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Trace Metals in the Water Column and Sediments

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Environmental Pollution of the Pearl River Estuary, China

Part of the book series: Estuaries of the World ((EOTW))

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Abstract

The Pearl River Estuary inevitably contains trace metals in the water column and in the sediments. Trace metals are of major environmental concern in the PRE, especially in the cases of Cd, Cu, Zn, Ni, Cr, Ag and Hg. Monitoring of trace metals in the estuary has shed light on their dynamic behaviour. Given the dynamic behaviour of the estuary, measurements of trace metal concentrations in the water only provide snapshots of their presence in the estuary. Trace metals in the estuarine sediments have been measured over the past few decades, and their distributions often reflect the trends of industrial development in the Pearl River Delta area. One of the critical issues for the estuary is to establish robust and scientifically based water quality criteria, enabling the environmental management of the estuary. Bioavailability assessments need to be incorporated into environmental management schemes given the very complicated physico-chemistry of the waters of the estuary.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, Hong Kong

    Wen-Xiong Wang

  2. Natural History Museum, London, UK

    Philip S. Rainbow

Authors
  1. Wen-Xiong Wang
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  2. Philip S. Rainbow
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Wang, WX., Rainbow, P.S. (2020). Trace Metals in the Water Column and Sediments. In: Environmental Pollution of the Pearl River Estuary, China. Estuaries of the World. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-662-61834-9_4

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