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Web End = Environ Sci Pollut Res (2016) 23:1705817066 DOI 10.1007/s11356-016-6890-z
http://crossmark.crossref.org/dialog/?doi=10.1007/s11356-016-6890-z&domain=pdf
Web End = RESEARCH ARTICLE
Source identification and risk assessment of heavy metal contaminations in urban soils of Changsha, a mine-impacted city in Southern China
Li Ma1 & Zhaoguang Yang1 & Lei Li1 & Lin Wang1
Received: 22 February 2016 /Accepted: 11 May 2016 /Published online: 21 May 2016 # Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2016
Abstract The urban soils suffered seriously from heavy metal pollutions with rapid industrialization and urbanization in China. In this study, 54 urban soil samples were collected from Changsha, a mine-impacted city located in Southern China. The concentrations of heavy metals (As, Cd, Co, Cu, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Zn) were determined by ICP-MS. The pollution sources of heavy metals were discriminated and identified by the combination of multivariate statistical and geostatistical methods. Four main sources were identified according to the results of hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA), principal component analysis (PCA), and spatial distribution patterns. Co and Mn were primarily derived from soil parent material. Cu, Pb, and Zn with significant positive relationships were associated with mining activities and traffic emissions. Cd and Ni might be affected by commercial activities and industrial discharges. As isolated into a single group was considered to have correlation with coal combustion and waste incineration. Risk assessment of heavy metals in urban soils indicated an overall moderate potential ecological risk in the urban region of Changsha.
Keywords Heavy metal . Urban soil . Spatial distribution . Multivariate analysis . Source identification . Potential ecological risk
Introduction
Urban soil is an integral part of the urban ecosystem closely related to human health and life quality of city residents. Serving as sinks, urban soils may become enriched in various contaminants from human activities and atmospheric depositions. The contaminants will transmit from urban soils into the atmosphere, surface water, and plants, which could directly or indirectly threat human health through inhalation, dermal contact, and ingestion. Among various types of the contaminants, heavy metal pollutions have attracted considerable attention due to their biotoxicity and irreversibility (Chen et al. 2008, Ding and Hu 2014). Once transferred into the human body, the heavy metals can be accumulated because of their long residence time and non-biodegradable nature (Cui et al. 2005)....