Sedimentary evolution of PAHs, POPs and ECs: Historical sedimentary deposition and evolution of persistent and emerging organic pollutants in sediments in a typical karstic river basin

Qucheng Deng; Yongping Wei; Wenyu Huang; Yonghua Li; Chong Peng; Yinjun Zhao; Jiahuan Yang; Zecheng Xu; Xiaofei Wang; Wei Liang

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.144765

Sedimentary evolution of PAHs, POPs and ECs: Historical sedimentary deposition and evolution of persistent and emerging organic pollutants in sediments in a typical karstic river basin

Sci Total Environ. 2021 Jun 15:773:144765. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.144765. Epub 2021 Jan 23.

Authors

Qucheng Deng¹, Yongping Wei², Wenyu Huang³, Yonghua Li⁴, Chong Peng⁵, Yinjun Zhao⁶, Jiahuan Yang⁷, Zecheng Xu⁵, Xiaofei Wang⁸, Wei Liang⁹

Affiliations

¹ Institute of Geographical Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, the University of Queensland, Brisbane 4072, Australia.
² School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, the University of Queensland, Brisbane 4072, Australia.
³ Guangxi University, Nanning 530004, China. Electronic address: huangwenyu@gxu.edu.cn.
⁴ Institute of Geographical Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China. Electronic address: yhli@igsnrr.ac.cn.
⁵ Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Radiation Environmental Supervision and Management Station, 530028, China.
⁶ Key Laboratory of Environment Change and Resources Use in Beibu Gulf, Ministry of Education, Nanning Normal University, Nanning 530001, China.
⁷ Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Marine Environment Monitoring Center Station, 536000, China.
⁸ School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Hubei Polytechnic University, Huangshi 435003, China.
⁹ Guangxi Environmental Information Center, Nanning 536000, China.

PMID: 33940703
DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.144765

Abstract

Knowledge on the occurrence and distributions of organic compounds, especially PAHs, POPs and ECs, in karstic river basins is limited. This study aims to determine the depositional history and sources of PAHs, PCBs, OCPs, antibiotics, EDCs and phenolic compounds and the ecological risk they have in the Panyang River Basin, an area with a typical karstic landscape and a high-longevity population. Sediment core analysis was adopted, correlation and principal component analyses were conducted to analyze pollution sources, and lead isotope technology was implemented for dating analysis. The sediment core covered 108 years. PCBs were detected with concentrations ranging from 3.80 to 16.18 μg/kg in the core with two concentration peaks in 1950 and 2005 that were related to anthropogenic effects. Eight of the 20 targeted phenolic compounds were detected, with concentrations ranging from 0.42 to 1.10 mg/kg. All PAHs were detected in the cores, with concentrations from 12.91 to 37.80 μg/kg. They were mainly related to natural diagenetic processes and domestic and agricultural sources. The concentrations of different OCP compounds ranged from undetected to 213.43 μg/kg and were mainly related to agricultural activities and long-range transportation. These key findings can assist environmental planning and management in this river basin.

Keywords: ECs; Karstic landscape; PAHs; POPs; River basin; Sediment; Sedimentary evolution.