Skip to main content
Log in

Arsenic concentration, speciation, and risk assessment in sediments of the Xijiang River basin, China

  • Published:
Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Aims and scope Submit manuscript

A Correction to this article was published on 19 December 2019

This article has been updated

Abstract

In order to acquire the spatial distribution, speciation, and risk assessment of arsenic (As), 18 sediment samples were collected in the middle and upper reaches (Nanpan River, Beipan River, Hongshui River, Diaojiang River, and Duliu River) of the Xijiang River basin, China. The chemical fractions of As in the collected sediments were mainly dominated by the residual fraction and the Fe (Mn, Al) oxide/oxyhydroxides fractions. The correlation analysis results showed that the chemical fraction of As in sediments had close correlations with Mn, good correlations with Fe and organic matter (OM), while weak correlations with Al and carbonate. In addition, it also showed that Diaojiang River basin was found to have an extremely high As pollution status and suffered from high ecological risk. Duliu River and Nanpan River had moderately polluted levels of As and showed a low ecological risk. The other sample sites of Xijiang River basin were uncontaminated of As. The assessment results from this study indicated that the different types of species present based on the chemical fractionation of As from the Xijiang River basin showed different risks.

Graphical abstract

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Subscribe and save

Springer+ Basic
$34.99 /Month
  • Get 10 units per month
  • Download Article/Chapter or eBook
  • 1 Unit = 1 Article or 1 Chapter
  • Cancel anytime
Subscribe now

Buy Now

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6

Similar content being viewed by others

Explore related subjects

Discover the latest articles and news from researchers in related subjects, suggested using machine learning.

Change history

  • 19 December 2019

    In the original paper, there was an error in the communication unit 1. The communication unit was “Liaoning Engineering Research Center for Treatment and Recycling of Industrially Discharged Heavy Metals, Shenyang University of Chemical Technology, Shenyang 110142, People’s Republic of China”.

References

  • Bao, S. D. (1999). Measurement of organic matter content in soil. In S. D. Bao, R. F. Jiang, & C. G. Yang (Eds.), Analysis of agri-chemistry in soil (3rd ed., pp. 34–35). Beijing: Chinese Agricultural Science and Technology Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Baumann, Z., & Fisher, N. S. (2011). Relating the sediment phase speciation of arsenic, cadmium, and chromium with their bioavailability for the deposit-feeding polychaete nereis succinea. Environmental Toxicology & Chemistry, 30(3), 747–756.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Benner, S. (2010). Hydrology: anthropogenic arsenic. Nature Geoscience, 3(1), 5–6.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Christine, G., Sylvaine, T., & Michel, A. (2002). Fractionation studies of trace elements in contaminated soils and sediments: a review of sequential extraction procedures. Trends in Analytical Chemistry, 21(6-7), 451–467.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dold, B. (2014). Evolution of acid mine drainage formation in sulphidic mine tailings. Minerals, 4(3), 621–641.

    Google Scholar 

  • Duan, L., Song, J., Yuan, H., Li, X., & Li, N. (2013). Spatio-temporal distribution and environmental risk of arsenic in sediments of the East China Sea. Chemical Geology, 340(complete), 21–31.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Duan, Y., Gan, Y., Wang, Y., Liu, C., Yu, K., Deng, Y., Zhao, K., & Dong, C. (2017). Arsenic speciation in aquifer sediment under varying groundwater regime and redox conditions at Jianghan Plain of Central China. Science of the Total Environment, 607-608, 992–1000.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ehlert, K., Mikutta, C., & Kretzschmar, R. (2014). Impact of birnessite on arsenic and iron speciation during microbial reduction of arsenic-bearing ferrihydrite. Environmental Science & Technology, 48(19), 11320–11329.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Guan, J., Wang, J., Pan, H., Yang, C., Qu, J., Lu, N., & Yuan, X. (2018). Heavy metals in Yinma River sediment in a major Phaeozems zone, Northeast China: distribution, chemical fraction, contamination assessment and source apportionment. Scientific Reports, 8(1). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-30197-z.

  • Guo, H., Zhou, Y., Jia, Y., Tang, X., Li, X., Shen, M., Lu, H., Han, S., Wei, C., Norra, S., & Zhang, F. (2016). Sulfur cycling-related biogeochemical processes of arsenic mobilization in the western Hetao basin, China: evidence from multiple isotope approaches. Environmental Science & Technology, 50(23), 12650–12659.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Hakanson, L. (1980). An ecological risk index for aquatic pollution control: a sediment ecological approach. Water Research, 14(8), 975–1001.

    Google Scholar 

  • Huang, J. H., & Kretzschmar, R. (2010). Sequential extraction method for speciation of arsenate and arsenite in mineral soils. Analytical Chemistry, 82(13), 5534–5540.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Johnston, S. G., Keene, A. F., Burton, E. D., Bush, R. T., & Sullivan, L. A. (2011). Iron and arsenic cycling in intertidal surface sediments during wetland remediation. Environmental Science & Technology, 45(6), 2179–2185.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Liu, C., Yu, H. Y., Liu, C., Li, F., Xu, X., & Wang, Q. (2015). Arsenic availability in rice from a mining area: is amorphous iron oxide-bound arsenic a source or sink? Environmental Pollution, 199, 95–101.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Liu, J., Li, S. L., Chen, J. B., Zhong, J., Yue, F. J., Lang, Y. C., et al. (2017). Temporal transport of major and trace elements in the upper reaches of the Xijiang River, SW China. Environmental Earth Sciences, 76(299), 1–17.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ma, Z., Li, T., Qu, C., Bi, J., & Huang, L. (2014). Evaluation and source identification of trace element contamination of soils in the qixia lead-zinc mining area, Jiangsu, China. Journal of Soils and Sediments, 14(10), 1703–1712.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ma, J., Guo, H., Lei, M., Zhou, X., Li, F., Yu, T., et al. (2015). Arsenic adsorption and its fractions on aquifer sediment: effect of pH, arsenic species, and iron/manganese minerals. Water, Air, & Soil Pollution, 226(8), 226–260.

    Google Scholar 

  • Monrad, M., Ersboll, A. K., Sorensen, M., Baastrup, R., Hansen, B., Gammelmark, A., et al. (2017). Low-level arsenic in drinking water and risk of incident myocardial infarction: a cohort study. Environmental Research, 154, 318–324.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Müller, G. (1969). Index of geoaccumulation in sediments of the Rhine River. Journal of Geology, 2, 108–119.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nelson, R. E. (1982). Carbonate and gypsum. In A. L. Page, R. H. Miller, & D. R. Keeney (Eds.), Methods of soil analysis, part 2 (2nd ed., pp. 181–197). Madison: ASA and SSSA, Agronomy Monograph 9.

  • Nemati, K., Abu Bakar, N. K., Abas, M. R., Sobhanzadeh, E., & Low, K. H. (2011). Comparison of unmodified and modified BCR sequential extraction schemes for the fractionation of heavy metals in shrimp aquaculture sludge from Selangor, Malaysia. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 176(1-4), 313–320.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ohtsuka, T., Yamaguchi, N., Makino, T., Sakurai, K., Kimura, K., Kudo, K., Homma, E., Dong, D. T., & Amachi, S. (2013). Arsenic dissolution from Japanese paddy soil by a dissimilatory arsenate-reducing bacterium Geobacter sp. OR-1. Environmental Science & Technology, 47(12), 6263–6271.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Postma, D., Larsen, F., Thai, N. T., Trang, P. T. K., Jakobsen, R., Nhan, P. Q., et al. (2012). Groundwater arsenic concentrations in Vietnam controlled by sediment age. Nature Geoscience, 5(9), 656–661.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Rahman, M. A., Rahman, A., Khan, M. Z. K., & Renzaho, A. M. N. (2018). Human health risks and socio-economic perspectives of arsenic exposure in Bangladesh: a scoping review. Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety, 150, 335–343.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Rasheed, H., Kay, P., Slack, R., Gong, Y. Y., & Carter, A. (2017). Human exposure assessment of different arsenic species in household water sources in a high risk arsenic area. Science of the Total Environment, 584-585, 631–641.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Rodriguez-Lado, L., Sun, G., Berg, M., Zhang, Q., Xue, H., Zheng, Q., et al. (2013). Groundwater arsenic contamination throughout China. Science, 341(6148), 866–868.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Rosas-Castor, J. M., Portugal, L., Ferrer, L., Guzman-Mar, J. L., Hernandez-Ramirez, A., Cerda, V., et al. (2015). Arsenic fractionation in agricultural soil using an automated three-step sequential extraction method coupled to hydride generation-atomic fluorescence spectrometry. Analytica Chimica Acta, 874, 1–10.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Routh, J., & Hjelmquist, P. (2011). Distribution of arsenic and its mobility in shallow aquifer sediments from Ambikanagar, west Bengal, India. Applied Geochemistry, 26(4), 505–515.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ruangwises, S., Ruangwises, N., & Saipan, P. (2011). Dietary intake of total and inorganic arsenic by adults in arsenic-contaminated Dan Chang district, Thailand, using duplicate food approach. Bulletin of Environmental Contamination & Toxicology, 86(2), 208–211.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Shi, Y. L., Chen, W. Q., Wu, S. L., & Zhu, Y. G. (2017). Anthropogenic cycles of arsenic in mainland China: 1990-2010. Environmental Science & Technology, 51(3), 1670–1678.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Stuckey, J. W., Schaefer, M. V., Kocar, B. D., Benner, S. G., & Fendorf, S. (2015). Arsenic release metabolically limited to permanently water-saturated soil in Mekong Delt. Nature Geoscience, 9(1), 70–76.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sundaray, S. K., Nayak, B. B., Lin, S., & Bhatta, D. (2011). Geochemical speciation and risk assessment of heavy metals in the river estuarine sediments-a case study: Mahanadi basin, India. Journal of Hazardous Materials, 186(2-3), 1837–1846.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Tokoro, C., Yatsugi, Y., Koga, H., & Owada, S. (2010). Sorption mechanisms of arsenate during coprecipitation with ferrihydrite in aqueous solution. Environmental Science & Technology, 44(2), 638–643.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wan, X., Dong, H., Feng, L., Lin, Z., & Luo, Q. (2017). Comparison of three sequential extraction procedures for arsenic fractionation in highly polluted sites. Chemosphere, 178, 402–410.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wang, S. L., Wang, P., Men, B., Lin, C. Y., & He, M. C. (2012). Chemical forms and ecological risk of arsenic in the sediment of the Daliao River System in China. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 184(4), 2237–2245.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wang, Y., Zeng, X., Lu, Y., Su, S., Bai, L., Li, L., & Wu, C. (2015). Effect of aging on the bioavailability and fractionation of arsenic in soils derived from five parent materials in a red soil region of Southern China. Environmental Pollution, 207, 79–87.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wang, H. T., Liu, R. M., Wang, Q. R., Xu, F., Men, C., & Shen, Z. (2016). Bioavailability and risk assessment of arsenic in surface sediments of the Yangtze River estuary. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 113(1-2), 125–131.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wang, F. P., Song, B., & Zhou, L. (2018a). Redistribution of heavy metal background in soil of Xijiang River Basin in Guangxi. Acta Scientiae Circumstantiae, 38(9), 3695–3702 In Chinese, with English abstract.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wang, Y., Le Pape, P., Morin, G., Asta, M. P., King, G., Bartova, B., et al. (2018b). Arsenic speciation in Mekong Delta sediments depends on their depositional environment. Environmental Science & Technology, 52(6), 3431–3439.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wang, Z., Guo, H. M., Xiu, W., Wang, J., & Shen, M. M. (2018c). High arsenic groundwater in the Guide basin, northwestern China: distribution and genesis mechanisms. Science of the Total Environment, 640-641(1), 194–206.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wenzel, W. W., Kirchbaumer, N., Prohaska, T., Stingeder, G., Lombi, E., & Adriano, D. C. (2001). Arsenic fractionation in soils using an improved sequential extraction procedure. Analytica Chimica Acta, 436(2), 309–323.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Xie, H., Huang, S. P., Martin, S., & Wise Sr., J. P. (2014). Arsenic is cytotoxic and genotoxic to primary human lung cells. Mutation Research/Genetic Toxicology and Environmental Mutagenesis, 760(15), 33–41.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Zhang, J., & Gao, X. (2015). Heavy metals in surface sediments of the intertidal Laizhou Bay, Bohai Sea, China: distributions, sources and contamination assessment. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 98(1-2), 320–327.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zimmerman, A. J., & Weindorf, D. C. (2010). Heavy metal and trace metal analysis in soil by sequential extraction: a review of procedures. International Journal of Analytical Chemistry, 387803(3-4), 1–7.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Funding

This project was supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China (2017YFD0800301) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 41373127).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Zhong-liang Shi or Shi-feng Li.

Additional information

Publisher’s note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Wang, Hb., Xu, Jm., Gomez, M.A. et al. Arsenic concentration, speciation, and risk assessment in sediments of the Xijiang River basin, China. Environ Monit Assess 191, 663 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-019-7883-4

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-019-7883-4

Keywords