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Spatial distribution and source apportionment of metals in sediments of Meriç-Ergene Basin, Turkey

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Abstract

The present study is aimed to detect and evaluate metal accumulation in the sediments of Meriç-Ergene Basin, which is an industry-intensive area in Turkey. Ten metals and Total Organic Carbon (TOC) concentrations were determined in sediment samples collected from forty-one different sampling points selected considering the pollutant source types and the flow direction from the upstream towards the downstream in July and December 2020 representing the dry and wet periods. Concentrations measured were evaluated in terms of pollution levels, relationship with each other and source distribution using risk indexes and various statistical techniques. According to the findings, TOC and metal concentrations in sediments taken from regions where industrial activities are concentrated were significantly higher. The values measured in these areas especially for chromium, copper and zinc were 8–11 times more of the reference regions. The index calculations showed that the pollution level at industry-intensive areas were enriched by cadmium, chromium, copper, lead, zinc and these particular regions had higher ecological risk than the agricultural areas and the reference site. Hierarchical Cluster Analysis (HCA) was performed to statistically categorize the sampling points and three common spatial distributions were obtained. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was used to identify common sources of metals, and correspondingly, two common source groups were identified. Accordingly, there appeared a similar pattern and dense pollution in the sediments of the industrialized areas, and more than half of the metal load was found to be due to industrial activities and to the still active unsanitary landfills.

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All data generated or analyzed during this study are included in this published article and its supplementary information files.

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Acknowledgements

This study was supported by TUBITAK (Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey) under Project No. 119Y028. We would like to thank TUBITAK for their support.

Funding

This study was supported by TUBITAK (Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey) under Grant Project No. 119Y028. All of the sampling and laboratory analyzes within the scope of the study were carried out with the support provided by TUBİTAK.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Environmental Engineering, Çorlu Faculty of Engineering, Tekirdağ Namık Kemal University, 59860, Çorlu, Tekirdağ, Turkey

    Asude Hanedar, Elçin Güneş, Yalçın Güneş & Hazal Kaçar

  2. Department of Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Civil Engineering, Istanbul Technical University (ITU), 34469, Maslak, Istanbul, Turkey

    Aysegul Tanik

  3. Department of Geomatic Engineering, Faculty of Civil Engineering, Istanbul Technical University (ITU), 34469, Maslak, Istanbul, Turkey

    Burak Emre Özdemir

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  1. Asude Hanedar
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  2. Elçin Güneş
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  3. Yalçın Güneş
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  4. Aysegul Tanik
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  5. Hazal Kaçar
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Contributions

AH: Conceptualization, Methodology, Data Evaluation, Writing-Original draft preparation. EG: Sampling and laboratory studies, Data Evaluation, Writing- Reviewing and Editing. YG: Methodology, Data Evaluation, Writing- Reviewing and Editing. AT: Methodology, Data Evaluation, Writing- Reviewing and Editing. HK: Sampling and laboratory studies, Data Evaluation. BEÖ: Visualization, Data Evaluation. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Asude Hanedar.

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Hanedar, A., Güneş, E., Güneş, Y. et al. Spatial distribution and source apportionment of metals in sediments of Meriç-Ergene Basin, Turkey. Environ Earth Sci 80, 622 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-021-09913-y

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