Tracing regional anthropogenic influences is important for assessing the magnitude of human interferences with the environment. In the present study, the utility of soil linear alkylbenzenes (LABs) as indicators of anthropogenic influences was examined, with the emphasis on the role of atmospheric transport in dissipating LABs from input sources to remote areas. The Pearl River Delta, South China, which has experienced rapid economic growth and urbanization, was selected as the study region. The concentrations of LABs (mean: 8.6 ng/g and median: 5.7 ng/g, with an outlier of 2,020 ng/g excluded) suggested that sewage contamination throughout the entire study region was generally light. The spatial variation of sewage pollution was significantly positively correlated with population density and per capita gross domestic product, with hot spots concentrated in the central PRD. Atmospheric deposition was hypothesized as an important input route for soil LABs in forestry and drinking water source areas with little impact of irrigation or direct wastewater discharge. This proposition could explain the opposite spatial patterns of LAB concentrations and values of a biodegradation index (5-C12+5-C13)/(5-C11+5-C10), where i-Cn defines a specific LAB congener with i and n indicating the position of the phenyl group and the number of carbon atoms on the alkyl chain, respectively. These findings somewhat validated LABs as tracers of regional anthropogenically derived contamination, with atmospheric transport of LABs as a viable dissipating mechanism.
Keywords: Atmospheric transport; Pearl River Delta; Sewage pollution; Soil linear alkylbenzenes; Spatial pattern.
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