title: Heavy metal contamination status and source apportionment in sediments of Songhua River Harbin region, Northeast China.
abstract: The Songhua River represents one of the seven major river systems in China. It flows through Harbin city with 66 km long, locating in the northern China with a longer winter time. This paper aimed to study concentration distributions, stability, risk assessment, and source apportionment of heavy metals including chromium (Cr), cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb), mercury (Hg), arsenic (As), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), and nickel (Ni) in 11 selected sections of the Songhua River Harbin region. Results showed that Cr, Cd, Pb, Hg, and As exceeded their respective geochemical background values in sediments of most monitoring sections. Compared with other important rivers and lakes in China, Cr, Hg, Cd, and As pollutions in surface sediments were above medium level. Further analysis of chemical speciation indicated that Cr and As in surface sediments were relatively stable while Pb and Cd were easily bioavailable. Correlation analysis revealed sources of these metals except As might be identical. Pollution levels and ecological risks of heavy metals in surface sediments presented higher in the mainstream region (45° 47.0' N ~ 45° 53.3' N, 126° 37.0' E ~ 126° 42.1' E). Source apportionment found Hejiagou and Ashi River were the main contributors to metal pollution of this region. Thus, anthropogenic activities along the Hejiagou and Ashi River should be restricted in order to protect the Songhua River Harbin region from metal contamination.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Urban Water Resource and Environment (SKLUWRE), School of Municipal and Environmental Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin, 150090, China.
authors.forename: Ning
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Urban Water Resource and Environment (SKLUWRE), School of Municipal and Environmental Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin, 150090, China. hit_tianyu@163.com.|, No.73, Huanghe Road, Nangang District, Harbin City, Heilongjiang Province, People's Republic of China. hit_tianyu@163.com.
authors.forename: Yu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Tian
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Urban Water Resource and Environment (SKLUWRE), School of Municipal and Environmental Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin, 150090, China.
authors.forename: Jun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Urban Water Resource and Environment (SKLUWRE), School of Municipal and Environmental Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin, 150090, China. zuoweistar@163.com.
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Zuo
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Urban Water Resource and Environment (SKLUWRE), School of Municipal and Environmental Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin, 150090, China.
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Zhan
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Urban Water Resource and Environment (SKLUWRE), School of Municipal and Environmental Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin, 150090, China.
authors.forename: Jian
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhang
mesh_terms: D001151:Arsenic / Q000032:analysis; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods; D019015:Geologic Sediments / Q000737:chemistry*; D060106:Lakes / Q000737:chemistry; D019216:Metals, Heavy / Q000032:analysis*; D018570:Risk Assessment; D045483:Rivers / Q000737:chemistry*; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis
chemical_list: D019216:Metals, Heavy; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; D001151:Arsenic
keywords: Heavy metal contamination; Risk assessment; Sediments; Songhua River; Source apportionment