Urban Sustainability at Risk Due to Soil Pollution by Heavy Metals—Case Study: Volos, Greece (original) (raw)
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Sustainability, 2021
A three-year study, designed to record the level of potentially toxic elements within the urban complex in the city of Volos, Greece, was carried out between 2018 and 2020. For the needs of the aforementioned study, 62 surface (0–15 cm) soil samples were collected each year (i.e., 186 samples in total) from an urban area of 3.65 km2, and the average value of pseudo-total metal concentration was measured. Soil pollution indices, such as the contamination factor (CF) and the geo-accumulation index (Igeo), were estimated regarding each of the metals of interest. The respective thematic maps were constructed, and the spatial variability of the contamination degree was displayed. Higher values of the CF and Igeo were obtained near the heavy traffic roads and beside the railway station, the bus stations, and the commercial port. The maps based on the pollution indices, along with the database that was constructed using the appropriate mathematical tools of geostatistical analysis, may be ...
Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 2009
Elevated heavy metal concentrations in urban top soils are principal indicators of environmental pollution; however, relative data on the heavy metal status in soils of Greek island towns, that are regional administrative centers and popular tourist destinations, are missing. A survey was conducted to examine heavy metal concentrations in the urban soils of Ermoupolis, the capital of Syros island and of the prefecture of Cyclades complex in the Aegean Sea. Total (aqua-regia extracted) and available (DTPA extracted) concentrations of Cu, Pb, Zn, Ni, Cr, Sn and Fe were determined in top soil samples collected from green areas and open spaces of the town and in surface samples from inland reference soils of the island. Mean values for the aqua-regia extracted fraction of Cu, Pb and Zn were 117, 155 and 440 mg kg −1 respectively, up to four times higher than the respective mean values of the reference soils. Enrichment factors (EFs) for these metals indicated high accumulation in the urban top soils and the available to total concentration ratio of Cu, Pb, Zn and Fe was higher for the urban compared to the reference soils, suggesting differences in metal sequestration, resulting in higher metal availability in the urban soils. GIS analysis was used to visualize the spatial distribution of EFs of the studied heavy metals. Factor Analysis and Cluster Analysis, applied to aqua-regia and DTPA data sets, adequately elucidated the origin of metals grouped under each factor or cluster.
Emissions from civil airports are similar to those observed in industrial and urban areas. While air pollution and noise levels are regularly monitored and assessed, information on the status of heavy metals in soils close to airport facilities is limited. In this study, we monitored and assessed heavy metal distribution in soils close to Athens International Airport (AIA) in Attica, Greece. Following a grid sampling scenario, topsoil samples were collected from 86 sites at the periphery of AIA and total and available forms of Cu, Zn, Fe, Mn, Ni, Cr, Pb, and Ba concentrations were determined in aqua regia and DTPA soil extracts, respectively. Median concentration values for both metal forms are not considered as particularly high. However, 90th percentile concentration values for some metals are high, indicating soil enrichment. Evaluation of enrichment factor (EF) and availability ratio (AR) values and EFs spatial distribution have led to consistent conclusions of secondary and ongoing metal accumulation in the soils of the studied area. Tessier sequential extraction procedure was applied to 10% of the soil samples and the results showed high potential availability of Pb, Mn, Cu, and Ni, further supporting the continuous metal accumulation in the studied soils.
Bulletin of the Geological Society of Greece, 2017
Soils are receptors of atmospheric metal depositions and hence reliable indicators of pollution phenomena, especially for cases that potential site specific pollution sources are detected in terrestrial ecosystems. The purpose of this study was to assess the distribution of Cu, Zn, Fe, Mn, Ni, Cr, Pb, and Ba concentrations in soils nearby the International Athens Airport “El. Venizelos”, in Attica, Greece. Total metal concentrations were determined in 86 topsoil aqua regia extracts and the median values for Cu, Zn, Fe, Mn, Ni, Cr, Pb, and Ba concentrations were 23, 81, 22x103 , 497, 87, 74, 75, and 423 mg kg-1 respectively. Though median values are not considered as high, the 90th percentile concentration values for some metals are high, indicating possible soil enrichment by these metals. A tendency for increased concentrations of Zn and Cr along the north-south axis and of Pb, Cu and Ni at the northern part of the studied area was also observed. As a first approach to discriminate...
The Thriassio plain is located 25 km west of Athens city, the capital of Greece. Two major towns (Elefsina and Aspropyrgos), heavy industry plants, medium to large-scale manufacturing, logistics plants, and agriculture comprise the main land uses of the studied area. The aim of the present study was to measure the total and available concentrations of Cr, Zn, Ni, Pb, Co, Mn, Ba, Cu, and Fe in the top soils of the plain, and to asses soil contamination by these metals by using the geoaccumulation index (I geo), the enrichment factor (EF), and the availability ratio (AR) as soil pollution indexes. Soil samples were collected from 90 sampling sites, and aqua regia and DTPA extractions were carried out to determine total and available metal forms, respectively. Median total Cr, Zn, Ni, Pb, Co, Mn, Ba, Cu, and Fe concentrations were 78, 155, 81, 112, 24, 321, 834, 38, and 16 × 103 mg kg−1, respectively. The available fractions showed much lower values with medians of 0.4, 5.6, 1.7, 6.9, 0.8, 5.7, 19.8, 2.1, and 2.9 mg kg−1. Though median total metal concentrations are not considered as particularly high, the I geo and the EF values indicate moderate to heavy soil enrichment. For certain metals such as Cr, Ni, Cu, and Ba, the different distribution patterns between the EFs and the ARs suggest different origin of the total and the available metal forms. The evaluation of the EF and AR data sets for the soils of the two towns further supports the argument that the EFs can well demonstrate the long-term history of soil pollution and that the ARs can adequately portray the recent history of soil pollution.
Levels of Heavy Metals Pollution in Different Types of Soil of Central Greece
Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology, 2008
This investigation was performed in order to clarify the degree of heavy metals pollution in forest, agricultural and industrial surface soil samples in relation to pre-anthropogenic soils of Almyros region, in Central Greece. In 2004 and 2005 soil samples were collected and analysed for available (DTPA method) and total (Aqua Regia method) Cd, Cr, Cu, Pb, Zn and Ni concentrations. For each metal the enrichment factor with respect to the levels in pre-anthropogenic soils was calculated. All the types of soils appeared to be less polluted than in other investigations. In agricultural and industrial soils the available Cd concentration was higher than the other metals studied. The enrichment factor of Cu in relation to total concentration has the maximum value of the metals studied.
HEAVY METALS IN URBAN PARK SOILS FROM ATHENS, GREECE
14th International Conference of the Geological Society of Greece, 2016
Urban geochemistry is a scientific discipline which is growing in the recent years mainly because of the environmental impact caused by urbanization. The present study aims to determine the concentrations of potentially harmful elements (PHEs) on surface soils (0-10 cm) in Athens parks. Soil sampling was carried out in public park areas within the Athens urban area. Twenty surface soil (0-10 cm) samples were collected and the <100 μm grain size fraction was analyzed by Flame Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy for Pb, Zn, Ni, Cu, Mn and Cr after a strong acid dissolution and partial extraction by 1M HCl. The organic soil matter content was determined by a combustion method. Two different inter-correlated groups of elements were identified, one including Pb, Zn, Cu showing the anthropogenic signature on urban soil and another including Cr, Ni and Mn showing geogenic origin. The mobility of the heavy metals determined in the present study follows the decreasing order: Pb> Mn >Ni≈ Cu≈ Zn> Cr. The data indicate that park areas seem to be important sinks of anthropogenic elements in urban soils.
Heavy metals in urban soils: a case study from the city of Palermo (Sicily), Italy
The Science of the Total …, 2002
Concentrations of V, Mn, Cd, Zn, Ni, Cr, Co, Cu, Pb, Hg and Sb were measured on 70 topsoil samples collected from green areas and parks in the city of Palermo (Sicily) in order to: (1) assess the distribution of these heavy metals in the urban environment; (2) discriminate natural and anthropic contributions; and (3) identify possible sources of pollution. Mineralogy, physico-chemical parameters, and major element contents of the topsoils were determined to highlight the influence of 'natural' features on the heavy metal concentrations and their distribution. Medians of Pb, Zn, Cu and Hg concentrations of the investigated urban soils are 202, 138, 63 and 0.68 mg kg , y1 respectively. These values are higher, in some case by different orders of size, than those of unpolluted soils in Sicily that average 44, 122, 34 and 0.07 mg kg . An ensemble of basic and multivariate statistical analyses (cluster y1 analysis and principal component analysis) was performed to reduce the multidimensional space of variables and samples, thus defining two sets of heavy metals as tracers of natural and anthropic influences. Results demonstrate that Pb, Zn, Cu, Sb and Hg can be inferred to be tracers of anthropic pollution, whereas Mn, Ni, Co, Cr, V and Cd were interpreted to be mainly inherited from parent materials. Maps of pollutant distribution were constructed for the whole urban area pointing to vehicle traffic as the main source of diffuse pollution and also showing the contribution of point sources of pollution to urban topsoils. ᮊ
Bulletin of the Geological Society of Greece
In the present study a total of sixteen samples (3 surrounding rocks and 13 uncultivated topsoils) from the industrial zone east of the city of Kavala, Northern Greece, was collected and analyzed for their content in 41 elements. The extraction of the elements was based on the digestion of 0.1 g of each sample with 2 ml HNO3 and the soil fraction used was the < 20Όμιη. The analytical methods used were ICP-OES for the elements Ca, Mg, Κ, Β, Sr, Fe, Na, Si, S, Ρ, and ΑΙ and ICPMS for the elements Mn, Zn, Cu, Ti, V, Cr, Rb, Ba, Th, La, Ce, As, Sn, Co, Se, Y, Zr, Mo, Cd, Cs, W, Sb, Li, U, Ag, Ni, Hg, Ga, Ge and Pb. The mean element concentrations of the thirteen topsoil samples were compared with the mean values for soil types Fluvisols and Leptosols. The results showed that they are enriched for the elements Ag, As and Pb by 21, 15 and 3 times, respectively. Moreover, the topsoils were compared with the three surrounding rock samples. The results showed that the concentrations of Ca...
In the present study a total of sixteen samples (3 surrounding rocks and 13 uncultivated topsoils) from the industrial zone east of the city of Kavala, Northern Greece, was collected and analyzed for their content in 41 elements. The extraction of the elements was based on the digestion of 0.1 g of each sample with 2 ml HNO3 and the soil fraction used was the < 200µm. The analytical methods used were ICP-OES for the elements Ca, Mg, and Pb. The mean element concentrations of the thirteen topsoil samples were compared with the mean values for soil types Fluvisols and Leptosols. The results showed that they are enriched for the elements Ag, As and Pb by 21, 15 and 3 times, respectively. Moreover, the topsoils were compared with the three surrounding rock samples. The results showed that the concentrations of Ca,