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Background concentrations and quality reference values for potentially toxic elements in soils of Piauí state, Brazil

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Abstract

The background concentration of potentially toxic elements (PTE) in soils is influenced by the parent material composition and soil forming processes. The soil natural concentration of PTE is a first step to establish regulatory levels for the monitoring of these elements in soils suspected of contamination. In the present study, we performed a natural background concentration survey of PTE in soils of the Piauí state, Brazil. The study provides the basis for establishing soil quality reference values (QRVs) for a large area (over 251,000 km2) with different pedological features. A total of 262 geo-referenced soil samples (0.0–0.2 m) were collected in areas relatively undisturbed by human activity. The concentrations of Ba, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mo, Ni, Pb, Sb, V, and Zn were determined by ICP-OES. Univariate statistical methods and multivariate exploratory techniques were used to understand the relationship between soil characteristics, geological features, and PTE concentrations in soils. The mean background concentrations of PTE in the soils were generally lower than those reported in other countries and/or other Brazilian states, and followed the order: Fe > Ba > V > Cr > Cu > Pb > Zn > Ni > Pb > Co > Mo > Sb > Cd. The main factors governing the concentrations of PTE in soils were the parent material and the soil texture. The different geological features in the study area influenced the spatial distribution of PTE and divided the state into three regions presenting low, high, and intermediate values. Given this geological and pedological complexity, we proposed establishing three sets of QRV rather than a single QRV for the whole state to avoid misinterpretation regarding the investigation of areas suspected of contamination. This background concentration survey contains a wealth of information that provides the basis for the soil guideline values in the state and supports future research on the impact of anthropogenic activities in soil contamination.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank the Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (CAPES) for a master’s degree scholarship for the authors Duarte, LSL; Sena, AFS; and Brito, ACC.

Funding

This work was supported by the Brazilian National Research and Development Council - CNPq (Process Number: 409398/2016-0) and PQ Fellowship/CNPq (Process Number: 303952/2017-2).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Campus Profª Cinobelina Elvas, Federal University of Piauí, Rodovia Bom Jesus-Viana, km 01, s/n, Bom Jesus, PI, 64900-000, Brazil

    Cácio Luiz Boechat, Ygor Jacques Agra Bezerra da Silva & Paloma Cunha Saraiva

  2. Soil Department, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil

    Lizandra de Sousa Luz Duarte, Antonny Francisco Sampaio de Sena & Ana Clecia Campos Brito

  3. Federal Rural University of Pernambuco, Recife, PE, Brazil

    Clistenes Williams Araujo do Nascimento & Yuri Jacques Agra Bezerra da Silva

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  1. Cácio Luiz Boechat
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  2. Lizandra de Sousa Luz Duarte
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  8. Paloma Cunha Saraiva
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Correspondence to Cácio Luiz Boechat.

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Boechat, C.L., Duarte, L.d.S.L., de Sena, A.F.S. et al. Background concentrations and quality reference values for potentially toxic elements in soils of Piauí state, Brazil. Environ Monit Assess 192, 723 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-020-08656-w

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