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Título del libro: Environmental Research Advances, Hauppauge Ny, Usa
Título del capítulo: Geogenic and anthropogenic differentiation of potentially toxic elements in superficial sediments from Cuitzeo Lake, Mexico

Autores UNAM:
SILKE CRAM HEYDRICH; CLAUDIA ALEJANDRA PONCE DE LEON HILL; MARIA DEL PILAR FERNANDEZ LOMELIN; IRENE MARIE SOMMER CERVANTES;
Autores externos:

Idioma:
Inglés
Año de publicación:
2011
Resumen:

The present chapter describes the most common methods utilized to obtain metal background values for soil and sediments. These techniques are helpful when it is necessary to differentiate the background metal concentration in the area from the pollutant metal concentration. These techniques are exemplified using a case study. The study showed the limitations and capability of the different approaches to differentiate the geogenic and anthropogenic origin of the potentially toxic elements in multiple stressed lake sediment. The studied area is one of the two largest lakes in Mexico. This lake lies in the area of influence of the Neovolcanic alignment, characterized by its geological activity; it is also near the city of Morelia whose wastewater (industrial and domestic) ultimately ends up in the lake after watering the agricultural lands in close proximity to the lake. The complexity of the system becomes a challenge for the different methods used to discriminate the geogenic and anthropogenic sources of potentially toxic elements. The geostatistical analytical techniques utilized were able to define unique distribution patterns for each element and through their comparison, establish the polluted areas and the degree of contamination. These techniques though, are used as exploratory tools in the spatial analysis of the data, and the results obtained, while preliminaries, allow the visualization of the pollution problem of the lake. The data were obtained from an intensive systematic sampling of the central part of the lake. The sediment samples were acid digested and total concentration of As, Pb, Ni, Cd, Cu, V, Cr, Co, Sb, Ti, Mn, Sr, Cr, Fe, Al and Zn were determined. Physicochemical properties pH, electric conductivity and total organic carbon were also obtained. The results showed that Fe and Al have a spatial distribution that could be considered of geogenic origin, while Ti, Zn and As have a spatial distribution pointing to geogenic origin but with spots with higher concentrations than the rest of the area, indicating a possible pollution. Lead, copper nickel and cadmium, differentiated three main areas: one most probably influenced by the agricultural activity and the wastewater input, another with almost no input of the metals, and the third one with atypical concentration for the


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