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Spatial and Temporal Variations and Risk Assessment of Heavy Metal Fractions in Sediments of the Pearl River Estuary, Southern China

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Abstract

Sequential extraction was used to study the mobility and ecological risk of chemical fractions of six heavy metals in sediments collected from the Pearl River Delta (PRE) in China. Results revealed that residual fractions (F4) were the dominant forms for Cr and Ni in surface sediments, indicating that they were primarily stable in nature and had low bioavailability and ecotoxicity. Cd had a high environmental risk owing to its higher availability in acid-soluble fraction (F1), whereas Pb occurred predominantly in the reducible fraction (F2) in surface sediments. The profile variations of bioavailable fractions were generally consistent with socioeconomic development in the Pearl River Delta (PRD). A decreasing trend after 2006 suggested a reduction in heavy metal bioavailable fractions owing to the removal of heavy polluting industries and the effective control of sewage discharge. The risk assessment code suggested that the high mobility of Cd posed an extremely high risk and a threat to the aquatic environment.

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Acknowledgements

The research was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (41771027 and 41701585), APN (CRRP2019-09MY-Onodera), Startup Project of Doctor scientific research, Huizhou University (2020JB074).

Funding

National Natural Science Foundation of China, 41771027, Jianyao Chen, 41701585, Lei Gao, APN, CRRP2019-09MY-Onodera, Shin-ichi Onodera, Startup Project of Doctor scientific research, Huizhou University, 2020JB074, Zhiping Ye.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Geography and Tourism, Huizhou University, Huizhou, 516007, China

    Zhiping Ye

  2. Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Urbanization and Geo-Simulation, School of Geography and Planning, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, 510275, China

    Jianyao Chen, Zuobing Liang, Shaoheng Li, Rui Li & Lei Gao

  3. Guangdong Ocean University, Huguangyan, Zhanjiang, 524088, Guandong Province, China

    Guangzhe Jin

  4. Interdisciplinary Graduate School of Engineering Sciences, Kyushu University, Kasuga, Fukuoka, 816-8580, Japan

    Yuta Shimizu

  5. Graduate School of Integrated Arts and Sciences, Hiroshima University, 1-7-1 Kagamiyama, Higashi-Hiroshima, 739-8521, Japan

    Shin-ichi Onodera & Mitsuyo Saito

  6. Department of Earth Sciences, School of Physical, Chemical, and Applied Sciences, Pondicherry University, Puducherry, 605104, India

    Gnanachandrasamy Gopalakrishnan

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  1. Zhiping Ye
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Ye, Z., Chen, J., Liang, Z. et al. Spatial and Temporal Variations and Risk Assessment of Heavy Metal Fractions in Sediments of the Pearl River Estuary, Southern China. Arch Environ Contam Toxicol 84, 389–399 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00244-023-00995-2

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