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Seasonal Hydrological Inputs of Major Ions and Trace Metal Composition in Streams Draining the Mineralized Lom Basin, East Cameroon: Basis for Environmental Studies

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Abstract

Purpose

The aim of this study is to assess the seasonal variation in major ion distribution patterns and identify the origin and geochemical behavior of some trace metals of streamwaters bathing the mineralized Lom Basin.

Methods

Eighty-one water samples were collected during the dry and wet seasons and analyzed for major ions using AAS and 12 trace metals (Fe, Mn, V, Cr, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, As, Cd, Pb, Hg) by ICP-MS.

Results

All physicochemical parameters besides pH and Cl– varied narrowly between both seasons. No seasonal variability was observed for Cl– given its conservative nature, while NO3 – levels decreased in the wet period due to the dilution effect. Similarly, SO4 2– concentrations were low for both seasons reflecting the dissolution of low sulphide minerals associated with gold deposits. In contrast, the concentration of Ca2+, Mg2+, Na+, K+ and HCO3 – slightly increased during the wet season as they are flushed from the soil layers by rain. Water samples had very low concentrations (< 1 µg/l) of V, Cr, Co, Cu, Zn, Cd, Pb and significant concentrations of Fe and Mn.

Conclusions

The seasonal regime of streamwater chemistry is controlled by groundwater supply of major cations and HCO3 – from chemical weathering, leaching of ions from surface soil layers during precipitation and dilution of nitrate by surface runoff during the wet season. In this tropical basin, low acidity and trace metal loadings revealed lateritic weathering of sulphides, entrapment of trace metals in Fe and Mn oxides and leaching into deep groundwater. Although the streams have not been impacted, these findings may guide policymakers for water chemistry evaluation in Cameroon.

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Acknowledgements

This paper constitutes part of the Ph.D. thesis of the corresponding author, under the auspices of the Japanese Government (MONBUKAGAKUSHO) Scholarship at the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT). The authors thank the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) for funding the project and the Institute of Geological and Mining Research (IRGM) Cameroon for providing transportation facilities.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemistry, School of Science, Tokai University, Hiratsuka, Kanagawa, 259-1292, Japan

    Mumbfu Ernestine Mimba, Takeshi Ohba & Nozomi Numanami

  2. Institute of Geological and Mining Research (IRGM), PO Box 4110, Yaounde, Cameroon

    Mumbfu Ernestine Mimba, Salomon César Nguemhe Fils, Mengnjo Jude Wirmvem & Festus Tongwa Aka

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  1. Mumbfu Ernestine Mimba
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  2. Takeshi Ohba
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Correspondence to Mumbfu Ernestine Mimba.

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Mimba, M.E., Ohba, T., Nguemhe Fils, S.C. et al. Seasonal Hydrological Inputs of Major Ions and Trace Metal Composition in Streams Draining the Mineralized Lom Basin, East Cameroon: Basis for Environmental Studies. Earth Syst Environ 1, 22 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s41748-017-0026-6

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