Heavy Metal Pollution in Sediments from Aquatic Ecosystems in China

Abstract

We conducted an analysis of heavy metals content, including As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Pb, and Zn in sediments from aquatic ecosystems in China measured in recent publications. Then, we evaluated the extent of heavy metal pollution in these ecosystems in seven different industrial districts in China (Dongbei, Huabei, Huazhong, Huanan, Huaxik, Xibei, and Huadong) with the potential ecological risk index. We found that Cd was the most concentrated pollutant, followed by Hg and As, while Cr, Cu, Pb, Zn were found in low concentrations in sediments from all types of aquatic ecosystem in China. Sediments collected from all seven industrial districts were heavily polluted, and the sequence, from most to least polluted was Dongbei>Huabei>Huazhong>Huanan>Huaxi>Xibei>Huadong. All four types of aquatic ecosystem were found to be seriously polluted and the sequence, from most to least polluted was: river>sea>lake>wetland. Specifically, Cd and Hg were the most serious pollutants in all four aquatic ecosystems, and As was also a serious pollutant in rivers. For the seven industrial districts studied the sea was the most polluted ecosystem in Dongbei, the river was the most polluted ecosystem in Huabei, Huanan, Huazhong, and the lake was the most polluted in Huadong, Huaxi, and Xibei.

Ecological Risk Assessment Of Heavy Metals In Sediments Of A Riverine Wetland, Huaihe River Watershed, China

“…Even the "toxic response" factors for Cu, As, Pb, Zn, and Cr were much lower than that for Cd [29]. Relatively low values of C d indicated that sediments had no significant potential ecological risk as far as Pb, Cr, and As are concerned, while Cd exerted the highest potential ecological risk.…”

“…Sediments were classified into the following groups according to their degree of contamination: i r E ≥ 320 or RI ≥ 600: very high potential ecological risk [29].…”

Spatial Variations in the Surface Water Chemistry of Subtropical Peatlands (Central China) Linked to Anthropogenic Pressures

“…Surface water always contains various dissolved substances from the soil, air, and organisms, and hence water chemistry can be a mirror of the environmental conditions in wetlands [6,14,15]. Anthropogenic disturbances could lead to water quality degradation in these ecologically important ecosystems [2,7,16,17].…”

Heavy Metal Concentrations and Risk Assessment of Sediments and Surface Water of the Gan River, China

“…With regard to sediment, geochemical normalization and pollution indices were applied in risk assessment; i.e., contamination factor (CF) [13], sediment quality guidelines (SQGs) [14][15], geoaccumulation index (I Geo ) [14][15][16], modified degree of contamination (mC d ) [17], pollution load index (PLI) [13,18], metal pollution index (MPI) [19], enrichment factor (EF) [14,[20][21], and potential ecological risk index (PERI) [15,[21][22]. Although reviewing literature revealed that applying those methods on metals assessment was a controversial issue, geochemical normalization with conservative elements had been effectively used for evaluating the pollution degree of metal pollutants and identifying their anthropogenic and natural sources.…”