Arsenic and Heavy Metal Contamination in Soils under Different Land Use in an Estuary in Northern Vietnam

Thinh Nguyen Van, Akinori Ozaki, Hoang Nguyen Tho, Anh Nguyen Duc, Yen Tran Thi and Kiyoshi Kurosawa
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Thinh Nguyen Van: Graduate School of Integrated Science for Global Society, Kyushu University, Fukuoka 819-0395, Japan
Akinori Ozaki: Institute of Tropical Agriculture, Kyushu University, Fukuoka 812-8581, Japan
Hoang Nguyen Tho: Soil Science Laboratory, Faculty of Land Management, Vietnam National University of Agriculture, Hanoi 100-000, Vietnam
Anh Nguyen Duc: Soil Science Laboratory, Faculty of Land Management, Vietnam National University of Agriculture, Hanoi 100-000, Vietnam
Yen Tran Thi: Soil Science Laboratory, Faculty of Land Management, Vietnam National University of Agriculture, Hanoi 100-000, Vietnam
Kiyoshi Kurosawa: Institute of Tropical Agriculture, Kyushu University, Fukuoka 812-8581, Japan

IJERPH, 2016, vol. 13, issue 11, 1-13

Abstract: Heavy metal contamination of soil and sediment in estuaries warrants study because a healthy estuarine environment, including healthy soil, is important in order to achieve ecological balance and good aquaculture production. The Ba Lat estuary of the Red River is the largest estuary in northern Vietnam and is employed in various land uses. However, the heavy metal contamination of its soil has not yet been reported. The following research was conducted to clarify contamination levels, supply sources, and the effect of land use on heavy metal concentrations in the estuary. Soil samples were collected from the top soil layer of the estuary, and their arsenic (As), chromium (Cr), cadmium (Cd), copper (Cu), lead (Pb), and zinc (Zn) concentrations were analyzed, as were other soil properties. Most soils in the estuary were loam, silt loam, or sandy loam. The pH was neutral, and the cation exchange capacity ranged from 3.8 to 20 cmol·kg −1 . Manganese and iron concentrations averaged 811 µg·g −1 and 1.79%, respectively. The magnitude of the soil heavy metal concentrations decreased in the order of Zn > Pb > Cr > Cu > As > Cd. The concentrations were higher in the riverbed and mangrove forest than in other land-use areas. Except for As, the mean heavy metal concentrations were lower than the permissible levels for agricultural soils in Vietnam. The principal component analyses suggested that soil As, Pb, Zn, Cd, and Cu were of anthropogenic origin, whereas Cr was of non-anthropogenic origin. The spatial distribution of concentration with land use indicated that mangrove forests play an important role in preventing the spread of heavy metals to other land uses and in maintaining the estuarine environment.

Keywords: heavy metals; estuary; soil contamination; spatial distribution; Red River Delta (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2016
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

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