TY - JOUR
T1 - Distribution of mercury and methylmercury in surface water and surface sediment of river, irrigation canal, reservoir, and wetland in Taiwan
AU - Wang, Ying Lin
AU - Fang, Meng Der
AU - Chien, Ling Chu
AU - Lin, Chu Ching
AU - Hsi, Hsing Cheng
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2019, Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.
PY - 2019/6/1
Y1 - 2019/6/1
N2 - In Taiwan, because of the co-use of some irrigation and drainage canals, a portion of industrial wastewater was directly discharged into irrigation canals or even flowed into rivers or wetlands, causing the heavy metal pollution in waters and sediments. Mercury (Hg) contamination in rivers, irrigation canals, and wetlands has been found in Taiwan, but a thorough investigation on the distribution of Hg and methylmercury (MeHg) in these waters and sediments, which may be present in a greater level with elevating total Hg (THg) concentration and markedly impact human health, is still lacking. In this study, surface waters and surface sediments were sampled from five major rivers, two irrigation canals, two reservoirs, and one wetland in Taiwan, and their THg and MeHg concentrations were quantified. Additionally, statistical analysis was carried out to understand the relationship between sediment properties and MeHg levels. The results showed that irrigation canal sediments were relatively more polluted by Hg and the THg concentrations of some sampling points exceeded the upper limit (i.e., 0.87 mg kg−1) of sediment quality index (SQI) for THg promulgated by Taiwan Environmental Protection Administration, which may be attributed to the co-use of irrigation and drainage canals. Furthermore, the MeHg concentration in irrigation canal sediments was the highest; rivers came in second followed by wetlands. In addition, the Siangshan Wetland was analyzed to have the greatest THg and MeHg concentrations in its surface water. Linear regression analysis also indicated that total organic carbon and clay content substantially affected the MeHg production in sediments.
AB - In Taiwan, because of the co-use of some irrigation and drainage canals, a portion of industrial wastewater was directly discharged into irrigation canals or even flowed into rivers or wetlands, causing the heavy metal pollution in waters and sediments. Mercury (Hg) contamination in rivers, irrigation canals, and wetlands has been found in Taiwan, but a thorough investigation on the distribution of Hg and methylmercury (MeHg) in these waters and sediments, which may be present in a greater level with elevating total Hg (THg) concentration and markedly impact human health, is still lacking. In this study, surface waters and surface sediments were sampled from five major rivers, two irrigation canals, two reservoirs, and one wetland in Taiwan, and their THg and MeHg concentrations were quantified. Additionally, statistical analysis was carried out to understand the relationship between sediment properties and MeHg levels. The results showed that irrigation canal sediments were relatively more polluted by Hg and the THg concentrations of some sampling points exceeded the upper limit (i.e., 0.87 mg kg−1) of sediment quality index (SQI) for THg promulgated by Taiwan Environmental Protection Administration, which may be attributed to the co-use of irrigation and drainage canals. Furthermore, the MeHg concentration in irrigation canal sediments was the highest; rivers came in second followed by wetlands. In addition, the Siangshan Wetland was analyzed to have the greatest THg and MeHg concentrations in its surface water. Linear regression analysis also indicated that total organic carbon and clay content substantially affected the MeHg production in sediments.
KW - Irrigation canal
KW - Mercury
KW - Methylmercury
KW - Reservoir
KW - River
KW - Surface sediment
KW - Wetland
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85064930273&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85064930273&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/s11356-019-05176-0
DO - 10.1007/s11356-019-05176-0
M3 - Article
C2 - 31030402
AN - SCOPUS:85064930273
SN - 0944-1344
VL - 26
SP - 17762
EP - 17773
JO - Environmental Science and Pollution Research
JF - Environmental Science and Pollution Research
IS - 17
ER -