title: Suspended particulate matter fluxes along with their associated metals, organic matter and carbonates in a coastal Mediterranean area affected by mining activities.
abstract: A study of suspended particulate matter (SPM) fluxes along with their associated metals, organic matter and carbonates, was conducted off the Mejerda River outlet in May 2011 and in March and July 2012 at depths of 10, 20 and 40 m using sediment traps. SPM fluxes are more significant near the Mejerda outlet, especially in winter, but dissipate further offshore. Normalization reveals that the Mejerda is a major source of Pb, Zn, Cd, Cu, Ni, and Co, all of which are the result of human activities. In contrast, Fe, Mn and N are of authigenic origin. The enrichment factor shows that Pb, Zn and especially Cd are the most highly polluting metals off the Mejerda outlet. This confirms the trend observed on the shores of the Mejerda prodelta and is consistent with the type of mining activities conducted in the Mejerda catchment.
authors: Laboratoire des Ressources Minérales et Environnement, Département de Géologie, Faculté des Sciences de Tunis. Université Tunis-El Manar, 2092, Tunisia.
authors: Mohamed Amine
authors: MA
authors: Helali
authors: Laboratoire du Milieu Marin, Institut National des Sciences et Technologies de la Mer, 2025 Salammbô, Tunisia.
authors: Noureddine
authors: N
authors: Zaaboub
authors: Laboratoire des Ressources Minérales et Environnement, Département de Géologie, Faculté des Sciences de Tunis. Université Tunis-El Manar, 2092, Tunisia.
authors: Walid
authors: W
authors: Oueslati
authors: Laboratoire des Ressources Minérales et Environnement, Département de Géologie, Faculté des Sciences de Tunis. Université Tunis-El Manar, 2092, Tunisia.
authors: Ayed
authors: A
authors: Added
authors: Université de Bourgogne Franche-Comté, Laboratoire de Chrono-Environnement, UMR CNRS 6249, La Bouloie, F-25030 Besançon Cedex, France. Electronic address: lotfi.aleya@univ-fcomte.fr.
authors: Lotfi
authors: L
authors: Aleya
mesh_terms: D002254:Carbonates / Q000032:analysis*; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods*; D006812:Humic Substances / Q000032:analysis*; D019083:Mediterranean Region; D008670:Metals / Q000032:analysis*; D019216:Metals, Heavy / Q000032:analysis; D008906:Mining; D052638:Particulate Matter / Q000032:analysis*; D025341:Principal Component Analysis; D045483:Rivers / Q000737:chemistry; D012621:Seasons; D014416:Tunisia; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D002254:Carbonates; D006812:Humic Substances; D008670:Metals; D019216:Metals, Heavy; D052638:Particulate Matter; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical
keywords: Coastal pollution; Enrichment factor; Heavy metals; Mejerda River; Suspended particulate matter