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Heavy Metals, Nitrogen, and Phosphorus in Sediments from the First Drinking Water Reservoir Supplied by Yangtze River in Shanghai, China: Spatial Distribution Characteristics and Pollution Risk Assessment

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Abstract

Endogenous pollution is one of the most notable issues in drinking water reservoirs, since the sediment is a main sink of contaminants in the aquatic environment. In this work, we investigated the spatial distribution characteristics of heavy metals and different species of N and P and assessed the pollution risks of the sediments from the Chenhang Reservoir, which is the first drinking water reservoir supplied by Yangtze River in Shanghai, China. The results show that heavy metals, including Cu, Pb, Zn, Mn, and Fe, were mainly accumulated in the downstream, while most Ni and Cr were concentrated in the sediments from the central and western zones. Total N in the sediments was primarily distributed in the eastern reservoir, while ammonia N and most of total P were accumulated in the central and eastern areas. The geo-accumulation index (Igeo) and potential ecological risk index (PERI) suggest that the sediments were polluted by combined heavy metals at minor to medium levels, posing a potential risk to ecosystem. Moreover, sediment quality guidelines (SQGs) indicate that Ni in all sites and Zn in the eastern reservoir would cause great negative biological response to benthic organisms. Additionally, the sediments were slightly polluted by N but not P, especially in the downstream. Multivariate statistical analyses revealed that Cu, Zn, Pb, and N mainly derived from industrial wastewater, domestic sewage and surface runoff from the Yangtze River, while Cr, Ni, and P mainly originated from natural erosion and nonpoint sources.

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Acknowledgments

This study was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (41807461), Shanghai Sailing Program (18YF1401000), Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (2019FZJD007 and 2232018D3-19), National Key Research and Development Project of China (2019YFC0408604), and Shanghai Yangpu District Postdoctoral Innovation Practice Base Research Project.

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  1. Textile Pollution Controlling Engineering Center of Ministry of Environmental Protection, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Donghua University, Shanghai, 201620, China

    Cheng Peng, Yihao Shen, Peng Yuan, Si Chen, Siwen Ze & Xinshan Song

  2. Shanghai National Engineering Research Center of Urban Water Resources Co., Ltd, Shanghai, 200082, China

    Cheng Peng, Xuefei Wu, Lei Jiang & Xianyun Wang

  3. Shanghai Institute of Pollution Control and Ecological Security, Shanghai, 200092, China

    Cheng Peng

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  1. Cheng Peng
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Four tables providing baseline concentrations of heavy metals, sediment quality guidelines for heavy metals, averaged concentrations of heavy metals, and PCA results. This material is available free of charge via the Internet at http:// (DOCX 36 kb)

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Peng, C., Shen, Y., Wu, X. et al. Heavy Metals, Nitrogen, and Phosphorus in Sediments from the First Drinking Water Reservoir Supplied by Yangtze River in Shanghai, China: Spatial Distribution Characteristics and Pollution Risk Assessment. Water Air Soil Pollut 231, 298 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-020-04651-6

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