Use of the Potential Ecological Risk Index for Sediment Quality Assessment: A Case Study of Dam Lakes in the Thrace Part of the Marmara Region

Abstract

Ergene River Basin, which is known as a critically contaminated habitat, is located in the Thrace Part of the Marmara Region of Turkey. Altınyazı, Karaidemir, Kayalıköy, Kırklareli, Sultanköy and Süloğlu Dam Lakes are located in the Ergene River Basin in the Thrace Region, which has very large agricultural lands because of rich soil and many freshwater resources. They were constructed by DSİ (State Water Works) in order to provide irrigation and drinking water and flood protection. The aim of this study was to evaluate the sediment quality of these artificial lentic ecosystems by investigating a total of 25 essential and toxic element accumulations and evaluate the ecological risks of toxic metals on the reservoirs by using Potential Ecological Risk Index (RI). Sediment samples were collected in the spring season (rainy) of 2018 from 15 stations and element concentrations were investigated by using an ICP-MS. According to the results of RI, cadmium, lead and arsenic were found to be the highest ecological risk factors for the basin reservoirs.

Keywords

• Thrace Region,Ergene Basin,Lentic Habitats,Toxic Metals,Sediment Indices

References

1. ATSDR (Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry) (2000). Toxicological profile for chromium. Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/ (accessed 05.03.2019).
2. ATSDR (Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry) (2004). Toxicological profile for copper. Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/ (accessed 05.03.2019).
3. ATSDR (Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry) (2005a). Toxicological profile for arsenic. Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/ (accessed 05.03.2019).
4. ATSDR (Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry) (2005b). Toxicological profile for zinc. Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/ (accessed 05.03.2019).
5. ATSDR (Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry) (2007). Toxicological profile for cadmium. Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/ (accessed 05.03.2019).
6. Çiçek, A., Köse, E., Emiroğlu, Ö., Tokatlı, C., Başkurt, S. & Sülün, Ş. (2014). Boron and arsenic levels in water, sediment and tissues of Carassius gibelio (Bloch, 1782) in a dam lake. Polish Journal of Environmental Studies, 23(5), 1843-1848.
7. Çiçek, A., Köse, E. & Tokatlı, C. (2019). Use of factor analysis to evaluate the sediment quality of a significant mining area: Seydisuyu Stream Basin (Turkey). Polish Journal of Environmental Studies, 28(3), 2021-2025.
8. Çiçek, A., Tokatlı, C. & Köse, E. (2013). Ecological risk assessment of heavy metals in sediment of Felent Stream (Sakarya River Basin, Turkey). Pakistan Journal of Zoology, 45(5), 1335-1341.

9. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) METHOD 3051A. (1998). Microwave assisted acid digestion of sediments, sludges, soils, and oils. https://www.epa.gov/ (accessed 03.03.2019).
10. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) METHOD 200.7. (2001). Determination of metals and trace elements ın water and wastes by ınductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectrometry. https://www.epa.gov/ (accessed 03.03.2019).
11. Emiroğlu, Ö., Uyanoğlu, M., Başkurt, S., Sülün, Ş., Köse, E., Tokatlı, C., Uysal, K., Arslan, N. & Çiçek, A. (2013). Erythrocyte deformations in Rutilus rutilus (Linnaeus, 1758) provided from Porsuk Dam (Turkey). Biological Diversity and Conservation, 6(1), 13-17.
12. Farombi, E. O., Adelowo, O. A. & Ajimoko. Y. R. (2007). Biomarkers of oxidative stress and heavy metal levels as indicators of environmental pollution in African cat fish (Clarias gariepinus) from Nigeria ogun river. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 4(2), 158-165.
13. Håkanson, L. (1980). An ecological risk index for aquatic pollution control of sediment ecological approach. Water Research, 14, 975-1000.
14. Helvacıoğlu, İ. A., Şener, T., Tokatlı, C. & Balkan, A. (2015). Economic review of production possibilities and production costs of rice in “Ipsala – Karpuzlu – Meriç” region. 3rd International Conference on Agriculture & Food, 1–5 June 2015, Elenite Holiday Village, Bulgaria, 193-201. http://www.dsi.gov.tr/ (accessed 03.03.2019). T.C. State Water Works Official Web Site. 11. Regional Directorate, Dams and Ponds.
15. Köleli, N. & Kantar, Ç. (2005). Fosfat kayasi, fosforik asit ve fosforlu gübrelerdeki toksik ağir metal (Cd, Pb, Ni, As) konsantrasyonu. Ekoloji, 14, 55, 1-5.
16. Köse, E., Tokatlı, C. & Çiçek, A. (2014). Monitoring stream water quality: a statistical evaluation. Polish Journal of Environmental Studies, 23(5), 1637-1647.
17. Maanan, M., Barjy, M. E., Hassou, N., Zidane, H., Zourarah, B. & Maanan, M. (2018). Origin and potential ecological risk assessment of trace elements in the watershed topsoil and coastal sediment of the Oualidia lagoon, Morocco. Human and Ecological Risk Assessment: An International Journal, 24(3), 602-614.
18. Sari, E., Cukrov, N., Frančišković-Bilinski, S., Kurt, M. A. & Halli, M. (2016). Contamination assessment of ecotoxic metals in recent sediments from the Ergene River, Turkey. Environmental Earth Sciences, 75, 1051.
19. Soliman, N., F., Nasr, S., M. & Okbah, M. A. (2015). Potential ecological risk of heavy metals in sediments from the Mediterranean coast, Egypt. Journal of Environmental Health Science and Engineering, 13, 70.
20. Tokatlı, C. (2015). Assessment of the water quality in the Meriç River: as an element of the ecosystem in the Thrace Region of Turkey. Polish Journal of Environmental Studies, 24(5), 2205-2211.
21. Tokatlı, C. (2017). Bio – ecological and statistical risk assessment of toxic metals in sediments of a worldwide important wetland: Gala Lake National Park (Turkey). Archives of Environmental Protection, 43(1), 34-47.
22. Tokatlı, C. & Baştatlı, Y. (2016). Trace and toxic element levels in river sediments. Polish Journal of Environmental Studies, 25(4), 1715-1720.
23. Tokatlı, C., Baştatlı, Y. & Elipek, B. (2017a). Water quality assessment of dam lakes located in Edirne province (Turkey). Sigma Journal of Engineering and Natural Sciences, 35(4), 743-750.
24. Tokatlı, C., Çiçek, A., Köse, E. (2017b). Use of bio – ecological risk indices to evaluate the sediment quality of seydisuyu stream basin. Iğdır University Journal of the Institute of Science and Technology, 7(2), 267-275.
25. Tokatlı, C., Köse, E., Arslan, N., Çiçek, A., Emiroğlu, Ö. & Dayıoğlu, H. (2016). Ecosystem quality assessment of an aquatic habitat in a globally important boron reserve: Emet Stream Basin (Turkey). International Journal of Environment and Pollution, 59(2/3/4), 116-141.
26. Yu, G. B., Liu, Y., Yua, S., Wuc, S.C., Leung A. O. W., Luo, X. S., Xua, B., Li, H. B. & Wongc, M. H. (2011). Inconsistency and comprehensiveness of risk assessments for heavy metals in urban surface sediments. Chemosphere, 85, 1080–1087.