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Differentiating anthropogenic effects from natural metal(loid) levels in residential soil near a zinc smelter in South Korea

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Abstract

Metal(loid)s pose a significant hazard due to inherent toxicity. Individuals are particularly exposed to metal(loid)s in soil through direct or indirect contact. Identifying metal(loid) sources in soil is required for exposure mitigation to anthropogenic metal(loid)s, while metal(loid)s are natural constitutes of soil. Metal(loid) concentrations and Pb isotopes were determined in residential soil profiles impacted by a Zn smelter to distinguish the anthropogenic effect from natural levels. One hundred sixty-nine core soil samples were collected from depths down to 5.5 m below ground level at 19 sites and were divided into Zn-Cd-As- and As-contaminated groups based on the worrisome level (WL) of soil contamination. The Zn-Cd-As-contaminated group (n = 62) was observed at depths < 1 m, showed high Zn levels (mean of 1168 mg/kg) and Cd and As frequently exceeding WLs, and had low 206Pb/207Pb ratios close to the Zn smelter. In contrast, the As-contaminated group (n = 96) was observed at depths > 1 m, did not have other metals exceeding WLs, and showed a wide range of 206Pb/207Pb ratios far away from the Zn smelter. The results indicated that the pollution sources of Zn-Cd-As- and As-contaminated soils were fugitive dust emissions from smelter stacks and geology, respectively. The metal(loid)s in host rock set geochemical baselines in soil profiles, while smelting activities affected the upper layers over 50 years. This study demonstrated the effectiveness of utilizing the vertical distribution of metal(loid) concentrations and Pb isotopes in soil profiles for distinguishing between anthropogenic and geogenic origins, in combination with baseline assessment.

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank Dr. Gitak Chae for drawing the base map of sampling sites.

Funding

This research was supported by grants from Environmental Impact Investigations in the proximate areas of Seogpo smelter funded by the Ministry of Environment of Korea. The completion was supported by the Basic Research Project of the Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources (KIGAM) funded by the Ministry of Science and ICT (24–3411).

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  1. Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources, 124 Gwahak-Ro, Daejeon, 34132, Yuseong-Gu, Korea

    Pyeong-Koo Lee & Soonyoung Yu

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Contributions

All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation, data collection, and analysis were performed by Dr. Pyeong-Koo Lee. Data interpretation and visualization were performed by Dr. Soonyoung Yu. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Pyeong-Koo Lee, and Dr. Soonyoung Yu reviewed and edited the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Soonyoung Yu.

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Lee, PK., Yu, S. Differentiating anthropogenic effects from natural metal(loid) levels in residential soil near a zinc smelter in South Korea. Environ Sci Pollut Res (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-024-33554-w

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