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Metal wet deposition in the Three Gorges Reservoir (TGR) region of Southwest China

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Abstract

Metal wet deposition has become an environmental concern because of its threats to soil or water quality and human health. This study was to collect rainfall waters in 2016 from seven sites, representing urban, town, rural, and wetland, within the Three Gorges Reservoir (TGR) region of Southwest China, determine the metal concentration and flux (Zn, Mn, Cu, As, Cd, Pb), and identify their possible sources. Results indicated that Zn was the most abundant metal with a concentration of 16.92 μg L−1 in fall and 19.91 μg L−1 in winter and flux of 4.71 mg m−2 in fall, while Cd was the least with a monthly mean concentration of 0.02–0.37 μg L−1. Among the seven sites, urban (FL) had the highest values of both concentrations of metals (Zn, Cu, Pb) and fluxes of metals (Mn, As), which significantly differed from the other sites. Component and redundancy analysis suggested that fossil fuel and biomass combustion be a potential metal source. Enrichment factors, box model, and potential ecological risk index showed that the TGR water quality could face a high risk due to wet metal deposition, especially Cd. Data could provide a valuable aid in mitigating metal pollution, developing the best watershed management practices, as well as safeguarding water quality and human health in the TGR region or other reservoir regions.

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Acknowledgements

We appreciate Huanbo Wang, Yuan Liu, Guangming Shi, Yang Chen, and Mi Tian in our group for their assistance in the establishment of sampling sites.

Funding

This research was funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (41571461), the Chongqing Science & Technology Commission (cstc2015jcyjBX0025; cstc2017shms-xdny80088), Chongqing Institute of Green and Intelligent Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (R53A500Z10), and the Open Foundation of Key Laboratory of Reservoir Aquatic Environment of Chinese Academy of Sciences.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Chongqing Institue of Green and Intelligent Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chongqing, 400714, China

    Min Gao, Jian Cui, Liuyi Zhang, Dongyi He, Fengwu Zhou, Qiangmei Leng & Fumo Yang

  2. University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 101408, China

    Min Gao, Jian Cui, Liuyi Zhang & Fumo Yang

  3. Department of Agriculture and Environmental Science, Lincoln University of Missouri, Jefferson City, MO, 65101, USA

    John Yang

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  1. Min Gao
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  2. Jian Cui
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  4. Dongyi He
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  5. John Yang
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  6. Fengwu Zhou
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  7. Qiangmei Leng
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  8. Fumo Yang
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Correspondence to Jian Cui.

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Gao, M., Cui, J., Zhang, L. et al. Metal wet deposition in the Three Gorges Reservoir (TGR) region of Southwest China. Environ Sci Pollut Res 25, 32053–32065 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-018-3075-y

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