Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Reference values for heavy metals in soils of the Brazilian agricultural frontier in Southwestern Amazônia

  • Published:
Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Guideline values are used to identify polluted or contaminated areas based on background values. Brazilian law establishes three guideline values for pollutants: a quality reference value (QRV), a prevention value, and an intervention value. Reference values refer to the natural concentration of an element or a substance in soils that have not been modified by anthropogenic impacts. These values inform assessments of soil quality and are used to establish maximum permissible limits. The objective of this study was to determine the natural levels and reference values for Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn in samples from the surface layer (0–20 cm) of 19 representative soils of the states of Mato Grosso and Rondônia, on Brazil’s agricultural frontier. Pseudo-total metal concentrations were obtained following microwave-assisted digestion using the aqua regia and EPA3051 methods. QRVs were calculated for each element as the 75th and 90th percentiles of the frequency distribution of the data. Natural levels of heavy metals in the soil samples followed the order: Cr > Zn > Cu > Co > Pb > Ni > and Cd (aqua regia) and Cr > Co > Cu > Pb > Zn > Ni > Cd (EPA3051). These values are generally lower than those reported in the Brazilian and international literature, which highlights the importance of establishing reference values for each state or for each soil type, taking into account the geomorphological, pedological, and geological diversity of the region under study.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Abollino, O., Aceto, M., Malandrino, M., Mentasti, E., Sarzanini, C., & Petrella, F. (2002). Heavy metals in agricultural soils from Piedmont, Italy. Chemosphere., 49, 545–557.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Alleoni, L. R. F., Iglesias, C. S. M., Mello, S. C., Camargo, O. A., Casagrande, J. C., & Lavorenti, N. A. (2005). Soil attributes related to cadmium and copper adsorption in tropical soils. Acta Scientiarum Agronomy, 27, 729–737. in Portuguese, with English Abstract.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Alloway, B. J. (1990). Heavy metals in soils. Glasgow: Blackie Academic & Professional.

    Google Scholar 

  • Anderson, J. M., & Ingram, J. S. I. (1992). Tropical soil biology and fertility: a handbook of methods. Wallingford: CAB International.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bak, J., Jensen, J., Larsen, M. M., Pritzl, G., & Scott-Fordsmand, A. (1997). Heavy metal monitoring-programme in Denmark. Science of the Total Environment., 207, 179–186.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Bernoux, M., Graça, P. M. A., Fearnside, P. M., Cerri, C. C., Feigl, B., & Piccolo, M. C. (2001). Carbon storage in biomass and soils. In M. E. McClain (Ed.), The biogeochemistry of the Amazon Basin and its role in a changing world (pp. 165–184). Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bini, C., Sartori, G., Wahsha, M., & Fontana, S. (2011). Background levels of trace elements and soil geochemistry at regional level in NE Italy. Journal of Geochemical Exploration., 109, 125–133.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Biondi, C. M. (2010). Background concentrations of heavy metals in benchmark soils of Pernambuco State, Brazil. Thesis - Universidade Federal Rural de Pernambuco, Recife, PE. (in Portuguese with English Abstract).

  • Brus, D. J., Lame, F. P. J., & Nieuwenhuis, R. H. (2009). National baseline survey of soil quality in the Netherlands. Environmental Pollution., 157, 2043–2052.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Buol, S. W. (2009). Soils and agriculture in Central-West and North Brazil. Scientia Agricola., 66, 697–707.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Caires, S. M. (2009). Determination of natural heavy metals levels in soils of Minas Gerais State to help definition of background levels. Thesis, Universidade Federal de Viçosa,Viçosa, pp. 64. (in Portuguese with English Abstract).

  • Campos, M. L., Pierangeli, M. A. P., Guilherme, L. R. G., Marques, J. J., & Curi, N. (2003). Baseline concentration of heavy metals in Brazilian Latosols. Communications in Soil Science and Plant Analysis., 34, 547–557.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Cancela, R. C. (2002). Contents of macro-micronutrients, heavy metals and other elements in soils naturals of São Paulo (Brazil) and Galicia (Spain). Tese (Doutorado), Universidade de La Coruña, pp. 574. (in Spanish).

  • Cancela, R. C., Abreu, C. A., & González, A. P. (2004). Heavy metal reference limit values proposol obtained from natural soils from the region of Galicia, Spain. Papers of Eurosoil., 1, 1–6.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chen, J., Wei, F., Zheng, C., Wu, Y., & Adrian, D. C. (1991). Background concentrations of elements in soils of China. Water Air Soil Pollution., 57–58, 699–712.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chen, J. S., Deng, B. S., Pan, M., Wang, X. J., Zeng, S. Q., & He, Q. (1993). Geographical tendencies of trace element contents in soils derived from granite, basalt and limestone of eastern China. Pedosphere., 3, 45–55.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Chen, T. B., Wong, J. W. C., Zhou, H. Y., & Wong, M. H. (1997). Assessment of trace metal distribution and contamination in surface soils of Hong Kong. Environmental Pollution., 96, 61–68.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Chen, M., Ma, L. Q., & Harris, W. G. (1999). Baseline concentrations of 15 trace elements in Florida surface soils. Journal of Environmental Quality., 28, 1173–1181.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Companhia de Tecnologia De Saneamento Ambiental (2001). Report establishment of guiding values for soil and groundwater in the State of São Paulo. São Paulo, CETESB, (2001). pp. 247. (in Portuguese).

  • Conselho Nacional Do Meio Ambiente (2009). Resolution No. 420 of December 28, 2009. Provides guiding values and criteria of soil quality for the presence of chemicals and establishes guidelines for environmental management of areas contaminated by these substances as a result of anthropogenic activities. Brasília. Available in: http://www.mma.gov.br/port/conama/legiabre.cfm?codlegi=620. Accessed 5 June 2011. (in Portuguese).

  • Fadigas, F. S., Sobrinho, N. M. B. A., Mazur, N., Anjos, L. H. C., & Freixo, A. A. (2006). Proposition of reference values for natural concentration of heavy metals in Brazilian soils. Revista Brasileira de Engenharia Agrícola e Ambiental, 10, 699–705. in Portuguese with English Abstract.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fontes, M. P. F., & Weed, S. B. (1991). Iron oxides in selected Brazilian Oxisols: I. Mineralogy. Soil Science Society of America Journal, 55, 1143–1149.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Gee, G. W., & Or, D. (2002). Particle-size analysis. In J. H. Dane & G. C. Toop (Eds.), Methods of soil analysis. Madison: Physical methods.

    Google Scholar 

  • Holmgren, G. S., Meyer, M. W., Chaney, R. L., & Daniels, R. B. (1993). Cadmium, lead, zinc, cooper, and nickel in agricultural soils of the United States of America. Journal of Environmental Quality., 22, 335–348.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Horckmans, L., Swennen, R., Deckers, J., & Maquil, R. (2005). Local background concentrations of trace elements in soils: a case study in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. Catena., 59, 279–304.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • International Organisation for Standardisation–ISO (2005). Soil quality: guidance on the determination of background values. ISO 19258.

  • Latrubesse, E. M., Bocquentin, J., Santos, C. R., & Ramonell, C. G. (1997). Paleoenviromental model for the late cenzoic of southwestern Amazonia: paleontolgy and geology. Acta Amazonica., 27, 103–118.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lima, H. N., Mello, J. W. V., Schaefer, C. E. G. R., Ker, J. C., & Lima, A. M. N. (2006). Mineralogia e química de três solos de uma toposseqüência da bacia sedimentar do alto Solimões, Amazônia Ocidental. Revista Brasileira de Ciência do Solo., 30, 59–68.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Loeppert, R. L., & Inskeep, W. P. (1996). Iron. In J. M. Bigham (Ed.), Methods of soil analysis. Madison: Soil Science Society of America; American Society of Agronomy.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ma, L. Q., Tan, F., & Harris, W. G. (1997). Concentration and distributions of eleven metals in Florida soils. Journal of Environmental Quality., 26, 769–775.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Maia, S. M. F., Ogle, F. M., Cerri, C. E. P., & Cerri, C. C. (2009). Effect of grassland management on soil carbon sequestration in Rondônia and Mato Grosso States, Brazil. Geoderma., 149, 84–91.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Marques, J. J. G. S. M., Schulze, D. G., Curi, N., & Mertzman, S. A. (2004). Trace element geochemistry in Brazilian Cerrado soils. Geoderma., 121, 31–43.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Martínez, J., Llamas, J., Miguel, E., Rey, J., & Hidalgo, M. C. (2007). Determination of the geochemical background in a metal mining site: example of the mining district of Linares (South Spain). Journal of Geochemical Exploration., 94, 9–29.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Martinez-Lladó, X., Vilà, M., Martí, V., Rovira, M., Domènech, J. A., & Pablo, J. (2008). Trace element distribution in topsoils in Catalonia: background and reference values and relationship with regional geology. Environmental Engineering Science., 25, 863–878.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mcgrath, S., & Cunliffe, H. (1985). A simplified method for the extraction of the metals Fe, Zn, Cu, Ni, Cd, Pb, Cr, Co and Mn from soils and sewage sludges. Journal of Science and Food Agriculture., 36, 794–798.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • McGrath, S. P., & Zhao, F. J. (2006). Ambient background metal concentrations for soils in England and Wales. London: Environment Agency.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mehlich, A. (1953). Determination of P, Ca, Mg, K, Na and NH4 by North Carolina soil testing laboratoris. Raleigh: University of North Carolina.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mehra, J. A., & Jackson, M. L. (1960). Iron oxides removal from soils and clays by dithionite–citrate system buffered with sodium bicarbonate. Clays and Clay Minerals., 5, 317–327.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mekaru, T., & Uehara, G. (1972). Anion adsorption in ferrugineous tropical soils. Soil Science Society of America Proceedings., 36, 296–300.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Mello, F. F. C. (2007). Estimates of soil carbon stocks for Rondônia and Mato Grosso states previously to anthropic intervention. Thesis, University of Sao Paulo (ESALQ/USP), pp. 89. (in Portuguese with English Abstract).

  • MINEROPAR. Paraná Minerals S.A. (2005). Geochemical soil - Horizon B: Realtório Final Project. Curitiba: MINEROPAR.

  • Oliveira, T. S., Costa, L. M., & Cruz, C. D. (1998). The relative importance of heavy metals in soil identification and separation of source materials. Revista Ceres., 45, 359–371 (in Portuguese with English Abstract).

    Google Scholar 

  • Paye, H. S., Mello, J. W. V., Abrahão, W. A. P., Filho, E. I. F., Dias, L. C. P., Castro, M. L. O., et al. (2010). Reference quality values for heavy metals in soils from Espírito Santo State, Brazil. Revista Brasileira de Ciência do Solo., 34, 2041–2051 (in Portuguese with English Abstract).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ramos-Miras, J. J., Roca-Perez, L., Guzmán-Palomino, M., Boluda, R., & Gil, C. (2011). Background levels and baseline values of available heavy metals in Mediterranean greenhouse soils (Spain). Journal of Geochemical Exploration., 110, 186–192.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Resende, M., Santana, D. P. (1988). Use of Ki and Kr in the estimation of mineralogy for classification of Oxisols. In: Reunião De Classificação, Correlação De Solos E Interpretação De Aptidão Agrícola, Rio de Janeiro: Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecuária. (in Portuguese).

  • Salonen, V.-P., & Korkka-Niemi, K. (2007). Influence of parent sediments on the concentration of heavy metals in urban and suburban soils in Turku, Finland. Applied Geochemistry., 22, 906–918.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • SAS Institute. (2002). SAS User’s guide: statistics. Version 8.2. 6th ed.

  • Shah, H. M., Iqbal, W., Shaheen, N., Khan, N., Choudhary, M. A., & Akhter, G. (2012). Assessment of background levels of trace metals in water and soil from a remote region of Himalaya. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment., 184, 1243–1252.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Su, Y.-Z., & Yang, R. (2008). Background concentrations of elements in surface soils and their changes as affected by agriculture use in the desert-oasis ecotone in the middle of Heihe River Basin, north-west China. Journal of Geochemical Exploration., 98, 57–64.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Teng, Y., Ni, S., Wang, J., & Ni, L. (2009). Geochemical baseline of trace elements in the sediment in Dexing area, South China. Environmental Geology., 57, 1649–1660.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • United States Environmental Protection Agency–USEPA. (1996). Soil screening guidance: technical background document. Washington DC: EPA, Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response.

    Google Scholar 

  • Vázquez, F. M., Anta, R. C. (2009). Generic levels of heavy metals and other trace elements in soils em Galicia. Ed: Xunta de Galicia. (in Spanish)

  • Vettori, L. (1969). Methods of soil analyses. Rio de Janeiro: Division of Pedology and Soil Fertility. (in Portuguese).

  • Wu, W., Xie, D.-T., & Liu, H.-B. (2009). Spatial variability of soil heavy metals in the three gorges area: multivariate and geostatistical analyses. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 157, 63–71.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Zhao, F. J., & Mcgrant, S. P. (2007). Estimates of ambient background concentrations of trace metals in soil for risk assessment. Environmental Pollution, 148, 221–229.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful to Brazil’s National Council for Scientific and Technological Development, for granting a master’s degree scholarship to the first author and a Research Productivity grant to the second author and for financial support of the project. The authors are also grateful to Prof. Carlos Clemente Cerri of the Center for Nuclear Energy in Agriculture of the University of São Paulo, who kindly provided soil samples.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Soil Science and Plant Nutrition, University of Sao Paulo (ESALQ/USP), C.P. 9, Piracicaba, São Paolo, Brazil, 13418-900

    Sabrina Novaes dos Santos

  2. Department of Soil Science, ESALQ/USP, Piracicaba, São Paolo, Brazil

    Luís Reynaldo Ferracciú Alleoni

Authors
  1. Sabrina Novaes dos Santos
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Luís Reynaldo Ferracciú Alleoni
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Sabrina Novaes dos Santos.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

dos Santos, S.N., Alleoni, L.R.F. Reference values for heavy metals in soils of the Brazilian agricultural frontier in Southwestern Amazônia. Environ Monit Assess 185, 5737–5748 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-012-2980-7

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-012-2980-7

Keywords

Search

Navigation