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Indirect effect of nutrient accumulation intensified toxicity risk of metals in sediments from urban river network

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Abstract

The levels of metals in sediments of urban river ecosystems are crucial for aquatic environmental health and pollution assessment. Yet little is known about the interaction of nutrients with metals for environmental risks under contamination accumulation. Here, we combined hierarchical cluster, correlation, and principal component analysis with structural equation model (SEM) to investigate the pollution level, source, toxicity risk, and interaction associated with metals and nutrients in the sediments of a river network in a city area of East China. The results showed that the pollution associated with metals in sediments was rated as moderate degree of contamination load and medium-high toxicity risk in the middle and downstream of urban rivers based on contamination factor, pollution load index, and environmental toxicity quotient. The concentration of mercury (Hg) and zinc (Zn) showed a significant correlation with toxic risks, which had more contribution to toxicity than other metals in the study area. Organic nitrogen and organic pollution index showed heavily polluted sediments in south of the study area. Though correlation analysis indicated that nutrients and metals had different input zones from anthropogenic sources in the urban river network, SEM suggested that nutrient accumulation indirectly intensified toxicity risk of metals by 13.6% in sediments. Therefore, we suggested the combined consideration of metal toxicity risk with nutrient accumulation, which may provide a comprehensive understanding to identify sediment pollution.

Toxicity rate of metals in sediments from urban river network indirectly intensified by nutrients accumulation

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Funding

This research was supported by the Major Science and Technology Program for Water Pollution Control and Treatment (No. 2017ZX07205), the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (2017M620801), and National Natural Science Foundation of China (41702262). Dr. Fang Zhang also acknowledges the support of the Thousand Talents Plan for Young Professionals and Young Elite Scientist Sponsorship Program by CAST (2015QNRC001).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Resources and Environmental Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing, 100193, China

    Yuquan Wei

  2. School of Environment and State Key Joint Laboratory of Environment Simulation and Pollution Control, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China

    Yuquan Wei, Hao Zhang, Ying Yuan, Yingshuang Zhao, Guanghe Li & Fang Zhang

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  1. Yuquan Wei
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  2. Hao Zhang
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  3. Ying Yuan
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  4. Yingshuang Zhao
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  5. Guanghe Li
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  6. Fang Zhang
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Correspondence to Fang Zhang.

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Responsible Editor: Philippe Garrigues

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Highlights

Pollution load of sediments in urban river network was compared with diverse SQGs.

Roles of metals and nutrients in sediments for toxicity risk were analyzed by SEM.

Metal in sediments had moderately high toxicity risks in the downstream samples.

Harmful risk in sediments of urban river network was mainly due to Hg and Zn.

Nutrients indirectly increased toxicity risk of metals in sediments by 13.6%.

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Wei, Y., Zhang, H., Yuan, Y. et al. Indirect effect of nutrient accumulation intensified toxicity risk of metals in sediments from urban river network. Environ Sci Pollut Res 27, 6193–6204 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-019-07335-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-019-07335-9

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