Assessment of cadmium concentration, bioavailability, and toxicity in sediments from Saguling reservoir, West Java Province

Abstract

This study aims to assess the concentration, bioavailability, and toxicity of cadmium in sediments. Surface sediment samples were taken from 12 sampling locations during the rainy and dry seasons from 2015-2017. Cadmium concentrations were analyzed using ICP-OES. Potential ecological risk index (PERI) methods assess the quality of lake sediments concerning heavy metal contamination. Risk Assessment Code (RAC) is a method used to assess the bioavailability of metals in aquatic sediments. The concentration of cadmium in the sediments during the rainy and dry seasons is high compared to the standards. The average concentration in rainy season 14.82 ± 1.48 mg.kg-1 and dry season 11.12 ± 2.16 mg.kg-1. Based on the assessment of sediment quality is categorized as extremely polluted during the rainy and dry seasons. The sediment quality has been contaminated with cadmium with the serious ecological risk category in two seasons. This means that Cadmium pollution has had a serious impact on the reservoir ecosystem. The bioavailability of cadmium in the dry season is higher than in the rainy season. This suggests that in the dry season, cadmium is more bioavailable and more able to enter the food chain. The toxicity of cadmium is higher in the dry season.