Abstract
The mining and utilization of coal resources has not only promoted rapid economic development but also poses a potential threat to the ecological environment. The purpose of this study is to clarify the effects both of mining and land use types on the spatial distribution and particular sources of heavy metals in soil, using inverse distance weighted (IDW) and the Positive Matrix Factorization (PMF) model. A total of 99 topsoil and profile soil samples across different land use types and mining conditions were collected. The contamination of soil with Cd, Pb, and Hg in the research area was most severe, with the coefficient of variation (CV) of Hg being the largest, while also being heavily influenced by human activities. Severely polluted regions were mainly distributed in the center of the coal mining area, as well as near the highway. The contents of heavy metals for various land use patterns were ranked as follows: forestland > farmland > bare land > grassland > building land. Hg, Cd, Pb, Cr, and Zn had showed migration in the 0–60 cm depth range, and the enrichment factors (EFs) of Cd, Pb, Hg, and As in the soil profile were the most significant. The PMF demonstrated that the contributions of industrial activities and atmospheric deposition, transportation and mining activities, agricultural activities, and natural sources accounted for 31.25%, 28.13%, 22.24%, and 18.38%, respectively. The migration and deposition of atmospheric particulate matter from coal mining, transportation, and coal combustion under winds triggered heavy metal contamination in semi-arid areas of northern China. This phenomenon has important implications for the prevention and reduction of heavy metal pollution through various effective measures in coal-mining cities in northern China.
Graphical abstract
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
Data availability
Data are available upon reasonable request.
References
Amir, M., Bhuiyan, M., Karmaker, S., Bodrud-Doza, M., & Saha, B. B. (2020). Enrichment, sources and ecological risk mapping of heavy metals in agricultural soils of dhaka district employing SOM, PMF and GIS methods. Chemosphere, 263(4), 128339. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2020.128339
Bhuiyan, M. A. H., Parvez, L., Islam, M. A., Samuel, B. D., & Shigeyuki, S. (2010). Heavy metal pollution of coal mine-affected agricultural soils in the northern part of Bangladesh. Journal of Hazardous Materials, 173, 384–392. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2009.08.085
Bilal, I. M., Abdugheni, A. B. L., Shi, D. Q., Liu, S. H., Nijat, K. M., & Li, H. (2019). Influence factor analysis of soil heavy metal based on geographic detector and its pollution risk assessment. Transactions of the Chinese Society of Agricultural Engineering, 35(9), 8. https://doi.org/10.11975/j.issn.1002-6819.2019.09.022
Cai, L. M., Ma, J., Zhou, Y., Huang, L., & Yang, X. (2008). Heavy metal concentrations of agricultural soils and vegetables from Dongguan, Guangdong Province, China. Acta Geographica Sinica, 63(9), 994–1003. https://doi.org/10.3321/j.issn:0375-5444.2008.09.009
Chai, L., Wang, X., Ma, L., Chen, Z. X., Su, L. M., & Wang, Y. H. (2020). Sources appointment of heavy metals in cultivated soils of Lanzhou based on PMF models. China Environmental Science, 40(9), 11. https://doi.org/10.19674/j.cnki.issn1000-6923.2020.0438
Chai, S. W., Wen, Y., Zhang, Y., & Zhao, J. (2006). Application of index of geoaccumulation (Igeo) to pollution evaluation of heavy metals in soil. Journal of Tongji University(natural Science), 34(12), 1657–1661. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1872-2032(06)60052-8
Chen, G. Q., Yang, Y., Liu, X. Y., & Wang, M. J. (2021). Spatial distribution characteristics of heavy metals in surface soil of Xilinguole coal mining area based on semivariogram. International Journal of Geo-Information. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijgi10050290
Chen, T., Liu, X., Xia, L., Zhao, K., Zhang, J., Xu, J., Shi, J., & Dahlgren, R. A. (2009). Heavy metal sources identification and sampling uncertainty analysis in a field-scale vegetable soil of Hangzhou, China. Environmental Pollution, 157(3), 1003–1010. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2008.10.011
Chen, X. D., & Lv, X. W. (2017). Source apportionment of soil heavy metals in city residential areas based on the receptor model and geostatistics. Environmental Science, 38(6), 2513–2521. https://doi.org/10.1322/j.hjkx.201611208
Chen, Y. L., Shi, L., & Wang, Z. R. (2018). Pollution assessment and spatial distribution of soil heavy metals in mining area based on GIS. Science of Surveying and Mapping, 43(4), 7. https://doi.org/10.16251/j.cnki.1009-2307.2018.04.013
Cheng, W., Le, S., Bian, Z., Zhao, Y., Li, Y., & Gan, Y. (2020). Geographic distribution of heavy metals and identification of their sources in soils near large, open-pit coal mines using positive matrix factorization. Journal of Hazardous Materials, 387, 121666. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2019.121666
Dai, G. S., Ulgiati, S., Zhang, Y. S., Yu, B. H., Kang, M. Y., Jin, Y., Dong, X. B., & Zhang, X. S. (2014). The false promises of coal exploitation: how mining affects herdsmen well-being in the grassland ecosystems of Inner Mongolia. Energy Policy, 67, 146–153. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enpol.2013.12.033
Dai, L., Wang, L., Liang, T., Zhang, Y., Li, J., Xiao, J., Dong, L., & Zhang, H. (2019). Geostatistical analyses and co-occurrence correlations of heavy metals distribution with various types of land use within a watershed in eastern QingHai-Tibet Plateau, China. Science of the Total Environment, 653, 849–859. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.10.386
Dai, M. H., Li, T., & Zhang, W. (2013). Pollutant source apportionment of combined sewer overflows using chemical mass balance method. Environmental Science, 34(11), 5. https://doi.org/10.13227/j.hjkx.2013.11.007
Dong, J. H., Ji, L., & Fang, A. M. (2021). Ecological cumulative effect of mining area in typical arid and semi-arid grassland. Journal of China Coal Society, 46(6), 12. https://doi.org/10.13225/j.cnki.jccs.ST21.0200
Giersz, J., Bartosiak, M., & Jankowski, K. (2017). Sensitive determination of Hg together with Mn, Fe, Cu by combined photochemical vapor generation and pneumatic nebulization in the programmable temperature spray chamber and inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry. Talanta, 167, 279–285. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.talanta.2017.02.018
Hou, Z. M., Huang, L., Han, X., Xu, L., Li, G. Z., Liu, Z. Q., & Zhang, S. W. (2022). Hydrochemical characteristics and controlling factors of groundwater driven by coal mining in Shendong mining area. China Environmental Science. https://doi.org/10.19674/j.cnki.issn1000-6923.2022.0114
Hu, W., Wang, H., Dong, L., Huang, B., Borggaard, O. K., Bruun Hansen, H. C., He, Y., & Holm, P. E. (2018). Source identification of heavy metals in peri-urban agricultural soils of southeast China: An integrated approach. Environmental Pollution, 237, 650–661. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2018.02.070
Huang, J. H., Guo, S. T., Zeng, G. M., Li, F., Gu, Y. L., Shi, Y. H., Shi, L. X., Liu, W. C., & Peng, S. Y. (2018). A new exploration of health risk assessment quantification from sources of soil heavy metals under different land use. Environmental Pollution, 243, 49–58. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2018.08.038
Jin, Y., O’Connor, D., Sik, Y., Tsang, D. C. W., Liu, A., & Hou, D. (2019). Assessment of sources of heavy metals in soil and dust at children’s playgrounds in Beijing using GIS and multivariate statistical analysis. Environment. International, 124, 320–328. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envint.2019.01.024
Khosravi, Y., Zamani, A. A., Parizanganeh, A. H., & Yaftian, M. R. (2017). Assessment of spatial distribution pattern of heavy metals surrounding a lead and zinc production plant in Zanjan Province, Iran. Geoderma Regional, 12, 10–17. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geodrs.2017.12.002
Li, J., Teng, Y. G., Wu, J., Chen, H. Y., & Jiang, J. Y. (2020). Uncertainty analysis of soil heavy metal source apportionment by PMF model. China Environmental Science, 40(2), 716–725. https://doi.org/10.19674/j.cnki.issn1000-6923.2020.0131
Li, J., Yang, C. Y., Yin, S. Q., Yang, Z., Liu, Q. L., & Cui, L. Y. (2019). Evaluation and spatial distribution characteristics of soil heavy metals pollution in grassland open-pit coal mine area. Journal of China Coal Society, 44(12), 9. https://doi.org/10.13225/j.cnki.Jccs.SH19.1197
Li, Q., Li, Y. C., Chen, D. Y., & Liu, H. P. (2013). The water resource utilization in Shendong mining area. Journal of Arid Land Resources and Environment, 27(9), 7. https://doi.org/10.13448/j.cnki.jalre.2013.09.033
Li, X., & Feng, L. (2012). Multivariate and geostatistical analyzes of metals in urban soil of Weinan industrial areas, Northwest of China. Atmospheric Environment, 47, 58–65. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.atmosenv.2011.11.041
Liang, J., Feng, C., Zeng, G., Gao, X., Zhong, M., Li, X., Li, X., He, X., & Fang, Y. (2017). Spatial distribution and source identification of heavy metals in surface soils in a typical coal mine city, Lianyuan, China. Environmental Pollution, 225, 681–690. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2017.03.057
Liang, J., Hua, S., Zeng, G., Yuan, Y., Lai, X., Li, X., Li, F., Wu, H., Huang, L., & Yu, X. (2015b). Application of weight method based on canonical correspondence analysis for assessment of Anatidae habitat suitability: A case study in East Dongting Lake, Middle China. Ecological Engineering, 77, 119–126. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoleng.2015.01.016
Liang, J., Liu, J., Yuan, X., Zeng, G., Lai, X., Li, X., Wu, H., Yuan, Y., & Li, F. (2015a). Spatial and temporal variation of heavy metal risk and source in sediments of Dongting Lake wetland, mid-south China. Journal of Environmental Science and Health A-Toxic/hazardous Substances and Environmental English, 50(1), 100–108. https://doi.org/10.1080/10934529.2015.964636
Lin, Y. P., Cheng, B. Y., Shyu, G. S., & Chang, T. K. (2010). Combining a finite mixture distribution model with indicator kriging to delineate and map the spatial patterns of soil heavy metal pollution in Chunghua County, central Taiwan. Environmental Pollution, 158(1), 235–244. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2009.07.015
Liu, S. L., Guo, X. D., Yao, X. J., Tian, Y. Y., Zhao, W. W., & An, N. N. (2016). Analysis of the influential factors and the heavy metal content distribution in the soil in prairie coal-mining regions. Journal of Safety and Environment, 16(3), 6. https://doi.org/10.13637/j.issn.1009-6094.2016.03.063
Liu, X., Shi, H., Bai, Z., Zhou, W., & He, Y. (2019). Heavy metal concentrations of soils near the large opencast coal mine pits in China. Chemosphere, 244, 125360. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2019.125360
Lu, X., Hu, W. Y., Huang, B., Li, Y., Zu, Y. Q., Zhan, F. D., & Kuang, G. R. (2018). Source apportionment of heavy metals in farmland soils around mining area based on UNMIX model. Environmental Science, 39(3), 9. https://doi.org/10.13227/j.hjkx.201705254
Magesh, N. S., Tiwari, A., Botsa, S. M., & Leitao, T. (2021). Hazardous heavy metals in the pristine lacustrine systems of Antarctica: Insights from PMF model and ERA techniques. Journal of Hazardous Materials, 412(1), 125263. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2021.125263
MEP. (2013). Determination of mercury, arsenic, selenium, bismuth and antimony in soils and sediments - microwave digestion/atomic fluorescence method (HJ680-2013).
Mohammad, A. J., Ahmad, J. Z., & Ahmad, K. D. (2020). Heavy metal pollution and human health risk assessment for exposure to surface soil of mining area: A comprehensive study. Environmental Earth Sciences, 79(14), 365. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-020-09110-3
Nikos, Martin, R., & Antonio, J. (2012). Multiscale analysis of heavy metal contents in soils: Spatial variability in the Duero river basin (Spain). Geoderma: an International Journal of Soil Science, 189–190(6), 554–562. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2012.06.006
Norris, G., Duvall, R., Brown, S., & Bai, S. (2014). EPA positive matrix factorization (PMF) 5.0 fundamentals and user guide.
PRCMEE. (2004). Technical specification for soil environmental monitoring (HJ/T 166–2004).
PRCMEE. (2018). Soil environmental quality risk control standard for soil contamination of agricultural land (GB 15618-2018).
Reimann, C., & Caritat, P. D. (2005). Distinguishing between natural and anthropogenic sources for elements in the environment: Regional geochemical surveys versus enrichment factors. Science of the Total Environment, 337(1–3), 91–107. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2004.06.011
SEPA. (2004). Technical specifications for soil environmental monitoring (HJ/T 166-2004).
Shi, Z. F., & Wang, L. (2013). Contents of soil heavy metals and evaluation on the potential pollution risk in Shenmu Mining area. Journal of Agro-Environment Science, 32(6), 9. https://doi.org/10.11654/jaes.2013.06.010
USEPA. (2014). U.S. EPA 6020B. Method 6020B inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry.
Vu, C. T., Li, C., Shern, C. C., Yeh, G., Le, V. G., & Hu, T. T. (2017). Contamination, ecological risk and source apportionment of heavy metals in sediments and water of a contaminated river in Taiwan. Ecological Indicators, 82, 32–42. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2017.06.008
Wang, A. (2007). Construction and benefits of integrated measures system for environment conservation in Shengdong Diggings. Science of Soil and Water Conservation, 5(5), 5. https://doi.org/10.16848/j.sswc.2007.05.016
Wang, M., Zheng, B., Wang, B., Li, S., Wu, D., & Hu, J. (2006). Arsenic concentrations in Chinese coals. Science of the Total Environment, 357(1–3), 96–102. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2005.04.045
Wang, X. H., & Yang, C. (2014). Rasearch on the content and spatial distribution on soil heavy metals in HuaiNan mining area based on GIS and Geostatistics. Resources and Environment in the Yangtze Basin. https://doi.org/10.11870/cjlyzyyhj2014Z1009
Wu, S., Xia, X., Lin, C., Chen, X., & Zhou, C. (2010). Levels of arsenic and heavy metals in the rural soils of Beijing and their changes over the last two decades (1985–2008). Journal of Hazardous Materials, 179(1–3), 860–868. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2010.03.084
Xia, Z. S., Bai, Y. R., Wang, Y. Q., Gao, X. L., Ruan, X. H., & Zhong, Y. X. (2022). Spatial distribution and source analysis of soil heavy metals in a small watershed in the mountainous area of Southern Ningxia based on PMF model. Environmental Science. https://doi.org/10.13227/j.hjkx.202105128
Yang, Y., Liu, A. J., Chao, L. M. Q. Q. G., Shan, Y. M., Wu, N. T., Chen, H. J., & Wang, M. J. (2016). Spatial distribution of soil heavy metals of opencut coal mining in Inner Mongolia Xilingol typical steppe. Ecology and Environmental Sciences, 25(5), 8. https://doi.org/10.16258/j.cnki.1674-5906.2016.05.023
Yao, F., Bao, A. M., Guli, J. P. E., Yin, J. Q., Li, C. C., Zhang, G. S., & Yin, E. (2013). Soil heavy metal sources and pollution assessment in the coalfield of East Junggar Basin in Xin Jiang. China Environmental Science, 33(10), 1821–1828.
Zhang, H., Zheng, Z., Yang, H., Ma, X. P., & Wang, J. W. (2017). Discrimination of heavy metal sources in topsoil in Zhaoyuan County based on multivariate statistics and geostatistical. Soils, 49(4), 819–827. https://doi.org/10.13758/j.cnki.tr.2017.04.026
Zhang, K. K., He, J., Zhang, Y. X., Wei, Q. Q., & Chen, F. (2022). Identification of soil heavy metal sources around a copper–silver mining area in Ningxia based on GIS. Environmental Science, 43(11), 5192–5204. https://doi.org/10.13227/j.hjkx.202201113
Zhang, M. K. (2010). Concentrations and sources of heavy metals in surface dust from urban coach stations in Zhejiang Province. Acta Scientiae Circumstantiae, 30(11), 2294–2304. https://doi.org/10.13671/j.hjkxxb.2010.11.017
Zhang, Y. R., Gui, H. R., Huang, Y. H., Yu, H., Li, J., Wang, M., Fang, H. X., Jiang, Y. Q., Wang, C. L., & Chen, C. (2021). Characteristics of soil heavy metal contents and its source analysis in affected areas of Luning Coal Mine in Huaibei Coalfield. Polish Journal of Environmental Studies, 30(2), 1465–1476. https://doi.org/10.15244/PJOES/125515
Zhou, B. B., Guo, J., Chen, X. P., Yang, Q., Zhu, H. Y., Duan, M. L., Li, X. Q., Zhou, D. H., & Yang, Y. (2021b). Source apportionment of soil heavy metals in abandoned mining areas in Dafan Mountain of Anhui Province based on the UNMIX model. Transactions of the Chinese Society of Agricultural Engineering, 37(24), 9. https://doi.org/10.11975/j.issn.1002-6819.2021.24.02
Zhou, W., Li, L. L., Zhou, X., Shi, P. Q., & Huang, D. Q. (2021a). Influence factor analysis of soil heavy metal based on geographic detector and its pollution risk assessment. Ecology and Environmental Sciences, 30(1), 173–180. https://doi.org/10.16258/j.cnki.1674-5906.2015.08.019
Zhou, X., & Lv, J. S. (2019). Sources, distribution and ecological risk of soil heavy metals in Guangrao county, Shandong province. Geographical Research, 38(2), 224–236. https://doi.org/10.11821/dlyj020171151
Zhou, Y., Wang, J., Zeng, H., & Zhu, Y. (2015). Spatial characteristics of soil heavy metal pollution in Inner Mongolia, China. Ecology and Environmental Sciences, 24(8), 7. https://doi.org/10.16258/j.cnki.1674-5906.2015.08.019
Acknowledgements
We highly acknowledge the Inner Mongolia Environmental Monitoring and Inspection Co., LTD for technical and experimental support.
Funding
This work was supported by the Program for Young Talents of Science and Technology in Universities of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region (Grant Number BR220118); the Program for Innovative Research Team in the Universities of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region (Grant Number NMGIRT2313); the Natural Science Foundation of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region of China (Grant Number 2021MS04013); the Technological Achievements of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region of China (Grant Numbers 2020CG0054, 2020GG0076); National Key Research and Development Program of China (Grant Number 2021YFC3201201); the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Number 52079063).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Contributions
XZ contributed to conceptualization, methodology, formal analysis, writing-original draft. SZ contributed to supervision the project, manuscript writing and review. XW contributed to resources, validation. ZL contributed to visualization and investigation. Software, Data collection and statistical analysis were performed by CW and HM. Investigation and software were performed by YH and CL. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of interest
The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
Ethics approval
This article does not contain any studies with human participants or animals performed by any of the authors.
Additional information
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.
About this article
Cite this article
Zhang, X., Zhang, S., Wei, X. et al. Identification of sources and analysis of spatial distribution of soil heavy metals in northern China coal mining areas. Environ Geochem Health 46, 94 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10653-024-01877-9
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10653-024-01877-9