Abstract
This article presents the results of the analysis and estimation of the seasonal variation of heavy metals in the water of urban lakes and the assessment of their environmental state based on the chemical data. The research covered seven lakes in Murmansk, subject to various levels of anthropogenic load. Field studies were conducted in 2019–2020. Water samples were taken both in summer and in winter/spring seasons. The most polluted lake was Lake Ledovoe, where the highest concentrations of V, Cr, Co, Ni, Cu, W, and Mn were found. Lake Yuzhnoe, which is characterized by the lowest concentrations of studied heavy metals, was the least subject to anthropogenic load. In total, V, Ni, Zn, Fe, and Mn were above the background levels in the lakes of Murmansk. The analysis of the seasonal variation showed that the highest concentrations of heavy metals were found in winter/spring season and reached their maximum during the period of melt water intake from the catchment area. The research showed the impact of the urban environment on the chemical composition of the Murmansk lakes.
Highlights
Among the pollutants, heavy metals pose the highest risk to aquatic ecosystems due to their toxicity, resistance to biodegradation, and high potential for accumulation in organisms [1,2,3]
The objective of this study is to estimate the seasonal variation of heavy metals in the surface waters of Murmansk, the largest city north of the Arctic Circle, and the environmental state of lakes based on the chemical data
The results of the studies showed the significant influence of the urban environment on the chemical composition of the Murmansk lakes
Summary
Heavy metals pose the highest risk to aquatic ecosystems due to their toxicity, resistance to biodegradation, and high potential for accumulation in organisms [1,2,3]. Due to excessive input of Cu and Ni into the lakes of the north-western part of Murmansk region (operations of Kola Mining-Metallurgical Company) fish suffer from pathological changes in organs and tissues, such as intensive growth of the connective tissue in kidneys, kidney stone disease, pathologies in gonads (segmented gonads, medullary form of gonads), etc. This is explained by the fact that the fish liver is the organ of the greatest accumulation of Cu («target organ»). The frequency of occurrence of pathological kidney changes in these lakes is 100 and 80%, respectively [6]
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