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Metal contaminations in sediment and associated ecological risk assessment of river Mahanadi, India

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Mahanadi is one of the major rivers of peninsular India. Like other Indian rivers, it is contaminated with sewages, industrial discharges, and agricultural runoff. Thus, necessity was felt to monitor its pollution status. Present work was part of that program and aimed to assess the sediment contamination due to the trace metals Cd, Cr, Cu, Mn, Pb, and Zn during 2012–2015. Sediment pollution status and ecological risks were evaluated calculating contamination factor (CF), geo-accumulation (Igeo), pollution load index (PLI), potential ecological risk (EiR), etc. The recorded metal concentrations were Cd BDL of flame mode of AAS; Cr BDL - 73.9; Cu BDL - 44.4; Mn 37.2 - 1887.0; Pb BDL - 29.5; and Zn BDL - 92.5 mg kg−1. As per US EPA guidelines, Cr concentrations at many locations were in the moderately polluted range. Igeo, CF, mCd, PLI, and EiR indicated low pollution levels and low ecological risks due to the trace metals assessed. The sediment quality guidelines (SQGs) indicated that Cr and Cu concentrations exceeded (16% sample) the threshold effect concentrations and may occasionally exhibit adverse biological effects. The association of sediment organic matter, conductivity and content of Cu, and their grouping in component 1 of PCA revealed that the anthropogenic input was dominant and so also the component 2 where Cr exhibited moderately good correlation with organic matter. Cluster analysis of the sampling sites based on pollution status yielded 3 groups: relatively uncontaminated (S3, S4), low to moderately contaminated (S2), and moderately contaminated (S1, S5, S6) stretches.

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Acknowledgments

The authors are thankful to the ICAR-Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute (ICAR-CIFRI), Barrackpore, Kolkata, for providing all facilities. The help received from Dr. Sajina A.M. during sampling and assistance received from Ms. Manisha Bhor (ICAR-CIFRI) for making GPS image of the sampling sites are also acknowledged.

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  1. ICAR-Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute, Barrackpore, Kolkata, 700120, India

    S. Samanta, Vikas Kumar, S. K. Nag, R. K. Raman, K. Saha, S. Bandyopadhyay, B. P. Mohanty & B. K. Das

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  1. S. Samanta
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  2. Vikas Kumar
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Samanta, S., Kumar, V., Nag, S.K. et al. Metal contaminations in sediment and associated ecological risk assessment of river Mahanadi, India. Environ Monit Assess 192 (Suppl 1), 810 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-020-08708-1

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