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Investigating the distribution and fate of Al, Cd, Cr, Cu, Mn, Ni, Pb and Zn in sewage-impacted mangrove-fringed creeks of Kenya, Tanzania and Mozambique

  • IASWS 2014: The Interactions Between Sediments and Water
  • Published:
Journal of Soils and Sediments Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose

Coastal towns in the developing world are faced with the challenge of wastewater treatment. Most of the domestic wastewater generated in these urban areas is discharged raw into the surrounding mangrove forest. The local communities living near mangrove-fringed creeks are artisanal fishers and rely on fish as a source of protein. It is therefore important to determine the impact of sewage input on metal mobility/bioavailability in these mangrove systems.

Materials and methods

The fate of heavy metals was investigated in peri-urban mangrove systems of Kenya, Tanzania and Mozambique. Enrichment factors (EF) and pollution factors (PF) were applied to investigate the pollution status of selected metals in sewage-impacted creeks of the three countries. The spatial distribution patterns of metals in sediments and in the water column were determined. A sewage factor (SF) index was derived to determine the impact of sewage input on the water column.

Results and discussion

Data obtained from sediment analysis revealed that Cd was highly depleted (EF 0.1) at Costa do Sol in Mozambique, inferring that it is highly labile under the prevailing onsite physicochemical parameters. Comparatively, Cr was more enriched in Mozambique sediments than in Kenya and Tanzania. In Tanzania; Zn showed the highest pollution levels (PF, 3.20), with reference to Ras Dege. While in Kenya, zinc was the most polluting metal in all of the sediment segments at Tudor Creek with reference to Gazi Creek. There was a conservative mixing of sediment/particulate-hosted heavy metals at Tudor and Ras Dege. This behaviour was observed for all the metals analysed. At Mtoni, however, the conservative behaviour was only pronounced for Pb and Zn, while for all three sites in Mozambique, metals were distributed evenly across the creeks indicating sinking tendencies. Sewage discharge influenced the concentration of dissolved Cr and Pb at Fort Jesus station during both flood and ebb tide.

Conclusions

Changes in physicochemical parameters strongly influence the fate of sediment-hosted Cd as observed at Costa do Sol. The preferential association of Cd onto carbonates enhances Cd enrichment in sediments rich in carbonates. Input of domestic sewage contributes to dissolved Al loading, which is attributed to the use of alumina in fresh water treatment plants.

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Acknowledgments

The study was facilitated under the PUMPSEA (Peri-urban mangrove forests as filters and potential phytoremediators of domestic sewage in East Africa) project sponsored by the EU. We also wish to acknowledge the Western Indian Ocean Marine Science Association (WIOMSA) for providing a complementary Marg II grant that made it possible to conduct specialized analysis.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute, P.O Box 81651-80100, Mombasa, Kenya

    Joseph Nyingi Kamau, Stephen Mwangi & Daniel Munga

  2. Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research-UFZ, Permoserstrasse 15D, 04318, Leipzig, Germany

    Peter Kuschk, Sibylle Mothes & Uwe Kappelmeyer

  3. University of Dar es Salaam, Faculty of Aquatic Sciences and Technology, P.O Box 35064, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

    John Machiwa

  4. Department of Biological Sciences, University Eduardo Mondlane, P.O Box 257, Maputo, Mozambique

    Adriano Macia

Authors
  1. Joseph Nyingi Kamau
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  2. Peter Kuschk
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  3. John Machiwa
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  4. Adriano Macia
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  5. Sibylle Mothes
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  6. Stephen Mwangi
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  7. Daniel Munga
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  8. Uwe Kappelmeyer
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Correspondence to Joseph Nyingi Kamau.

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Responsible editor: Carolyn Oldham

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Kamau, J.N., Kuschk, P., Machiwa, J. et al. Investigating the distribution and fate of Al, Cd, Cr, Cu, Mn, Ni, Pb and Zn in sewage-impacted mangrove-fringed creeks of Kenya, Tanzania and Mozambique. J Soils Sediments 15, 2453–2465 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-015-1214-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-015-1214-3

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