Eighty-year sedimentary record of heavy metal inputs in the intertidal sediments from the Nanliu River estuary, Beibu Gulf of South China Sea.
210Pb analysis in the sediment core C11 was used to reconstruct the historical fluxes of Hg, Cu, Pb, Zn, Cd, Cr and As in the Nanliu River estuary during the last ∼81 year. The 210Pbxs-derived sedimentation rates, molar C/N ratios, enrichment factors and excess fluxes indicated that the natural inputs prevailed till the early 1990s. When the erosion related to land-use modifications enhanced, it promoted higher accumulation rates of the sedimentary material. In the recent sediments they were found a moderate enrichment of Cd and Hg (maximum 3.5- and 2.8-fold corresponding to the local background levels, respectively) and a slight enrichment of Cr, Zn, As and Pb (maximum 1.3-, 1.3-, 1.3- and 1.2-fold, respectively). The excess metal fluxes also showed a consistently increasing tread since the early 1990s, which could be associated with the intensive use of phosphate fertilizers and the combustion of fossil fuels derived from human activities.
College of Marine Geo-science, Ocean University of China, Qingdao 266100, China; First Institute of Oceanography, State Oceanic Administration, Qingdao 266061, China. Electronic address: pengxia@fio.org.cn.
Peng
P
Xia
First Institute of Oceanography, State Oceanic Administration, Qingdao 266061, China. Electronic address: mxw@fio.org.cn.
Xianwei
X
Meng
Qingdao Institute of Marine Geology, China Geological Survey, Qingdao 266071, China.
Ping
P
Yin
College of Marine Geo-science, Ocean University of China, Qingdao 266100, China.
Zhimin
Z
Cao
First Institute of Oceanography, State Oceanic Administration, Qingdao 266061, China.
Xiangqin
X
Wang
D002681:China; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D019015:Geologic Sediments / Q000032:analysis*; D019216:Metals, Heavy / Q000032:analysis*; D045483:Rivers / Q000737:chemistry*; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis*
D019216:Metals, Heavy; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical