The role of local geochemical and mineralogical backgrounds as essential information to build efficient sediment quality guidelines at high-mountainous hydrothermally-altered basins (Mapocho basin, Chile)

Correa-Burrows, José Pablo; Navarrete-Calvo, Alvaro; Valenzuela-Díaz, Martín J.; Zapata-Aguiló, Valeria A.; Montserrat, Santiago; Navarro-Valdivia, Leonardo; McPhee, James; Caraballo, Manuel A.

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.147266

Cited by 10 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 33 publications

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“…Hg content in stream sediments reached up to 2300 and 4100 mg kg −1 Hg in Almadén and Idrija Hg mining districts (probably the most polluted sites of this type in the world), respectively, and those collected near the Almadén mine contain up to 82 mg kg −1 methyl-Hg (Gray et al 2004 ; Gosar 2008 ). In other studies, sediment As concentrations ranged from 6 to 25,000 mg kg −1 , being the latter in polluted areas (US EPA 2022a ; WHO 2001; Correa et al 2021 ; Rieuwerts et al 2014 ). In most cases, the highest values correspond to sediments taken just downstream of the mining sites, whereby tailing piles or the river bed itself are eroded by the rivers, so that fine-grained fragments of calcine or cinnabar particles are washed away (Gray et al 2004 ; Gosar 2008 ).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 81%

Assessment of hydrological, geological, and biological parameters of a river basin impacted by old Hg mining in NW Spain

Escudero,

Ojanguren,

Álvarez

et al. 2024

Environ Sci Pollut Res

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Mercury (Hg) is a toxic metal that can cause adverse effects for the health of ecosystems. The Caudal River is one of the main rivers in the Asturias region (NW Spain), whose basin is highly anthropized, hosting several Hg mines, closed in the last century. Arsenic (As) is also found in the mineral paragenesis of the Hg deposits, posing a greater environmental risk. In the mining sites, remaining old facilities and tailings continue to release these elements into the environment. In this work, samples of fluvial sediments and water were taken, both in areas affected by anthropic activity and in pristine areas, in order to establish the background levels for the critical elements. The mineralogical study of the sediments, combined with EDS microanalysis, is useful to identify mineralogical traps such as Fe oxides or clays to retain the As. The As content in all sampled sediments is above the threshold effect levels (TEL), the possible effect range within which adverse effects occasionally occur, according to the Canadian Sediment Quality Guidelines for the Protection of Aquatic Life. This fact is related to a naturally high geochemical background in the basin, due to the existing mineral deposits. The PEL threshold (the probable effect range within which adverse effects frequently occur) is exceeded by more than an order of magnitude in the sediments downstream of the Hg mines. In these points, the As content in the water, exceeding 700 μg L−1 As, is also above the quality standard established in Spanish legislation. As a result, the Caudal River tributaries in the lower part of the basin do not reach a good ecological state, according to the Hydrological Planning Office, and in some cases their state is deficient, showing low richness and high dominance of macroinvertebrates. Although the concentrations decrease with distance from the source, these findings justify the low ecological quality of the affected watercourses.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 81%

Assessment of hydrological, geological, and biological parameters of a river basin impacted by old Hg mining in NW Spain

Escudero,

Ojanguren,

Álvarez

et al. 2024

Environ Sci Pollut Res

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“…Mao et al (2019) found that the content of Sb was positively correlated with the content of Fe, Mn, and OM in the sediment column [13]. Correa-Burrows et al (2021) [11] suggested that the PTEs BV was significantly affected by the parent material in river sediments in a mountainous area. And high PTEs concentration was found precipitates naturally formed as fine particles.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…It reflects the natural concentration in parent materials and is a key standard to measure the level of pollution [7]. However, existing studies on the BV of PTEs in freshwater sediment mainly focus on main streams and primary tributaries of major rivers, e.g., Yangtze River [8] and Zhujiang River [9,10] in China, Mapocho River in Chile [11] and Tisza River in Serbia [12]. Because of the high variability of BV in sediments [13,14], the absence of regional BV can lead to large bias of pollution assessment results [15].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Improved Method of Background Value Determination for Sb and Cd in Freshwater Sediment—Insights from Controlling Factors on Spatial Variability

Mao

Wang

Kang

et al. 2023

IJERPH

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Variability in the distribution of natural total Sb and Cd in freshwater sediments leads to difficulties in background value (BV) determination. This study aimed to establish a method to determine BV more accurately by investigating the vertical distribution of Sb and Cd in sediment cores collected from a typical river in alluvial plain in China and revealed the factors that control the variation of Sb and Cd BV, which has not been studied in alluvial freshwater sediment. The results suggested that uncontaminated samples for BV calculation should be determined by statistical analysis as human and natural disturbance led to high variation in contamination depth, from <5 cm to >55 cm. The sequential chemical extraction method showed a considerable amount of non-residual fractions of Sb and Cd, which accounted for 48% and 43% of the total, respectively. Acid extractable Cd (16%) was associated to the limestone geology in the area. Fine particles which governed by sedimentary environment contained more natural Sb and Cd, as strong positive correlation was found between clay content and Sb concentration (r = 0.89, p < 0.01), as well as Cd concentration (r = 0.54, p < 0.01). Based on these findings, a method combined with standard deviation and geochemical method was established to calculate the BV of Sb and Cd, and counter maps were made to cover the variation of BV in the Taipu river sediment. The pollution level has been evaluated by the geoaccumulation index more accurately.

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Impact of organic carbon on heavy metals of river sediments and aquatic ecosystems: A review

Basti,

Sahu,

Pati

et al. 2024

Environmental Quality Mgmt

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Organic carbon with variable chemical composition sourced primarily from terrestrial and aquatic biogenic input has a significant impact on sediment heavy metal mobility. The present scientific view is unclear in deciphering the role of labile organic carbon in changing sediment heavy metal concentration. The present review critically assesses the impact of various forms of carbon on different geochemically bound heavy metal fractions and their monitoring. It is evident from the review that, the biochemical form of organic carbon (based on degradability and biopolymeric forms), carbon‐geochemical association, and density of organic carbon (light or heavy carbon fractions) plays an important role in determining the bioavailability and toxicity of metals for aquatic organisms. Besides the organic carbon, various sediment conditions that define the behavior of heavy metals include pH, redox condition, sulfide concentration, salinity, temperature, etc. Therefore, it is recommended that carbon relation with heavy metal mobility and stability should be included under long‐term sediment management plans to maintain the sediment quality of the river system.

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The role of local geochemical and mineralogical backgrounds as essential information to build efficient sediment quality guidelines at high-mountainous hydrothermally-altered basins (Mapocho basin, Chile)

Cited by 10 publications

References 33 publications

Assessment of hydrological, geological, and biological parameters of a river basin impacted by old Hg mining in NW Spain

Assessment of hydrological, geological, and biological parameters of a river basin impacted by old Hg mining in NW Spain

Improved Method of Background Value Determination for Sb and Cd in Freshwater Sediment—Insights from Controlling Factors on Spatial Variability

Impact of organic carbon on heavy metals of river sediments and aquatic ecosystems: A review

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