Source apportionment and quantitative risk assessment of heavy metals at an abandoned zinc smelting site based on GIS and PMF models

• Published in: Journal of environmental management 2023-06, Vol.336, p.117565-117565, Article 117565
• Main Authors: Jin, He, Zhihong, Peng, Jiaqing, Zeng, Chuxuan, Li, Lu, Tang, Jun, Jiang, Xinghua, Luo, Wenyan, Gao, Junkang, Guo, Binbin, Shao, Shengguo, Xue
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Cadmium; China; Environmental Monitoring; Geographic Information Systems; Humans; Lead; Metals, Heavy - analysis; Multi-metal pollution; Positive matrix factorization; Risk Assessment; Risk quantification; Soil; Soil Pollutants - analysis; Source apportionment; Zinc - analysis
• ISSN: 0301-4797; 1095-8630
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2023.117565

The abandoned smelters have caused serious hazards to the surrounding environment and residents. Taking an abandoned zinc smelter in southern China as an example, a total of 245 soil samples were collected to study spatial heterogeneity, source apportionment, and source-derived risk assessment of heavy metal(loid)s (HMs) in the region. The results showed that the mean values of all HMs concentrations were higher than the local background values, with Zn, Cd, Pb, and As contamination being the most serious and their plume penetrating to the bottom layer. Four sources were identified by principal component analysis and positive matrix factorization, with their contributions to the HMs contents ranked as: surface runoff (F2, 63.2%) > surface solid waste (F1, 22.2%) > atmospheric deposition (F3, 8.5%) > parent material (F4, 6.1%). Among these, F1 was a determinant source of human health risk with a contribution rate of 60%. Therefore, F1 was considered to be the priority control factor, but it only accounted for 22.2% of HMs contents contribution. Hg dominated the ecological risk with a contribution of 91.1%. Pb (25.7%) and As (32.9%) accounted for the non-carcinogenic risk, while As (95%) dominated the carcinogenic effect. The spatial characteristics of human health risk values derived from F1 indicated that high-risk areas were mainly distributed in the casting finished products area, electrolysis area, leaching-concentration area, and fluidization roasting area. The findings highlight the significance of priority control factors (including HMs, pollution sources and functional areas) for consideration in the integrated management of this region, thus saving costs for effective soil remediation. [Display omitted] •CA, PCA and PMF models were used to quantify the pollution sources precisely.•Surface solid waste sources are a priority control factor due to their significant contribution to health risks (60%).•The spatial patterns of HHR from surface solid waste sources were distributed in the CFPA, EA, LCA and FRA zones.