Spatial Distribution Characteristics and Risk Assessment of Nutrient Elements and Heavy Metals in the Ganjiang River Basin

Xiaodong Chu,Hao Wang,Fangwen Zheng,Cheng Huang,Daishe Wu,Liang Hu

doi:10.3390/w13233367

Abstract

The pollution of water bodies by nutrients and heavy metals can lead to a loss of biodiversity, environmental degradation, and harm to human health. During the two-month monitoring period (e.g., December 2019 to January 2020), variables such as trace metals (e.g., Cu, Zn, As, and Cr), nutrients (e.g., NH4+-N, TN, and TP), water temperature, pH value, dissolved oxygen (DO), chemical oxygen demand (COD) and five-day biochemical oxygen demand (BOD5) were measured at 102 monitoring points in the main stream and tributaries of the Ganjiang River in the Poyang Lake Basin. A variety of multivariate statistical techniques, including cluster analysis (CA), principal component analysis (PCA), and correlation analysis, were used to conduct risk assessments and source analyses of the nutrient elements and heavy metals in the Ganjiang River system. The results show that although the Ganjiang River Basin is polluted by human activities, its water chemistry characteristics and trace metal and nutrient elements concentrations were better than the national standards. Through principal component analysis, the water pollution sources could be divided into urban sewage, agricultural activities, industrial activities, and the sources of industrial activities and transportation activities. The comprehensive risks of noncarcinogens (Hc) and comprehensive risks of carcinogens (Rc) for adults and children due to drinking water indicated that the risk from drinking water for the children in the basin was greater than that for adults, and that the Hc for adults and children was acceptable. However, the Rc for adults and children was slightly higher than the acceptable values. This study provides a reference for the fine control of the environmental water pollution sources in the Ganjiang river basin and health risk assessments in the basin, which are of great significance for improving the environmental water quality standards in the river basin and for reducing the risk of carcinogenesis.

Highlights

Cu in the heavy metal trace elements show large dispersion and fluctuations, while the contents of the heavy metal As were almost negligible. These results show that different locations in the Ganjiang River Basin were affected by varying degrees of human activities and mining industry activities, which have resulted in large spatial variations in the water chemistry values and Cu contents
Of Cu in the heavy metal trace elements show large dispersion and fluctuations, while the contents of the heavy metal As were almost negligible
By monitoring and evaluating the heavy metals and nutrients in the Ganjiang River system in the Poyang Lake Basin, the results showed that the Ganjiang River Basin was mostly pollution-free, but there were strong spatial variations among the different tributaries and the upper, middle, and lower reaches of the Ganjiang River

Summary

Introduction

With the continuous development of human society, especially the various impacts that are brought by population growth and economic development, the various indicators of water quality in the natural environment continue to deteriorate [1]. Water is polluted by human activities (e.g., industrial pollution, pesticides and fertilizers, and direct sewage discharges) and by natural sources (e.g., volcanism, bedrock erosion, atmospheric migration, and plant release) [2]. The heavy metals that are introduced by industrial pollution due to human activities have an important impact on the biogeochemical cycle [3]. Because the heavy metals contained in these waters accumulate in higher organisms through the food chain, they will indirectly cause serious harm to human health, and a loss of biodiversity will pose a very large threat to the water environment [4].

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Conclusion