Abstract
The heavy metal (HM) pollution in sediment is of serious concern, particularly in the Red Sea environment. This study aimed to review and compile data on the concentrations of four HMs (Cd, Cu, Pb, and Zn) in the coastal surface sediments from the Red Sea, mainly from Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Yemen, published in the literature from 1992 to 2021. The coastal sediments included those from mangrove, estuaries, and intertidal ecosystems. It was found that the mean values of Cd, Cu, Pb, and Zn in coastal Red Sea sediments were elevated and localized in high human activity sites in comparison to the earth upper continental crust and to reference values for marine sediments. From the potential ecological risk index (PERI) aspect, 32 reports (47.1%) were categorized as ‘considerable ecological risk’ and 23 reports (33.8%) as ‘very high ecological risk’. From the human health risk assessment (HHRA) aspect, the non-carcinogenic risk (NCR) values (HI values < 1.0) of Cd, Cu, Pb, and Zn represented no NCR for the ingestion and the dermal contact routes for sediments from the Red Sea countries. The reassessment of the HM data cited in the literature allowed integrative and accurate comparisons of the PERI and HHRA data, which would be useful in the management and sustainable development of the Red Sea area, besides being a helpful database for future use. This warrants extensive and continuous monitoring studies to understand the current and the projected HM pollution situation and to propose possible protective and conservative measures in the future for the resource-rich Red Sea ecosystem.
Highlights
Monitoring studies of heavy metal (HM) pollution by using sediments are expected to increase in the future based on the increasing number of papers in the literature
We reviewed the literature and analyzed the data published by various authors to assess the HM status of the sediments of the coastal areas of the Red Sea published mainly from Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Yemen
Ahdy and Youssef [9] stated that the results showed that Cd was the only metal in the north-western part of the Red Sea that posed a high risk to the environment, according to the Risk Assessment Code (RAC)
Summary
Monitoring studies of heavy metal (HM) pollution by using sediments are expected to increase in the future based on the increasing number of papers in the literature. Judging from the recent paper by Dash et al [1] who presented the assessment of sediment pollution loadings and their ecological risks, such monitoring studies would be more pronounced and significant from the ecotoxicological and public health points of view. From 1964 until January 2021 based on a Scopus database search in January 2021, many studies (>4400 papers) in the literature reported on the HMs in the sediments from different countries (>125 countries with China topping the number with >1400 papers). Yemen coast (Al-Luhayah, Al-Khawbah, Ibn. Abbas village, Al-Salif, Ras Isa, Urj village, Ras Katib, Al-Mehwat, and Al-Taif beach).
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callMore From: International journal of environmental research and public health
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
