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Special Issue "Sediments, Metals and Freshwater: Interfaces That Can Impact Riverine Environments"

A special issue of International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (ISSN 1660-4601). This special issue belongs to the section "Environmental Science and Engineering".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 April 2021).

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Fernando António Leal Pacheco
E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
DG-CQVR-UTAD – Department of Geology, Chemistry Research Centre, University of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro, Quinta de Prados, 5001–801 Vila Real, Portugal
Interests: groundwater management; groundwater contamination risk; water–rock interactions; groundwater flow modeling; groundwater–surface water interactions; rainwater harvesting; land degradation and surface water quality; spatial decision support systems in water public supply planning
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Sediments and freshwater form a geochemical interface that controls the distribution of metals across the solid and liquid compartments. High concentrations of metals are typically harmful to the aquatic environment and can enter the food chain, endangering animal and human health. The role of fine sediments in the transport and fate of metals in riverine environments is well documented in the scientific literature. The relationship of high metal concentrations in freshwater to point and nonpoint natural and anthropogenic sources is also known, as well as the forms in which metals are present in the river water that determine mobilization capacity and bioavailability. However, there are still topics about transference of metals across sediments and stream water that deserve attention and justify further scientific research. One example is the fate of metals present in debris from sediment disasters. Debris flow can result from riverbed sediment movement, slope failure, dam collapse, landslides, earthquakes or volcanic activity. In some cases, such as in tailings dam failures, debris can contain large quantities of metals that subsequent to the disaster will leach onto the surface and groundwater, threatening these ecosystems.

The purpose of this Special Issue is to discuss cases or methods related with the spatial and temporal distribution of metals in rivers and their catchments, related to natural and anthropogenic sources. The cases related with sediment disasters are particularly welcome. We believe that this Special Issue may help to bring land use planners, water resources managers, and the general public into the conscience that conservation of water resources begins with a reliable land use and implementation of conservation measures, as well as monitoring of hazard risk, and that deviation from this practice inevitably leads water resources to danger and ultimately to collapse as service providers.

Prof. Dr. Fernando A.L. Pacheco
Prof. Dr. Luís Filipe Sanches Fernandes
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All papers will be peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2300 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • sediments
  • metals
  • streams
  • debris flows
  • water pollution

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

Article
Distribution and Potential Availability of As, Metals and P in Sediments from a Riverine Reservoir in a Rural Mountainous Catchment (NE Portugal)
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(11), 5616; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18115616 - 24 May 2021
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Abstract
A geochemical investigation was carried out on the bottom sediments of a riverine reservoir, located in a mountainous rural region (NE Portugal), with the aim of evaluating the contents of As, metals and P and their potential availability. The elements contents were detected [...] Read more.
A geochemical investigation was carried out on the bottom sediments of a riverine reservoir, located in a mountainous rural region (NE Portugal), with the aim of evaluating the contents of As, metals and P and their potential availability. The elements contents were detected in the following ranges (µg g−1): As (18–64); Cr (32–128); Cu (39–93); Ni (18–80); Pb (49–160); Zn (207–334); P (1705–2681). The reducible fraction is the most significant in the retention of the elements. Based on their potential relative mobility, the detected metals could be classed as follows: Zn > As, Pb > Cu > Cr, Ni. The results on geochemical partitioning were revealed to be important when the Sediment Quality Guidelines (SQGs) were considered. Arsenic, Cr, Ni, Pb and Zn showed total contents exceeding the values of Probable Effect Level (PEL), but only As occurred in the most potentially available form; Cr and Ni can be considered relatively unavailable, since these are mainly associated with the residual phase. Locally, oxygen depletion could release P into the water column due to the higher concentrations in Fe-P and CDB-P fractions. The potential availability of As, metals and P in sediments indicates that the quality of sediments accumulated in small reservoirs should be considered in management policies. Full article
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Article
The Variation of Heavy Metals Bioavailability in Sediments of Liujiang River Basin, SW China Associated to Their Speciations and Environmental Fluctuations, a Field Study in Typical Karstic River
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(8), 3986; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18083986 - 10 Apr 2021
Viewed by 660
Abstract
The bioavailability of heavy metals (HMs) in sediments is closely related to the security of the aquatic environment, but their impacts are poorly researched, particularly in karstic rivers. Therefore, Liujiang River Basin was taken as an example in this study. Seven HMs were [...] Read more.
The bioavailability of heavy metals (HMs) in sediments is closely related to the security of the aquatic environment, but their impacts are poorly researched, particularly in karstic rivers. Therefore, Liujiang River Basin was taken as an example in this study. Seven HMs were analyzed to determine the bioavailability and speciations of HMs in sediments. Moreover, the impacts of environmental factors on HMs were identified. The obtained results suggested that HMs in the sediments are all within their permissible exposure limit (PEL), but Cd and Zn are significantly higher than the soil baseline. Most HMs were found to be in a residual fraction, while their exchangeable fraction was found to be in an extremely low ratio. HMs in bioavailable parts are significantly higher than in the exchangeable and carbonate-bound phases but lower than in the non-residual phase, which demonstrated that HM bioavailability is not confined to the exchangeable and carbonate-bound phases. The correlation coefficients commonly decreased with decreasing speciation ratios, which suggested that the overall bioavailability of metals should be determined by speciation ratios instead of speciations themselves. Noteworthily, most HMs in the residual form were found to be significantly correlated with their overall bioavailability, which highlighted the potential bioavailability of residual form. The non-correlations between pH, electrical conductivity (EC), total dissolved solids (TDS), and HM bioavailability suggested that HMs in the carbonate-bound phase are stable and unsusceptible to environmental variations, while the significant correlations between redox potential (Eh), turbidity, organic matter (OM), main grain size (Mz), and HM bioavailability suggested that HMs in the reducible and oxidizable forms are susceptible to environmental fluctuations. Therefore, the variation of HM bioavailability in karstic rivers is largely regulated by their reducible and oxidizable forms instead of their carbonate-bound form. Full article
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