As had both natural and anthropogenic sources. Moreover, ecological risk assessments showed that sediments could be classified in the category of low risk. The results of the present study showed the effect of anthropogenic activities on heavy metal loads of the river sediments and these findings can be used to mitigate potential impacts on the environment and human health.

Analysis of Heavy Metal Sources in the Soil of Riverbanks Across an Urbanization Gradient

“…Since pesticide and phosphate sources contained As, the Cr-Ni group might come from a natural source, while As might come from agricultural source in the exurbs. In the Cu-Zn-Cd-Sb-Pb group, previous studies reported that Cu and Zn were not only related to industrial emissions, but also to agricultural fertilizers [ 53 , 54 ]. The elements Cd and Pb may primarily come from traffic pollutants and accumulate dust [ 55 , 56 ].…”

Sediments and Water Column Contamination by Heavy Metals in Ekulu River, Nigeria: Ecological and Human Health Risk Assessment

“…The extent of heavy metal contamination of the sediments of rivers can be evaluated employing several methods such as enrichment factor, index of geo-accumulation, metal contamination factor and the associated contamination degree and pollution index load [2,3,14,15]. Reviewed literature shows that the ecological risk assessment of the sediments due to heavy metal pollution can be evaluated via estimation of biological impairment using sediment quality guidelines (SQGs) [16].…”

Assessment of potentially harmful elements in floodplain soils and stream sediments in Ile-Ife area, South-western Nigeria

“…In this study, the PHEs that were determined include copper (Cu), lead (Pb), zinc (Zn), nickel (Ni), cobalt (Co), manganese (Mn), arsenic (As), thorium (Th), strontium (Sr), cadmium (Cd), vanadium (V), lanthanum (La) and chromium (Cr). These pollutants can reach an enrichment level that may pose serious environmental health risk to man and the biota [32,45]. Due to expansion of urban settlements, as well as rapid climate changes, there have been increased and frequent flooding, which lead to mobilisation and redistribution of some pollutants in river system and some are deposited along with the sediments flow in the floodplain transfers and storage, causing metal enrichment that may attain pollution status, [13,18,19,21].…”