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Trace-metal contamination in the glacierized Rio Santa watershed, Peru

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Abstract

The objective of this research is to characterize the variability of trace metals in the Rio Santa watershed based on synoptic sampling applied at a large scale. To that end, we propose a combination of methods based on the collection of water, suspended sediments, and riverbed sediments at different points of the watershed within a very limited period. Forty points within the Rio Santa watershed were sampled between June 21 and July 8, 2013. Forty water samples, 36 suspended sediments, and 34 riverbed sediments were analyzed for seven trace metals. The results, which were normalized using the USEPA guideline for water and sediments, show that the Rio Santa water exhibits Mn concentrations higher than the guideline at more than 50% of the sampling points. As is the second highest contaminating element in the water, with approximately 10% of the samples containing concentrations above the guideline. Sediments collected in the Rio Santa riverbed were heavily contaminated by at least four of the tested elements at nearly 85% of the sample points, with As presenting the highest normalized concentration, at more than ten times the guideline. As, Cd, Fe, Pb, and Zn present similar concentration trends in the sediment all along the Rio Santa.

The findings indicate that care should be taken in using the Rio Santa water and sediments for purposes that could affect the health of humans or the ecosystem. The situation is worse in some tributaries in the southern part of the watershed that host both active and abandoned mines and ore-processing plants.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank École de technologie supérieure in Canada for its support in carrying out the research under the best possible conditions.

Funding

We are grateful for the funding provided by the National Science Foundation (BCS-0752175), the Geochemistry and Geodynamics Research Centre of Québec (GEOTOP), the Natural Science and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), McGill University, and the Climate, Water and Carbon Program at The Ohio State University.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. École de Technologie Supérieure, Université du Québec, 1100 Notre-Dame Street West, Montréal, QC, H3C 1K3, Canada

    Alexandre Guittard & Michel Baraer

  2. Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, McGill University, 3450 University Street, Montréal, QC, H3A 0E8, Canada

    Jeffrey M. McKenzie & Elizabeth Walsh

  3. Department of Geography, Byrd Polar and Climate Research Center, The Ohio State University, 1036 Derby Hall, 154 North Oval Mall, Columbus, OH, 43210-1361, USA

    Bryan G. Mark & Oliver Wigmore

  4. Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research/Earth Lab, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, USA

    Oliver Wigmore

  5. Department of Geography, Universidad de Concepción, Concepción, Chile

    Alfonso Fernandez

  6. Unidad de Glaciología y Recursos Hídricos, Autoridad Nacional del Agua, 167 Av. Confraternidad Internacional Oeste, Huaraz, Peru

    Alejo C. Rapre

  7. Department of Environmental Studies, University of California, 1156 High Street, Santa Cruz, CA, 95064, USA

    Jeffrey Bury

  8. Robert D. Clark Honors College and Department of Environmental Studies, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, 97403, USA

    Mark Carey

  9. International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, Schlossplatz 1, Laxenburg, 2361, Austria

    Adam French

  10. Department of Geography and Environment, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, 78712, USA

    Kenneth R. Young

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  1. Alexandre Guittard
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  2. Michel Baraer
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  3. Jeffrey M. McKenzie
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  4. Bryan G. Mark
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  5. Oliver Wigmore
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  6. Alfonso Fernandez
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  7. Alejo C. Rapre
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  8. Elizabeth Walsh
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  9. Jeffrey Bury
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  10. Mark Carey
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  11. Adam French
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  12. Kenneth R. Young
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Correspondence to Alexandre Guittard.

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Guittard, A., Baraer, M., McKenzie, J.M. et al. Trace-metal contamination in the glacierized Rio Santa watershed, Peru. Environ Monit Assess 189, 649 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-017-6353-0

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