Multi-element contamination in soils from major mining areas in Northeastern of Brazil

• Published in: Environmental geochemistry and health Vol. 43; no. 11; pp. 4553 - 4576
• Main Authors: Montalván-Olivares, D. M., Santana, C. S., Velasco, F. G., Luzardo, F. H. M., Andrade, S. F. R., Ticianelli, R. B., Armelin, M. J. A., Genezini, F. A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Dordrecht Springer Netherlands 01-11-2021; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Agricultural land; Aluminum; Anthropogenic factors; Biogeochemical cycle; Biogeochemical cycles; Chromium; Contamination; Copper; Earth and Environmental Science; Emission analysis; Environment; Environmental Chemistry; Environmental Health; Environmental impact; Geochemistry; Human influences; Human settlements; Inductively coupled plasma; Iron; Manganese; Mining; Nickel; Optical emission spectroscopy; Original Paper; Pollution index; Pollution levels; Pollution sources; Public Health; Semi arid areas; Semiarid lands; Soil; Soil contamination; Soil degradation; Soil pollution; Soil Science & Conservation; Spectrometry; Statistical analysis; Statistical methods; Terrestrial Pollution; Uranium; Urban agriculture; Vanadium; Zinc; Zirconium; Brazil; Anthropogenic impacts; ICP OES; Neutron activation analysis; Trace elements; Soil analysis
• ISSN: 0269-4042; 1573-2983
• DOI: 10.1007/s10653-021-00934-x

Mining has become one of the main factors in the global biogeochemical cycle of potentially toxic elements. Therefore, it is considered one of the anthropogenic activities with the greatest negative impact on the environment. These impacts are maximized in semiarid regions, where mining activities can lead to soil degradation and decrease in land productivity. This study aimed to assess the level of contamination in natural, urban, and agricultural soils of three important mining areas, where approximately 80,000 people live, and pollution levels have never been determined before. For this purpose, soil samples were collected around iron, uranium, and vanadium mines, as well as in the main human settlements of the region. The concentrations of 34 elements were determined by instrumental neutron analysis activation (INAA) and inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP OES) techniques. Pollution indices (CF, EF, mC
d
, PLI, and REEP) revealed that there is a moderate to heavy level of pollution for 89% of the analyzed elements. Additionally, an extreme contamination level was observed in 78% of the samples, for at least one element. Statistical analyses were performed to identify patterns in the distribution and common sources of pollution. The results suggest that the concentrations for Al, Ba, Hf, Na, Pb, Rb, REE, Ta, Th, U, Zn, and Zr are associated with geogenic causes. However, the influence of anthropogenic sources such as agriculture and mining on the accumulation of these elements in soils should not be disregarded. In contrast, the contents of As, Br, Cd, Co, Cr, Cs, Cu, Fe, K, Mn, Ni, Sc, Ti, and V reflect the direct impact of anthropogenic sources.
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