Impact of anthropogenic activities on an urban river through a comprehensive analysis of water and sediments

Abstract

The aim of this study was to assess the impact of urban and industrial areas on an urban river through a comprehensive analysis of water and sediments. Six different sites along the San Luis River, Argentina, were characterized by measuring 12 physicalchemical parameters and nine heavy metals according to standard protocols. Metal pollution in sediment samples was evaluated with several indices. Cluster analysis was applied to standardized experimental data in order to study spatial variability. As, Cu, Cr, Mn, Pb, and Zn were the main contributors to sediment pollution, and the industrial zone studied showed moderate enrichment of Co, Cu, and Zn, probably due to anthropogenic activities. Cluster analysis allowed the grouping of the sites: sediment samples were classified into two clusters according to the metal content; water samples were arranged into three groups according to organic matter content. The results were compared with sediment and water quality guidelines. They indicated progressive deterioration of water and sediment quality compared with the background area, mainly in the sites following the industrial park and domestic discharge areas. Moreover, the results showed that the analysis of both water and sediment should be considered to achieve a watershed contamination profile.

Spatial Distribution, Risk Index, and Correlation of Heavy Metals in the Chuhe River (Yangtze Tributary): Preliminary Research Analysis of Surface Water and Sediment Contamination

“…These findings are comparable to national and global contexts, where anthropogenic activities, notably agricultural runoff, anthropogenic activities, domestic discharge, The consistently elevated Igeo values for specific heavy metals, particularly Arsenic and Cadmium, across various sediment samples indicate a pervasive contamination issue (Table 4). These findings are comparable to national and global contexts, where anthropogenic activities, notably agricultural runoff, anthropogenic activities, domestic discharge, and industrial emissions, have notoriously facilitated the percolation of heavy metals into aquatic ecosystems [1,54,55]. Arsenic, particularly noted for its toxicity, bioaccumulation, and potential to propagate through trophic levels [56], emerges as a conspicuous concern given its consistently high Igeo values, implying a pressing need for strategic intervention.…”

Spatio-temporal study of water quality variables in the Rio de Ondas Hydrographic Basin, west of Bahia, Brazil using multivariate analysis

“…Natural and anthropogenic factors can in uence changes in water quality, and rivers receive a considerable load of pollutants released into the air, soil, or directly into drainage networks (Padowski, 2020;Province, 2015;Vittori et al, 2018;Zhao et al, 2019). Of these, anthropogenic activities are the primary sources of alterations, dumping urban (Castro et al, 2021;Padowski, 2020;Province, 2015), industrial (Dadi et al, 2018;Gonzalo and Camargo, 2013;Kistemann et al, 2016) and agricultural (Edwards et al, 2019;Vittori et al, 2018) e uents that can pose a risk and cause severe harmful effects to marine and human species once they reach water bodies, due to the highly toxic elements, ions and substances they carry (Dadi et Wang et al, 2018). The former is promoted by surface runoff over large areas and makes identi cation, measurement, and, consequently, controlling di cult, as there are low concentrations of polluting species in water (Carazo-Rojas et al, 2018; Libos et al, 2003;Lima et al, 2016).…”

Geochemistry indices and biotests as useful tools in the assessment of the degree of sediment contamination by metals

“…Metals constitute a large proportion of bottom sediment pollutants due to their persistence, toxicity, tendency to concentrate in organisms and incorporation into food chains (Baran et al 2016). Currently, the ecological risk assessment of heavy metals in bottom sediments is attracting considerable attention in the subject literature (Kulbat & Sokołowska 2019, Tytła & Kostecki 2019, Heise et al 2020, Castro et al 2021, Nawrot et al 2021, Baran et al 2023. Some researchers advocate assessing the potential risk based on chemical analyses, i.e.…”