Influence on the levels of PAHs and methylated PAHs in surface soil from pollution control in China: Evidence in 2019 data compared with 2005 and 2012 data

Fu-Jie Zhu; Zi-Feng Zhang; Li-Yan Liu; Hong Yao; Hong-Liang Jia; Zhi Zhang; Song Cui; Bo Meng; Gang Cao; Peng-Hao Su; Xiao-Xuan Mao; Bao-Long Li; Wan-Li Ma; Yi-Fan Li

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.162718

Influence on the levels of PAHs and methylated PAHs in surface soil from pollution control in China: Evidence in 2019 data compared with 2005 and 2012 data

Sci Total Environ. 2023 Jun 15:877:162718. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.162718. Epub 2023 Mar 11.

Authors

Fu-Jie Zhu¹, Zi-Feng Zhang¹, Li-Yan Liu¹, Hong Yao², Hong-Liang Jia³, Zhi Zhang⁴, Song Cui⁵, Bo Meng⁶, Gang Cao⁷, Peng-Hao Su⁸, Xiao-Xuan Mao⁹, Bao-Long Li¹⁰, Wan-Li Ma¹¹, Yi-Fan Li¹

Affiliations

¹ International Joint Research Center for Persistent Toxic Substances (IJRC-PTS), State Key Laboratory of Urban Water Resource and Environment, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150090, China; Heilongjiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Polar Environment and Ecosystem (HPKL-PEE), Harbin 150090, China.
² IJRC-PTS, Beijing Jiaotong University, Beijing 100044, China.
³ IJRC-PTS, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Dalian Maritime University, Dalian 116026, China.
⁴ School of Advanced Manufacturing, Guangdong University of Technology, Jieyang 515231, China.
⁵ IJRC-PTS, School of Water Conservancy and Civil Engineering, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin 150030, China.
⁶ IJRC-PTS, School of Geography and Tourism, Harbin University, Harbin 150086, China.
⁷ IJRC-PTS, Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Organic Pollution Prevention and Control, Harbin Institute of Technology (Shenzhen), Shenzhen 518055, China.
⁸ IJRC-PTS, Shanghai Maritime University, Shanghai 201306, China.
⁹ Key Laboratory for Environmental Pollution Prediction and Control, College of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China.
¹⁰ MNR Key Laboratory of Metallogeny and Mineral Assessment, Institute of Mineral Resources, Chinese Academy of Geological Science, Beijing 100037, China.
¹¹ International Joint Research Center for Persistent Toxic Substances (IJRC-PTS), State Key Laboratory of Urban Water Resource and Environment, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150090, China; Heilongjiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Polar Environment and Ecosystem (HPKL-PEE), Harbin 150090, China. Electronic address: mawanli002@163.com.

PMID: 36914128
DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.162718

Abstract

To comprehensively clarify the pollution characteristics of persistent toxic substances, the Soil and Air Monitoring Program Phase III (SAMP-III) was conducted in 2019 in China. In total, 154 surface soil samples were collected across China, and 30 unsubstituted polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (U-PAHs) and 49 methylated PAHs (Me-PAHs) were analyzed in this study. The mean concentrations of total U-PAHs and Me-PAHs were 540 ± 778 and 82.0 ± 132 ng/g dw, respectively. Northeastern China and Eastern China are the two regions of concern with high PAH and BaP equivalency levels. Compared with SAMP-I (2005) and SAMP-II (2012), an obvious upward temporal trend followed by a downward trend of PAH levels was observed in the past 14 years for the first time. The mean concentrations of 16 U-PAHs were 377 ± 716, 780 ± 1010, and 419 ± 611 ng/g dw in surface soil across China for the three phases, respectively. Considering rapid economic growth and energy consumption, an increasing trend from 2005 to 2012 was expected. From 2012 to 2019, the PAH levels in soils across China decreased by 50 %, which was consistent with the decline in PAH emissions. The period of reduction of PAHs in surface soil coincided with the implementation of Air and Soil Pollution Control Actions in China after 2013 and 2016, respectively. Along with the pollution control actions in China, the pollution control of PAHs and the increase in soil quality can be expected in the near future.

Keywords: China; National scale monitoring program; PAHs; Surface soil; Temporal trend.