Source identification and hazardous risk delineation of heavy metal contamination in Yanqi basin, northwest China

Abstract

A total of 469 surface soil samples were collected from the Yanqi basin in northwest China and evaluated for levels of ten heavy metals. Multivariate statistical analyses were used to study sources of and map the spatial distribution of heavy metals, as well as determine the relationship between land use types and soil source materials. It was found that: (1) the average amounts of ten heavy metals in the Yanqi basin were all below the national soil environmental quality standards of China (GB15618-1998), but the average amount of Cd, Hg, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Zn all exceeded the heavy metal background levels of soil in Xinjiang, China and exhibited accumulation. The ten heavy metals analyzed in this study can be categorized into four principal components as follows: Principal component 1 was Co, Cr, Mn, Ni, and Zn, and principal component 3 was As and Cu. Both of these originated from a natural geological background. Principal component 2 consisted of Cd and Pb and originated from industrial, agricultural and transportation influences. Principal component 4 consisted of Hg and was due to industrial influences. Our study found that Pb and Zn were a large part in the principal components 1 and 3 and were influenced by a combination of geologic background and human activity. (2) Heavy metals Cd and Hg were at high levels in construction land and farmland, while Co, Cr, Cu, Mn, and Ni were significantly higher in lacustrine deposits than in sandy shale from weathered material, coarse crystalline rock weathered material, and diluvial material. The land use types correlated significantly with the accumulation of Cd and Hg, and the soil parent material was the major factor for the accumulation of As, Co, Cr, Cu, Mn, and Ni. (3) The single element, element integration and the corresponding principal component presented similar spatial patterns of hazardous risk. Following comprehensive assessment of all elements, the high risk regions were found to be located in densely-populated urban areas and western parts of the study area. This was attributed to the higher geological background in the western part and strong human influence in the central part. Research shows that Cd, Hg, Pb, and Zn were locally enriched in the basin and this warrants increased attention.