title: Heavy metals in surface sediments of the intertidal Laizhou Bay, Bohai Sea, China: Distributions, sources and contamination assessment.
abstract: Surface sediments from the intertidal zone of the southwestern Laizhou Bay were analyzed for heavy metals to seek their concentrations, distributions, pollution status, potential ecological risks and possible sources. The concentrations of As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb and Zn were in the ranges of 4.65-9.65, 0.11-0.28, 25.85-42.75, 7.57-21.29, 0.022-0.054, 12.85-25.35, 9.65-17.65 and 38.22-73.81μgg(-1) dry sediment weight, respectively. Cd and Hg presented a status of no pollution to moderate pollution and moderate to considerable potential ecological risks; they were enriched to some extent at some sampling stations, while the other studied metals were not. The combined effects of the studied metals in the sediments made them have a 21% probability of being toxic to biota. The results indicated that As, Cr, Cu, Zn, Ni and Pb were mainly from natural contribution, while a significant portion of Cd and Hg was likely from anthropogenic discharges in addition to natural inputs.
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Coastal Environmental Processes and Ecological Remediation, Yantai Institute of Coastal Zone Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Yantai, Shandong 264003, China; College of Chemistry and Materials Science, Ludong University, Yantai, Shandong 264001, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China.
authors.forename: Jinfeng
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Coastal Environmental Processes and Ecological Remediation, Yantai Institute of Coastal Zone Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Yantai, Shandong 264003, China. Electronic address: xlgao@yic.ac.cn.
authors.forename: Xuelu
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Gao
mesh_terms: D061006:Bays; D002681:China; D019015:Geologic Sediments / Q000032:analysis*; D008628:Mercury / Q000032:analysis; D019216:Metals, Heavy / Q000032:analysis* / Q000633:toxicity; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis* / Q000633:toxicity
chemical_list: D019216:Metals, Heavy; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; D008628:Mercury
keywords: Coastal zone; Environmental assessment; Intertidal environment; Marine sediments; Tidal flat; Trace elements