Pollution, source, and ecological risk assessment of trace elements in surface sediments of Lake Aktaş, NE Turkey

• Published in: Human and ecological risk assessment Vol. 23; no. 7; pp. 1629 - 1644
• Main Author: Kükrer, Serkan
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Boca Raton Taylor & Francis 03.10.2017; Taylor & Francis Ltd
• Subjects: Aluminum; Anthropogenic factors; Cadmium; Calcium carbonate; Chlorophyll; Chromium; Contamination; Copper; Degradation products; Ecological effects; ecological indices; Ecological risk assessment; Enrichment; Environmental assessment; Environmental degradation; Fish; heavy metal; Heavy metals; Iron; Lake Aktaş; Lakes; Lead; Manganese; Mercury; Multivariate analysis; Nickel; Organic carbon; Phosphates; Pollution; Pollution load; Risk assessment; sediment; Sediment load; Sediments; Statistical analysis; Statistical methods; Sulfur; Total organic carbon; Toxicity; Trace elements; Zinc; Turkey
• ISSN: 1080-7039; 1549-7860
• DOI: 10.1080/10807039.2017.1332953

This study applies ecological indices to determine the anthropogenic-based metal enrichment and potential ecological and ecotoxicological risks posed by each metal in the sediments of Lake Aktaş, NE Turkey. Sediment samples were collected from nine stations (St1-St9) within the Turkish boundary of Lake Aktaş and the heavy metal, total organic carbon %, CaCO 3 %, chlorophyll degradation products (chlorophyll-α), total sulfur %, and total phosphate % contents in the sediment samples were determined. Enrichment factor (EF), pollution load and potential ecological risk (PER) indices were calculated to shed light on the ecological effects of heavy metals. The metal content was ranked in descending order of Al > Fe > Mn > Zn > Ni > Cr > Cu > Pb > As > Cd > Hg. The EF values ranged 0.87-1.0 for Cu, 1.04-1.14 for Pb, 1-1.08 for Zn, 0.88-0.95 for Ni, 0.99-1.24 for Mn, 0.89-0.93 for Fe, 0.82-1.01 for As, 0.96-1.19 for Cd, 0.94-1.0 for Cr, and 1.42-1.90 for Hg. Minimal contamination was found for Hg. Pollution load, PER, and toxic risk indices indicated no ecological risk currently. However, considering the PER index for metals individually, a moderate potential risk was detected for Hg. The data obtained from multivariate statistical analyses indicate that Hg and Mn originate from the atmosphere, while other elements have lithogenic sources.