The influence of submarine volcano on seasonal changes in arsenic in the waters of Kagoshima Bay, southwestern Japan

Abstract

Volcanic activity is one of the primary sources of arsenic in nature, and chemical forms of arsenic discharged by volcanic activity are inorganic. Kagoshima Bay has active submarine volcano located in the 200 m deep basin of its northern part. Since dissolved inorganic arsenic is more toxic than organic arsenic it is important to understand the dispersion of discharged arsenic in seawater. To estimate the influence of arsenic emitted from the bottom vents seasonal changes in As(III) and As(V) concentrations in seawater were studied. There are few studies on the impact of arsenic discharged by submarine volcanos in the inner bay. The total concentrations of As(III) and As(V) (T-As) in seawater at the background site in Kagoshima Bay was 1.71 ± 0.35 μg L−1 (av. ± s.d.), similar to the world average value of 1.7 μg L−1. The highest T-As value at the nearest point to the submarine volcano, 3.48 μg L−1, was observed in summer. Since the vertical mixing of seawater cannot occur in summer due to the formation of the thermocline, the deep water is strongly affected by volcanic activity. The increase in T-As was caused by the increase in As(III) concentration suggesting the discharge of As(III) from the vents.