Special Issue "Regional Scale Industrial Contamination of Soils and Groundwater — From Risk Assessment to Risk Management"

Guest Editor
Dr. Serge Brouyère
Dpt ArGEnCo, Geo³-Hydrogéologie & Aquapôle, Université de Liège, Bâtiment B52/3, 4000 Sart Tilman, Belgium
Website: http://www.argenco.ulg.ac.be/personnel_fiche.php?id=35
E-Mail:
Interests: pollution–protection–remediation of soils and groundwater; flow and transport modelling in variably saturated media; development and application of field investigation techniques; development of tools and concepts for the management of groundwater in the context of integrated water resources management

Dear Colleagues,

Growing industrial activities and urbanization have lead to the multiplication of pollution sources and to widespread dispersion of contaminants in the environment, leading at the extreme to regional scale contamination of soils and groundwater. The regional component of the problem requires specific approaches from risk assessment to risk management steps. This special issue is to describe recent research advances in this context: development of regional-scale risk assessment methods and indicators, including water quality trends at the scale of the surface water / groundwater body, megasite approaches and, more specifically, methodologies specifically devoted to risk management and remediation at the the regional level.

Dr. Serge Brouyère
Guest Editor

Submission

• regional scale risk assessment
• megasite
• soil and groundwater pollution
• EU Water Directive

Regular Paper

Title: Comparative Assessment of Soil Contamination by Lead and Heavy Metals in Riparian and Agricultural Areas (Southern Québec, Canada).
Authors: Saint-Laurent D.,¹ Baril F., ² Hähni M., ² and St-Laurent, J. ³
Affiliations: ¹ UQTR, Géographie et Laboratoire de recherche en géomorphologie fluviale et sols, 3351, boul. des Forges, C.P. 500, Trois-Rivières, QC, Canada, G9A 5H7
² UQTR, Département de Chimie et Biologie, Sciences de l’Environnement, C.P. 500, Trois-Rivières, G9A 5H7, QC, Canada.
³ Environnement et Développement durable, Ville de Trois-Rivières, C.P. 368, Trois-Rivières, G9A 5H3, QC Canada. E-Mail: diane.saint-laurent@uqtr.ca
Abstract: Soils contaminated with hydrocarbons (C₁₀-C₅₀), PAHS, lead and other heavy metals (e.g. As, Cd, Cu, Zn) were recently found in the banks of two major rivers in southern Québec (Saint-François and Massawippi rivers). Alluvial soils are contaminated over a distance of 100 kilometers. Eight sampling sites, including some located in agriculture areas (farm woodlots) have been selected to compare air pollution (aerosol fallout and rainout) and river pollution values. Concentrations in hydrocarbon-contaminated layers and some element traces are among the highest in Windsor soil profiles (small industrial area). The maximum and minimum values detected in soil profiles for arsenic, cadmium and lead vary between 3.01 to 37.88 mg kg⁻¹ (As), 0.11 to 0.81 mg kg⁻¹ (Cd) 12.32 to 149.13 mg kg⁻¹ (Pb). These metallic elements are considered highly toxic and can harm wildlife and human health at high levels. The maximum concentration of lead (149.13 mg kg⁻¹) in soils of the riparian zone indicates a value 12 times higher than the average lead concentration found in a natural state evaluated at 15.3 mg kg⁻¹ (SD 17.5). The presence of lead and other heavy metals in soils and sediments (e.g. riverbanks, lakes) has a direct impact on aquatic systems and water quality, particularly in areas subject to severe contamination. These contaminants in high concentrations are considered to be substances that affect wildlife, including eggshell thinning and tumours. Such deformities were also observed in 2 the fish population of the Saint-François River. Elevated concentrations of pollutants in the river or lacustrine environment are known to endanger ecosystems and introduce a potential risk for human health. Heavy metals (lead in particular) in high concentrations have an adverse effect on human health, causing heavy metal poisoning, affecting the central nervous system and/or acting as cofactors in many other diseases. Lead concentration values in soils of agricultural areas (woodland control sites) range between 12 and 22 mg kg⁻¹, and given that these values are recorded in surrounding cultivated land, the issue of the quality of agricultural products (crops and forage) to feed livestock or destined for human consumption must be further addressed in detail. The next step of this study will be to increase the number of soil samples in agricultural areas, woodlots and mature forests and floodplains to discriminate between-pollutant inputs associated with fluvial transport and atmospheric deposition.