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Metal concentrations in urban riparian sediments along an urbanization gradient

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Abstract

Urbanization impacts fluvial systems via a combination of changes in sediment chemistry and basin hydrology. While chemical changes in urban soils have been well characterized, similar surveys of riparian sediments in urbanized areas are rare. Metal concentrations were measured in sediments collected from riparian areas across the urbanization gradient in Baltimore, MD. Average metal concentrations are similar to those observed in other regional studies. Two important spatial patterns are evident in the data. First, calcium concentrations double across the urbanization gradient, regardless of changes in underlying geochemistry at the boundary between the Eastern US Piedmont and Coastal Plain physiographic provinces. Alkali-earth metal ratios indicate that the additional Ca is very pure and possibly arises from cement common to urban systems. Second, hot spots of trace metals typically associated with urban systems (e.g., Cu, Zn, and Pb) occur in areas that have been artificially filled to create additional real estate in high land value areas. Together, these data indicate that riparian sediments exhibit unexpected patterns of metal contamination. If these sediments are remobilized, during events such as droughts or floods, this contamination may perpetuate legacy impacts to ecosystem health from a history of fluvial contamination.

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Acknowledgments

The authors wish to thank the US Geological Survey Water Resources Division, and Tom Bullen and John Fitzpatrick in Menlo Park, CA for hosting DJB. Funding support was provided by the US Forest Service’s Northern Global Change Program and Research Work Unit (NE-4952), Syracuse, NY; the Baltimore Ecosystem Study (part of the LTER Program) grant from the National Science Foundation (Grant No. 0423476); the University of Maryland Baltimore County, Center for Urban Environmental Research and Education grants from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NA06OAR4310243 and NA07OAR4170518); and the University of Pittsburgh College of Arts and Sciences. Most importantly, thanks to the individuals responsible for the collection and processing of core samples analyzed in this work.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geology and Planetary Science, University of Pittsburgh, 200 SRCC, 4107 O’Hara St, Pittsburgh, PA, 15260, USA

    Daniel J. Bain

  2. USDA Forest Service, Baltimore Ecosystem Study, Technology Research Center Building, University of Maryland Baltimore County, 5200 Westland Boulevard, Baltimore, MD, 21227, USA

    Ian D. Yesilonis & Richard V. Pouyat

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  1. Daniel J. Bain
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  2. Ian D. Yesilonis
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  3. Richard V. Pouyat
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Correspondence to Daniel J. Bain.

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Bain, D.J., Yesilonis, I.D. & Pouyat, R.V. Metal concentrations in urban riparian sediments along an urbanization gradient. Biogeochemistry 107, 67–79 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10533-010-9532-4

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