Abstract
Spatial variations in contaminant distribution in river sediments are useful for pollutant diagnosis. This study investigated 18 metals/metalloids (Ag, As, Ba, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Mn, Mo, Ni, Pb, Sb, Sn, Tl, U, V, Zn, and Hg) in sediments of rivers impacted by Sb and Hg mining/smelting activities in headwater catchments of the Han River Basin, China. Source and pollution assessments of the metals were examined based on their spatial variations. The results showed that sediment concentrations of Cu, Cr, Tl, U, Pb and typically, Ag, Mo, Sb, and Hg were generally elevated. However, their concentrations decreased from upstream to downstream along the river gradient. By combining their spatial variations with the results of multivariate analyses, it was deduced that the elevated concentrations were due to mining/smelting activities. At downstream sites, all elevated concentrations decreased to near background levels, except for those of Hg and Sb. The maximum concentrations of Hg and Sb in the river sediments, which were two- to three-orders of magnitude higher than the reference values, are still considered to pose very high potential ecological risks.
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