Trace Elements in Suspended Particulate Matter and Sediments of the Cai River: Nha Trang Bay Estuarine System (South China Sea)

The distribution of particulate form of organic carbon (POC), Al, Fe, Ti, Li, Zn, Pb, U, Sc, Sn, Bi, Zr, Ba, As, Sr, W, V, Co, Cu, Ni, Mo, Cr, Mn, Ba, Sn, Sb, Hg, and Ag in the Cai river and Nha Trang Bay generally followed the distribution of total suspended matter (SPM) and was characterized by the most significant loss in the frontal zone of the estuary with highest horizontal gradients within the salinity interval of 8–20‰. The most part of these elements are supplied to the estuary with the Cai river discharge. Sedimentary Al, Fe, Ti, Li, Sc, Co, Cs, Zr, Cr, Zn, Co, Ni, Cu, Pb, Sn, and V are most likely controlled by the accumulation of their most fine-grained host minerals in sea floor depression of the bay. Sedimentary Bi, W, As, U, and Mo are mainly deposited with the coarse river material near the river mouth. The distribution of Ca, Sr, Mn, and Ba is largely controlled by the total inorganic carbon (TIC) content in the sediments. Metal form study revealed the highest percent contents of the labile forms for Mn, Co, and Pb in the sediments. The high levels of weak acid-soluble Pb and Co (30% and 43% of the total content in sediment, on average, respectively) contributes to a contamination problem in the Nha Trang Bay which arises from the Cai River discharge

Relationship between Bulk Metal Concentration and Bioavailability in Tropic Estuarine Sediments

Major (Si, Al, Fe, Ti, Mg, Ca, Na, K, S, P), minor (Mn) and trace (Li, V, Cr, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, As, Sr, Zr, Mo, Cd, Ag, Sn, Sb, Cs, Ba, Hg, Pb, Bi and U) elements, their chemical forms and the mineral composition, organic matter (TOC) and carbonates (TIC) in surface sediments from the Cai River estuary and Nha Trang Bay were first determined along the salinity gradient. The abundance and ratio of major and trace elements in surface sediments are discussed in relation to the mineralogy, grain size, depositional conditions, reference background and SQG values. Most trace-element contents are at natural levels and are derived from the composition of rocks and soils in the watershed. A severe enrichment of Ag is most likely derived from metal-rich detrital heavy minerals such as Ag-sulphosalts. Along the salinity gradient, several zones of metal enrichment occur in surface sediments because of the geochemical fractionation of the riverine material. The parts of actually and potentially bioavailable forms (isolated by four single chemical reagent extractions) are most elevated for Mn and Pb (up to 36% and 32% of the total content, respectively). The possible anthropogenic input of Pb in the region requires further study. Overall, the most bioavailable parts of trace elements are associated with easily soluble amorphous Fe and Mn oxyhydroxides. The sediments are primarily enriched with bioavailable metal forms in the riverine part of the estuary. Natural (such as turbidities) and human-generated (such as urban and industrial activities) pressures are shown to influence the abundance and speciation of potential contaminants and therefore change their bioavailability in this estuarine system

Unbounded boundaries and shifting baselines: estuaries and coastal seas in a rapidly changing world

This Special Issue of Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science presents contributions from ECSA 55; an international symposium organised by the Estuarine and Coastal Sciences Association (ECSA) and Elsevier on the broad theme of estuaries and coastal seas in times of intense change. The objectives of the SI are to synthesise, hypothesise and illustrate the impacts of global change on estuaries and coastal seas through learning lessons from the past, discussing the current and forecasting for the future. It is highlighted here that establishing impacts and assigning cause to the many pressures of global change is and will continue to be a formidable challenge in estuaries and coastal seas, due in part to: (1) their complexity and unbounded nature; (2) difficulties distinguishing between human-induced changes and natural variations and; (3) multiple pressures and effects. The contributing authors have explored a number of these issues over a range of disciplines. The complexity and connectivity of estuaries and coastal seas have been investigated through studies of physicochemical and ecological components, whilst the human imprint on the environment has been identified through a series of predictive, contemporary, historical and palaeo approaches. The impact of human activities has been shown to occur over a range of spatial and temporal scales, requiring the development of integrated management approaches. These 30 articles provide an important contribution to our understanding and assessment of the impacts of global change. The authors highlight methods for essential management/mitigation of the consequences of global change and provide a set of directions, ideas and observations for future work. These include the need to consider: (1) the cumulative, synergistic and antagonistic effects of multiple pressures; (2) the importance of unbounded boundaries and connectivity across the aquatic continuum; (3) the value of combining cross-disciplinary palaeo, contemporary and future modelling studies and; (4) the importance of shifting baselines on ecosystem functioning and the future provision of ecosystem services

Dataset on the abundance, enrichment and partitioning of chemical elements between the particulate and sedimentary phases in the Cai River estuary (South China Sea)

The present work contributes to the local geochemical baselines as a background for long-term monitoring of potential hazardous elements. The dataset covers the source/raw, analysed, calculated data, and descriptive statistics on the bulk, normalized-to-Al, and normalized-to-Fe contents of 53 chemical elements along with environmental indices (EF-Al, EF-Fe, and Igeo) and partition coefficient (K-SPM/Sed, calculated of both bulk and normalized-to-Al element contents) in the surface SPM and surface bottom sediments of the Cai River estuary and includes the respective reference material values. The data provided is essential for the comprehensive environmental assessment of the anthropogenic impact on the coastal ecosystem as well as for the evaluation and modelling of element fractionation and mobility at the estuarine gradients

Trace metals in suspended particulate matter and sediments from the Severnaya Dvina estuary, Russian Arctic

A geochemical study of the Severnaya Dvina estuary was carried out during two oceanographic cruises to the White Sea. The amount and distribution of trace (Mn, Co, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn) and major (Al and Fe) elements in suspended particulate matter and sediments were determined. The main source of most metals studied was river discharge. A metal speciation study showed that the prevailing form is in the estuarine sediments, the minerals of which incorporated 60–99% of the total metal contents. Two zones of metal accumulation were found in sediments that were considered as local geochemical barriers within the major river–sea barrier.