In the last three decades, the industrial and human activities in the coastal area of Saudi Arabia have increased dramatically and resulted in the continuous invasion of different types of pollutants including heavy metals. Seven sediment cores were collected from three major industrialized areas; Jeddah, Rabigh and Yanbu, along the coast of Saudi Arabia to determine the spatial and temporal distribution of metals and to assess the magnitude of pollution and their potential biological effects. Sediments were analyzed for texture, calcium carbonate contents, organic matter and metals (Al, Fe, Mn, Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb and Zn). Some metals like, Cr, Mn, Ni and Zn, were enriched in the upper 15 cm of core samples (recent deposition of sediments). Cadmium concentrations showed high fluctuations with depth and reverse pattern to that for Al, Fe and Mn which indicated land based sources of this element to the studied areas. Elevated concentrations of lead were recorded in the bottom layers of cores in Jeddah that indicated the most dramatic increase in usage of gasoline in early 1970s. The calculated contamination factors (CF's) were found in the following sequences: Cd > Pb > Ni > Cu > Zn > Cr > Mn for all studied areas. Results of Pollution Load Index (PLI) revealed that Jeddah is the most polluted area, followed by Rabigh while Yanbu is the least contaminated area. Except for Ni, the concentrations of most metals in the majority of sediment samples were believed to be safe for living organisms. As no data were available on the concentration of metals in core sediments in the coastal area of Saudi Arabia, the results of this study would serve as a baseline against which future anthropogenic effects can be assessed.

Metal pollution records in core sediments of some Red Sea coastal areas, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the current status of metal pollution of the sediments from urban-stream, estuary and Jinzhou Bay of the coastal industrial city, NE China. Forty surface sediment samples from river, estuary and bay and one sediment core from Jinzhou bay were collected and analyzed for heavy metal concentrations of Cu, Zn, Pb, Cd, Ni and Mn. The data reveals that there was a remarkable change in the contents of heavy metals among the sampling sediments, and all the mean values of heavy metal concentration were higher than the national guideline values of marine sediment quality of China (GB 18668-2002). This is one of the most polluted of the world’s impacted coastal systems. Both the correlation analyses and geostatistical analyses showed that Cu, Zn, Pb and Cd have a very similar spatial pattern and come from the industrial activities, and the concentration of Mn mainly caused by natural factors. The estuary is the most polluted area with extremely high potential ecological risk; however the contamination decreased with distance seaward of the river estuary. This study clearly highlights the urgent need to make great efforts to control the industrial emission and the exceptionally severe heavy metal pollution in the coastal area, and the immediate measures should be carried out to minimize the rate of contamination, and extent of future pollution problems.

https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0039690&type=printable

Integrated Assessment of Heavy Metal Contamination in Sediments from a Coastal Industrial Basin, NE China

Heavy metal sedimentary record in a Galician Ria (NW Spain): background values and recent contamination

The concentration of heavy metals and their spatial distribution in surface sediments collected from the Thondi coast, Palk Bay, South India were analysed in this study. The sediment grain size, pH, EC, and major elements (Fe, and Al), heavy metal concentrations (Mn, Cr, Zn, Cd, Ni, Cu, and Pb) were determined and the values for the geoaccumulation index (Igeo), enrichment factor (EF), potential contamination index (Cp), potential ecological risk index (RI), contamination factor (CF), modified contamination degree (mCd), degree of contamination (Cd), and potential contamination factors (Cp) were calculated based on their background values to determine the pollution level of the study area. Multivariate analysis such as Pearson’s correlation coefficient, principal component analysis/factor analysis (PCA/FA), cluster analysis, and regression analysis are a versatile method for identifying heavy metal sources and determining the relationship between pollutants in marine sediment. The pollution indices, namely EF, CF, Cd, mCd, CP, RI, and Igeo, revealed that the heavy metal contamination was due to Cd, while a moderate level of contamination was caused by Cu, Zn, Pb, and Cr. The principal component analysis and correlation matrix analysis showed a strong positive loading for Cd due to its high level of contamination in the study area. Anthropogenic inputs such as municipal wastewater, domestic sewage discharge, fishing harbour activities, and industrial and aquaculture wastes led to the increased Cd concentration in the study area. Moreover, the pollution load index revealed that the sediments were polluted by heavy metals. The findings of this study revealed that the increased concentration of heavy metals in the study area increases the toxicity in the marine environment, thus affecting the ecosystem.

/pdf/heavy-metal-pollutants-and-their-spatial-distribution-in-5flrhchuni.pdf

Heavy metal pollutants and their spatial distribution in surface sediments from Thondi coast, Palk Bay, South India

Spatial variation, environmental assessment and source identification of heavy metals in sediments of the Yangtze River Estuary.

The rias of NW Spain are coastal ecosystems of high biological productivity and great economic importance. They are intensively exploited by man for fish and shellfish. There are a number of important centres of population and industrial activity along their margins, which serve as sources of contamination. In this context, it is desirable to achieve the best possible understanding of the physico-chemical processes that control spatial and temporal variations in the geochemical, mineralogical and sedimentological characteristics of near-surface sediments in the Ria de Pontevedra and, in particular, the distribution and mobility of heavy metal contaminants. Thus, adequate environmental planning can be achieved for this site and understanding gained for comparable contexts. Core samples were examined from the inner, middle and outer parts of the ria. Grain-size distributions reflect the presence of two main populations, one dominated by silt and clay, derived mainly from terrestrial sources, and the other by fine sand to coarse silt, which is derived mainly from continental shelf and ria mouth sources. Mineralogical analysis shows an abundance of terrestrial intensive-weathering products near the ria head, a dominance of shelf-derived sediment towards the mouth and the presence of several diagenetic minerals whose nature varies with location within the ria. In the inner ria, the near-surface sediments are slightly enriched in Pb, Cu and Zn from anthropogenic sources. These sediments are fine grained and have a high organic content; hence, they have a higher potential to sorb contaminants than the coarser grained, less organic-rich sediments of the mid and outer ria. The estimated sedimentation rates for the fine-grained organic-rich sediments from the inner part of the ria are about 1 mm year–1. The dominant authigenic minerals in the inner ria are iron sulphides, whereas in the mid and outer ria, iron silicates and oxyhydroxides are more important. These differences in authigenic iron mineralogy are clearly reflected by the magnetic properties of the sediments.

Sedimentological characteristics, heavy metal distribution and magnetic properties in subtidal sediments, Ria de Pontevedra, NW Spain

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Sedimentological characteristics, heavy metal distribution and magnetic properties in subtidal sediments, Ria de Pontevedra, NW Spain