Abstract
Grain size and concentrations of organic carbon (Corg) and particulate metals (PMs) As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Pb, Zn, Al, Fe, and Mn of 373 surface sediment samples, salinities in 67 surface water samples, were analyzed in various environments, including the upper delta plain wetlands (UDPW), its adjacent shallow sea wetland (SSW) in the Liaodong Bay, and river channels that are running through the Liaohe Delta, to evaluate the spatial distribution, transportation environmental dynamics of metals, and the provenance of metal pollution and assess the filtration functions of wetlands. The concentrations of PMs for UDPW were generally higher by a factor of ~ 10–22% compared with its analogues in SSW, suggesting the accumulation of PMs within the UDPW indicates that the UDPW systems are efficiently physical and chemical traps for PMs of anthropogenic sources by retaining and storing pollutants flowing into the sea. However, there was sever sewage irrigation-induced Cd pollution with a geo-accumulation index of 0.62–3.11 in an area of ~ 86 km2 of the adjacent shallow sea wetland, where large amount wetlands were historically moved for agriculture in the UDPW. Remarkably, the distributions of PMs were controlled by salinity-induced desorption and re-adsorption mechanisms and significantly dispersed the contamination coverage by the three-dimensional hydrodynamic and sedimentation processes that dominated by inputs of freshwater and ocean dynamics including NE-SW tidal currents and NE-E longshore drifts in the SSW of the Liaodong Bay. A high agreement between the UDPW and the SSW datasets in principal component analysis essentially reflects that the characteristics of PM sources in the SSW were actually inherited from that in the UDPW, with a much closer relationship among metals, organic matter, and fine particulates in SSW than that of UDPW, which was judged by their correlation coefficient range of 0.406–0.919 in SSW against those of 0.042–0.654 in UDPW.
![](http://media.springernature.com/m312/springer-static/image/art%3A10.1007%2Fs11356-017-0912-3/MediaObjects/11356_2017_912_Fig1_HTML.gif)
![](http://media.springernature.com/m312/springer-static/image/art%3A10.1007%2Fs11356-017-0912-3/MediaObjects/11356_2017_912_Fig2_HTML.gif)
![](http://media.springernature.com/m312/springer-static/image/art%3A10.1007%2Fs11356-017-0912-3/MediaObjects/11356_2017_912_Fig3_HTML.gif)
![](http://media.springernature.com/m312/springer-static/image/art%3A10.1007%2Fs11356-017-0912-3/MediaObjects/11356_2017_912_Fig4_HTML.gif)
![](http://media.springernature.com/m312/springer-static/image/art%3A10.1007%2Fs11356-017-0912-3/MediaObjects/11356_2017_912_Fig5_HTML.gif)
![](http://media.springernature.com/m312/springer-static/image/art%3A10.1007%2Fs11356-017-0912-3/MediaObjects/11356_2017_912_Fig6_HTML.gif)
![](http://media.springernature.com/m312/springer-static/image/art%3A10.1007%2Fs11356-017-0912-3/MediaObjects/11356_2017_912_Fig7_HTML.gif)
![](http://media.springernature.com/m312/springer-static/image/art%3A10.1007%2Fs11356-017-0912-3/MediaObjects/11356_2017_912_Fig8_HTML.gif)
Similar content being viewed by others
Reference
Acosta JA, Jansen B, Kalbitz K, Faz A, Martínez-Martínez S (2011) Salinity increases mobility of heavy metals in soils. Chemosphere 85(8):1318–1324. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2011.07.046
Benoit G, Oktay-Marshall SD, Cantu A, Hood EM, Coleman CH, Corapcioglu MO, Santschi PH (1994) Partitioning of Cu, Pb, Ag, Zn, Fe, Al, and Mn between filter-retained particles, colloids, and solution in six Texas estuaries. Mar Chem 45(4):307–336. https://doi.org/10.1016/0304-4203(94)90076-0
Birch GF, Taylor SE, Matthai C (2001) Small-scale spatial and temporal variance in the concentration of heavy metals in aquatic sediments: a review and some new concepts. Environ Pollut 113(3):357–372. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0269-7491(00)00182-2
Brix H, Ye SY, Laws EA, Sun DC, Li GS, Ding XG, Yuan HM, Zhao GM, Wang J, Pei SF (2014) Large-scale management of common reed, Phragmites australis, for paper production: a case study from the Liaohe Delta, China. Ecol Eng 73:760–769. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoleng.2014.09.099
Bryan GW, Langston WJ (1992) Bioavailability, accumulation and effects of heavy metals in sediments with special reference to United Kingdom estuaries: a review. Environ Pollut 76(2):89–131. https://doi.org/10.1016/0269-7491(92)90099-V
Callaway JC, DeLaune RD, Patrick WH (1996) Chernobyl 137Cs used to determine sediment accretion rates at selected northern European coastal wetlands. Limnol Oceanogr 41(3):444–450. https://doi.org/10.4319/lo.1996.41.3.0444
Chen YZ, Fang GZ, Ni J, Hu K (2010) Research on century’s changes of coastlines of Liaohe Estuary. J Mar Sci 28:14–21
Chen ZS, Wu SY, Xia DX, Xie QC, Chen F, Hu H, Zhan JY, He BL (1998) China’s coastal embayments (V.3: Important estuary). China Ocean Press, Beijing, pp 432–450 (in Chinese)
Cook M, Morrow H (1995): Anthropogenic sources of cadmium in Canada, national workshop on cadmium transport into plants. Canadian Network of Toxicology Centres, Ottawa
da Silva CC, Klein RD, Barcarolli IF, Bianchini A (2016) Metal contamination as a possible etiology of fibropapillomatosis in juvenile female green sea turtles Chelonia mydas from the southern Atlantic Ocean. Aquat Toxicol 170:42–51. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquatox.2015.11.007
Davison W (1993) Iron and manganese in lakes. Earth Sci Rev 34(2):119–163. https://doi.org/10.1016/0012-8252(93)90029-7
Delaune RD, Patrick WH, Buresh RJ (1978) Sedimentation rates determined by 137Cs dating in a rapidly accreting salt marsh. Nature 275(5680):532–533. https://doi.org/10.1038/275532a0
Du Laing G, De Vos R, Vandecasteele B, Lesage E, Tack FMG, Verloo MG (2008) Effect of salinity on heavy metal mobility and availability in intertidal sediments of the Scheldt estuary. Estuar Coast Shelf Sci 77(4):589–602. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecss.2007.10.017
Edgington DN, Robbins JA (1976) Records of lead deposition in Lake Michigan sediments since 1800. Environ Sci Technol 10(3):266–274. https://doi.org/10.1021/es60114a007
Ennouri R, Zaaboub N, Fertouna-Bellakhal M, Chouba L, Aleya L (2016) Assessing trace metal pollution through high spatial resolution of surface sediments along the Tunis Gulf coast (southwestern Mediterranean). Environ Sci Pollut Res 23(6):5322–5334. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-015-5775-x
Feng MH, Long JP, Yu L, Li JJ (2003) Ecological risk evaluation of heavy metals of marine sediment in Liaodong Bays shallow waters. Mar Sci 27:52–56
Fernandes MC, Nayak GN (2015) Speciation of metals and their distribution in tropical estuarine mudflat sediments, southwest coast of India. Ecotoxicol Environ Saf 122:68–75. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoenv.2015.07.016
Folk RL, Ward WC (1957) Brazos River bar [Texas]: a study in the significance of grain size parameters. J Sediment Res 27(1):3–26. https://doi.org/10.1306/74D70646-2B21-11D7-8648000102C1865D
Förstner U, Wittmann GTW (1979) Metal pollution in the aquatic environment. Springer Berlin Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-96511-1
Greger M, Kautsky L, Sandberg T (1995) A tentative model of Cd uptake in Potamogeton pectinatus in relation to salinity. Environ Exp Bot 35(2):215–225. https://doi.org/10.1016/0098-8472(94)00047-9
Guieu C, Martin JM, Tankéré SPC, Mousty F, Trincherini P, Bazot M, Dai MH (1998) On trace metal geochemistry in the Danube River and western Black Sea. Estuar Coast Shelf Sci 47(4):471–485. https://doi.org/10.1006/ecss.1998.0377
GUO W, MC HE, ZF YANG, CY LIN, XC QUAN (2007) Distribution and sources of petroleum hydrocarbons and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in sediments from Daliao River watershed, China. Acta Sci Circumst 27:824–830
Hamer K, Karius V (2002) Brick production with dredged harbour sediments. An industrial-scale experiment. Waste Manag 22(5):521–530. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0956-053X(01)00048-4
Ip CCM, Li XD, Zhang G, Farmer JG, Wai OWH, Li YS (2004) Over one hundred years of trace metal fluxes in the sediments of the Pearl River Estuary, South China. Environ Pollut 132(1):157–172. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2004.03.028
Ip CCM, Li XD, Zhang G, Wai OW, Li YS (2007) Trace metal distribution in sediments of the Pearl River Estuary and the surrounding coastal area, South China. Environ Pollut 147(2):311–323. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2006.06.028
Jin SZ (1996) Marine environment in the shallow sea oil-gas region of Liaohe oil field. Dalian Maritime University Press, Dalian (in Chinese)
Kaiser HF (1958) The varimax criterion for analytic rotation in factor analysis. Psychometrika 23(3):187–200. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02289233
Lee SV, Cundy AB (2001) Heavy metal contamination and mixing processes in sediments from the Humber Estuary, Eastern England. Estuar Coast Shelf Sci 53(5):619–636. https://doi.org/10.1006/ecss.2000.0713
Li GH, Cao ZM, Lan DZ, Xu J, Wang SS, Yin WH (2007) Spatial variations in grain size distribution and selected metal contents in the Xiamen Bay, China. Environ Geol 52(8):1559–1567. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00254-006-0600-y
Li XD, Shen ZG, Wai OWH, Li YS (2001) Chemical forms of Pb, Zn and Cu in the sediment profiles of the Pearl River Estuary. Mar Pollut Bull 42(3):215–223. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0025-326X(00)00145-4
Li XW, Liang C, Shi JB (2012) Developing wetland restoration scenarios and modeling its ecological consequences in the Liaohe River Delta wetlands, China. Clean: Soil, Air, Water 40:1185–1196
Liu H, Yin BS, YQ X, Yang DZ (2005) Numerical simulation of tides and tidal currents in Liaodong Bay with POM. Prog Nat Sci 15:47–55
Liu HK (1990) Analysis of current characteristics of the coastal shallow water area in Liaodong. Bay Mar Sci 2:22–27 (in Chinese)
Liu HK (1996) The study of regularities of distribution in the tidal current and suspended sand of the Liaodong Bay. Acta Oceanol Sin 18:72–78 (in Chinese)
Liu J, Ye SY, Laws EA, Xue CT, Yuan HM, Ding XG, Zhao GM, Yang SX, He L, Wang J, Pei SF, Wang YB, QY L (2017) Sedimentary environment evolution and biogenic silica records over 33000 years in the Liaohe Delta, China. Limnol Oceanogr 62(2):474–489. https://doi.org/10.1002/lno.10435
Liu WX, Li XD, Shen ZG, Wang DC, Wai OWH, Li YS (2003) Multivariate statistical study of heavy metal enrichment in sediments of the Pearl River Estuary. Environ Pollut 121(3):377–388. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0269-7491(02)00234-8
Loring DH (1990) Lithium—a new approach for the granulometric normalization of trace metal data. Mar Chem 29:155–168. https://doi.org/10.1016/0304-4203(90)90011-Z
Machado AAS, Spencer K, Kloas W, Toffolon M, Zarfl C (2016) Metal fate and effects in estuaries: a review and conceptual model for better understanding of toxicity. Sci Total Environ 541:268–281. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2015.09.045
Müller G (1981) Die Schwermetallbelastung der sediments des Neckars und seiner Nebenflusse: eine Bestandsaufnahme. Chem-Ztg 05:157–164
Mwanuzi F, De Smedt F (1999) Heavy metal distribution model under estuarine mixing. Hydrol Process 13(5):789–804. https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1099-1085(19990415)13:5<789::AID-HYP781>3.0.CO;2-F
Neşer G, Kontas A, Ünsalan D, Uluturhan E, Altay O, Darılmaz E, Küçüksezgin F, Tekoğul N, Yercan F (2012) Heavy metals contamination levels at the Coast of Aliağa (Turkey) ship recycling zone. Mar Pollut Bull 64(4):882–887. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2012.02.006
Oldfield F, Appleby PG (1984) Empirical testing of 210Pb-dating models for lake sediments. In: Haworth EY, Lund JWG (eds) Lake sediments and environmental history. The. University of Minnesota Press, Minneapolis, pp 93–124
Paalman MAA, Van Der Weijden CH, Loch JPG (1994) Sorption of cadmium on suspended matter under estuarine conditions; competition and complexation with major sea-water ions. Water Air Soil Pollut 73(1):49–60. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00477975
Qi W (2012) Geochemical study of land suitability of Liaohe River basin. Northeastern University, Shenyang, China
Qin R, Cao G, Wu Y, Zhang C, Xu Z (2016) A method for selecting monitoring wells and measured water-quality characteristics with application to the Liaohe River (China) groundwater system. Environ Earth Sci 75(9):792. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-016-5593-6
Reddy KR, DeLaune RD (2008) Biogeochemistry of wetlands: science and applications. CRC Press 405–446 pp
Robbins JA (1978) Geochemical and geophysical applications of radioactive lead. In: Nriagu JO (ed) The biogeochemistry of lead in the environment. Elsevier/North-Holland Biomedical Press, Amsterdam, pp 285–393
Soares HMVM, Boaventura RAR, Machado AASC, Esteves Da Silva JCG (1999) Sediments as monitors of heavy metal contamination in the Ave river basin (Portugal): multivariate analysis of data. Environ Pollut 105(3):311–323. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0269-7491(99)00048-2
Sundaramanickam A, Shanmugam N, Cholan S, Kumaresan S, Madeswaran P, Balasubramanian T (2016) Spatial variability of heavy metals in estuarine, mangrove and coastal ecosystems along Parangipettai, Southeast coast of India. Environ Pollut 218:186–195. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2016.07.048
Wang D (2013) Research on heavy metal pollution of Xiaoling River sediment in Jinzhou City. Journal of Anhui Sci 41:1714–1715 (in Chinese)
Wang L, Li J (2010) On the countermeasures of Panjin coastal wetland protection in Liaoning Province—reflections on five-point-in-a-line construction project. Asian Social Science 6:88–92
Woods AM, Lloyd JM, Zong Y, Brodie CR (2012) Spatial mapping of Pearl River Estuary surface sediment geochemistry: influence of data analysis on environmental interpretation. Estuar Coast Shelf Sci 115:218–233. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecss.2012.09.005
Xia N, Zhang Q, Yao D, Li G (2008) Geochemical analysis of marine sediments using fused glass disc by X-ray fluorescence spectrometry. Chin J Oceanol Limnol 26(4):475–479. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00343-008-0475-8
Xia P, Meng XW, Yin P, Cao ZM, Wang XQ (2011) Eighty-year sedimentary record of heavy metal inputs in the intertidal sediments from the Nanliu River estuary, Beibu Gulf of South China Sea. Environ Pollut 159(1):92–99. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2010.09.014
Xu F, Liu Z, Yuan S, Zhang X, Sun Z, Xu F, Jiang Z, Li A, Yin X (2017) Environmental background values of trace elements in sediments from the Jiaozhou Bay catchment, Qingdao, China. Mar Pollut Bull 121(1-2):367–371. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2017.06.019
Yang LW, Han K, Dou ZX, Zhang ZC, Zhang JM (1994) Numerical computation of tidal current in extremely shallow water of Liaodong Bay. J Hydrodyn 9:170–181
Yang XL, Yuan XT, Zhang AG, Mao YZ, Li Q, Zong HM, Wang LJ, Li XD (2015) Spatial distribution and sources of heavy metals and petroleum hydrocarbon in the sand flats of Shuangtaizi Estuary, Bohai Sea of China. Mar Pollut Bull 95(1):503–512. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2015.02.042
Yao XY, Xiao R, Ma ZW, Xie Y, Zhang MX, FH Y (2016) Distribution and contamination assessment of heavy metals in soils from tidal flat, oil exploitation zone and restored wetland in the Yellow River Estuary. Wetlands 36:S153–S165
Ye S, Laws EA, Yuknis N, Ding X, Yuan H, Zhao G, Wang J, Yu X, Pei S, DeLaune RD (2015) Carbon sequestration and soil accretion in coastal wetland communities of the Yellow River Delta and Liaohe Delta, China. Estuar Coasts 38(6):1885–1897. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12237-014-9927-x
Ye SY, Laws EA, Wu Q, Zhong SJ, Ding XG, Zhao GM, Gong SJ (2010) Pyritization of trace metals in estuarine sediments and the controlling factors: a case in Jiaojiang Estuary of Zhejiang Province, China. Environ Earth Sci 61(5):973–982. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-009-0416-7
Ye SY, Laws EA, Ding XG, Yuan HM, Zhao GM, Wang J (2011a) Trace metals in porewater of surface sediments and their bioavailability in Jiaozhou Bay, Qingdao, China. Environ Earth Sci 64(6):1641–1646. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-010-0719-8
Ye SY, Laws EA, Zhong SJ, Ding XG, Pang SJ (2011b) Sequestration of metals through association with pyrite in subtidal sediments of the Nanpaishui Estuary on the Western Bank of the Bohai Sea, China. Mar Pollut Bull 62(5):934–941. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2011.02.052
Ye SY, Laws EA, Gambrell R (2013) Trace element remobilization following the resuspension of sediments under controlled redox conditions: City Park Lake, Baton Rouge, LA. Appl Geochem 28:91–99. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apgeochem.2012.09.008
Ye SY, Krauss KW, Brix H, Wei MJ, Olsson L, Yu XY, Ma XY, Wang J, Yuan HM, Zhao GM, Ding XG, Moss RF (2016) Inter-annual variability of area-scaled gaseous carbon emissions from wetland soils in the Liaohe Delta, China. PLoS One 11(8):e0160612. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0160612
Yi YJ, Yang ZF, Zhang SH (2011) Ecological risk assessment of heavy metals in sediment and human health risk assessment of heavy metals in fishes in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River basin. Environ Pollut 159(10):2575–2585. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2011.06.011
Yi YJ, Sun J, Tang CH, Zhang SH (2016) Ecological risk assessment of heavy metals in sediment in the upper reach of the Yangtze River. Environ Sci Pollut Res 23(11):11002–11013. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-016-6296-y
Yu RL, Yuan X, Zhao YH, GR H, XL T (2008) Heavy metal pollution in intertidal sediments from Quanzhou Bay, China. J Environ Sci 20:664–669
Zhang H, Shan BQ (2008) Historical records of heavy metal accumulation in sediments and the relationship with agricultural intensification in the Yangtze–Huaihe region, China. Sci Total Environ 399(1-3):113–120. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2008.03.036
Zhang HJ, Zhao XF, Ni YW, XB L, Chen JP, Su F, Zhao L, Zhang N, Zhang XP (2010) PCDD/Fs and PCBs in sediments of the Liaohe River, China: levels, distribution, and possible sources. Chemosphere 79(7):754–762. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2010.02.039
Zhang J, Liu CL (2002) Riverine composition and estuarine geochemistry of particulate metals in China—weathering features, anthropogenic impact and chemical fluxes. Estuar Coast Shelf Sci 54(6):1051–1070. https://doi.org/10.1006/ecss.2001.0879
Zhang WG, Feng H, Chang JN, JG Q, Xie HX, LZ Y (2009) Heavy metal contamination in surface sediments of Yangtze River intertidal zone: an assessment from different indexes. Environ Pollut 157(5):1533–1543. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2009.01.007
Zhang Y, XQ L, Liu HL, Liu QQ, Yu D (2014) Distribution characteristics and source identification of heavy metals in surface sediments of Bohai Bay near Tianjin. Res. Environ Sci 27:608–614
Zhang Z, Diao SL, Zhang YH (2007) Research on soil pollution of Xiaoling River sewage irrigation area in Jinzhou City. Heilongjiang Environmental Journal 31:65–68 (in Chinese)
Zhao GM, Lu Q, Ye SY, Yuan HM, Ding XG, Wang J (2016) Assessment of heavy metal contamination in surface sediments of the west Guangdong coastal region, China. Mar Pollut Bull 108(1-2):268–274. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2016.04.057
Zhou HY, Peng XT, Pan JM (2004a) Distribution, source and enrichment of some chemical elements in sediments of the Pearl River Estuary. China Cont Shelf Res 24(16):1857–1875. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.csr.2004.06.012
Zhou XY, ED WANG, EJ ZHU (2004b) Evaluation on heavy metal pollution in the sediments at the river mouths around Liaodong Bay. Environ Chem 23:321–325
Zhu LH, JZ W, YC X, RJ H, Wang N (2010) Recent geomorphic changes in the Liaohe Estuary. J Geogr Sci 20(1):31–48. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11442-010-0031-2
Funding
This study was jointly funded by the Key Program for International S&T Cooperation Projects of China (2016yee0109600), Ministry and Land and Resources program: “Special foundation for scientific research on public causes” (Grant No. 201111023), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 41240022, 40872167, 41406082), and Governmental Public Research Funds of China (Grant Nos. DD20160144, 201111023, and GZH201200503).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Responsible editor: Severine Le Faucheur
Electronic supplementary material
ESM 1
(DOCX 59 kb)
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Liu, J., Ye, S., Yuan, H. et al. Metal pollution across the upper delta plain wetlands and its adjacent shallow sea wetland, northeast of China: implications for the filtration functions of wetlands. Environ Sci Pollut Res 25, 5934–5949 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-017-0912-3
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-017-0912-3