title: Potentially toxic trace element contamination, sources, and pollution assessment in farmlands, Bijie City, southwestern China.
abstract: Artisanal zinc smelting activities, which had been widely applied in Bijie City, Guizhou Province, southwestern of China, can pollute surrounding farmlands. In the present study, 177 farmland topsoil samples of Bijie City were collected and 11 potentially toxic trace elements (PTEs), namely Pb, Zn, Cu, Ni, Co, Mn, Cr, V, Hg, As, and Cd were tested to characterize the concentrations, sources, and ecological risks. Mean concentrations of these PTEs in soils were (mg/kg) as follows: Pb (127), Zn (379), Cu (93.1), Ni (54.6), Co (26.2), Mn (1095), Cr (133), V (206), Hg (0.15), As (16.2), and Cd (3.08). Pb, Zn, and Cd had coefficients of variation greater than 100% and showed a high uneven distribution and spatial variability in the study area. Correlation coefficient analysis and principal component analysis (PCA) were used to quantify potential pollution sources. Results showed that Cu, Ni, Co, Mn, and V came from natural sources, whereas Pb, Zn, Hg, As, and Cd came from anthropogenic pollution sources. Geoaccumulation index and potential ecological risk indices were employed to study the pollution degree of PTEs, which revealed that Pb and Cd shared the greatest contamination and would pose serious ecological risks to the surrounding environment. The results of this study could help the local government managers to establish pollution control strategies and to secure food safety.
authors.affiliation: School of Energy and Environmental Engineering, and National International Cooperation Base on Environment and Energy, University of Science and Technology Beijing, 30 Xueyuan Road, Haidian District, 100083, Beijing, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Zhimin
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Yuan
authors.affiliation: School of Energy and Environmental Engineering, and National International Cooperation Base on Environment and Energy, University of Science and Technology Beijing, 30 Xueyuan Road, Haidian District, 100083, Beijing, People's Republic of China. yaojun@ustb.edu.cn.|School of Water Resource and Environmental Engineering, Sino-Hungarian Joint Laboratory of Environmental Science and Health, China University of Geosciences (Beijing), 29 Xueyuan Road, Haidian District, 100083, Beijing, People's Republic of China. yaojun@ustb.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Jun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Yao
authors.affiliation: School of Energy and Environmental Engineering, and National International Cooperation Base on Environment and Energy, University of Science and Technology Beijing, 30 Xueyuan Road, Haidian District, 100083, Beijing, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Fei
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: School of Energy and Environmental Engineering, and National International Cooperation Base on Environment and Energy, University of Science and Technology Beijing, 30 Xueyuan Road, Haidian District, 100083, Beijing, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Zunwei
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.affiliation: Guizhou Academy of Environmental Science and Designing, 550081, Guiyang, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Zeqin
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Dong
authors.affiliation: Guizhou Academy of Environmental Science and Designing, 550081, Guiyang, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Feng
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Guizhou Academy of Environmental Science and Designing, 550081, Guiyang, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Yu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Hu
authors.affiliation: Department of Natural Resource Sciences, McGill University, 21111 Lakeshore Road, Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue, QC, H9X 3V9, Canada.
authors.forename: Geoffrey
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Sunahara
mesh_terms: D002681:China; D002947:Cities; D004463:Ecology; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods*; D004787:Environmental Pollution / Q000032:analysis; D019216:Metals, Heavy / Q000032:analysis*; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012987:Soil / Q000737:chemistry; D012989:Soil Pollutants / Q000032:analysis*; D014131:Trace Elements / Q000032:analysis*; D015032:Zinc / Q000032:analysis
chemical_list: D019216:Metals, Heavy; D012987:Soil; D012989:Soil Pollutants; D014131:Trace Elements; D015032:Zinc
keywords: Bijie City; Geoaccumulation index; Potential ecological risk index; Potentially toxic trace elements (PTEs); Principal component analysis (PCA)