Spatial distribution and ecological risk assessment of heavy metals in karst soils from the Yinjiang County, Southwest China

PeerJ

article

Ruiyin Han¹  Zhifang Xu¹ 

[1] Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences;University of Chinese Academy of Sciences;Chinese Academy of Sciences, Center for Excellence in Life and Paleoenvironment

关键词: Contamination assessment;    Distribution characteristics;    Land-use types;    Karst area;    Soil heavy metals;   

DOI  :  10.7717/peerj.12716

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: Inra

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundSoil heavy metals (HMs) under different land-use types have diverse effects, which may trigger the ecological risk. To explore the potential sources of HMs in karst soils, the spatial distribution and geochemical behavior of HMs based on different land-use types are employed in this study.MethodsSoil samples (n = 47) were collected in three suites of karst soil profiles from the secondary forest, abandoned cropland and shrubland in Yinjiang, Southwest China. The concentrations of Ni, Mn, Cr, Pb, Cd and Mo were determined to give a comprehensive understanding of the possible sources of these HMs and evaluate the potential ecological risk in Yinjiang County.ResultsCd. Meanwhile, the concentrations of most HMs roughly increased with the depth. Additionally, the concentrations of HMs were mostly correlated with soil pH and SOC, rather than with clay and silt proportions. By contrast, with the enrichment factors (EF), geo-accumulation (Igeo) and potential ecological risk index (PERI) of HMs in soil under different land-use types, the results indicated that these HMs exhibited non-pollution (Igeo < 0) and no ecological risk (PERI < 30) to human health in soils of Yinjiang County.ConclusionsThe distribution of HMs is dominated by weathering in the karst area, and the effects of agricultural inputs on the enrichment of soil HMs in Yinjiang County are limited. This further state that the arrangement of the local agricultural structure is reasonable.

【 授权许可】

CC BY