Abstract
The input of trace elements via atmospheric deposition towards industrial, urban, traffic, and rural areas is quite different and depends on the intensity of the anthropogenic activity. A comparative study between the element deposition fluxes in four sampling sites (industrial, urban, traffic, and rural) of the Cantabria region (northern Spain) has been performed. Sampling was carried out monthly using a bulk (funnel bottle) sampler. The trace elements, As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Mn, Mo, Ni, Pb, Ti, Zn, and V, were determined in the water soluble and insoluble fractions of bulk deposition samples. The element deposition fluxes at the rural, urban, and traffic sites followed a similar order (Zn > Mn> > Cu ≈ Ti > Pb > V ≈ Cr > Ni> > As ≈ Mo > Cd). The most enriched elements were Cd, Zn, and Cu, while V, Ni, and Cr were less enriched. An extremely high deposition of Mn was found at the industrial site, leading to high enrichment factor values, resulting from the presence of a ferro-manganese/silico-manganese production plant in the vicinity of the sampling site. Important differences were found in the element solubilities in the studied sites; the element solubilities were higher at the traffic and rural sites, and lower at the urban and industrial sites. For all sites, Zn and Cd were the most soluble elements, whereas Cr and Ti were less soluble. The inter-site correlation coefficients for each element were calculated to assess the differences between the sites. The rural and traffic sites showed some similarities in the sources of trace elements; however, the sources of these elements at the industrial and rural sites were quite different. Additionally, the element fluxes measured in the insoluble fraction of the bulk atmospheric deposition exhibited a good correlation with the daily traffic volume at the traffic site.
Highlights
Total atmospheric deposition of trace elements can be considered a good indicator of the influences of anthropogenic activities on the environment
Higher metal levels were identified in Cantabrian towns in the vicinities of industrial point sources (Ruiz et al 2014). Considering these previous findings, the present study aims to investigate the variability of trace elements in bulk atmospheric deposition in urban, industrial, traffic and rural areas of the Cantabria region
These values were calculated from a report on the background levels of heavy metals and trace elements in soils in the Cantabria region (Gobierno de Cantabria, Consejería de Medio Ambiente 2011)
Summary
Total atmospheric deposition of trace elements can be considered a good indicator of the influences of anthropogenic activities on the environment. As a consequence of human activity, the emission of trace elements into the atmosphere strongly depends on the land use and anthropogenic intensity (Styers and Chappelka 2009); the input of such elements into the environment via atmospheric deposition varies widely among industrial, urban, sub-urban, rural and remote areas (Shi et al.2012). The contribution of long-range transport of trace metals to total deposition should not be neglected. An important amount of particulate matter-bound metals is emitted from fugitive sources, such as harbor and industrial estates (Castillo et al 2013)
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