Estudo de sedimentos da bacia hidrográfica do Moji-Guaçu, com ênfase na determinação de metais.

Abstract

The main objective of this work was to analyze the sediments of the river Moji-Guacu, to attempt evaluate the impact of the metals on the environment. The Hydrographic Basin of Moji-Guacu, located in the States of Sao Paulo and Minas Gerais, is an important support system of several economical activities. It was verified that the river Moji-Guacu suffers different degrees of degradation along your course due to anthropogenic activities such as: inadequate use and occupation of the soil, use of pesticides and fertilizers in the agriculture, release of sewage and industrial effluents, deforestation and extraction of sand and clay, etc. To evaluate the effects of those impacts, collecting of sediments were accomplished, in four different times, two in the dry period (August of 2000 and June of 2001) and two in the rainy period (November of 2000 and March of 2001), 15 collecting points distributed from the nascent to the mouth. The percentages of organic and inorganic matter, the granulometry of sediment and the metals present were determined. The qualitative analysis of the metals was made by the spectroscopic ray-X fluorescence technique and the quantitative analyses by atomic absorption spectroscopy. The percentages of organic matter were considered high for almost all the points and the periods of samplings. The granulometric analysis indicated the presence of a high fraction of clay and silt in most of the sampling points, suggesting that the sediments have important role in the redistribution of the metals in the water’s column. The ray-X fluorescence showed the presence of Zr, Cu, Fe, Cr, Ti, Ca, K, P, S, and Al. In a general way, the concentrations of the total metals of Cd, Pb showed high for all the points and, Fe, Cu, Cr and Mn in some points, which characterize an impacted environment and a system with high degree of contamination and human interference.