Monitoring of heavy metals in the sediments of the Inaouene River, Morocco

Abstract

Abstract The watercourse of the Inaouène River carries all the solid waste disposals from the urban areas (City of Taza, Bab marzouka, oued Amlil, Bouhlou). It also receives wastewater which is not treated at the sources. This wastewater contains various types of heavy metals. The study of heavy metal contents in the sediments was carried out at 11 sampling sites alongside the Inaouène River and some of its principal tributaries in May 2008 and October 2009. The results can be classified into three series: the series 1: including the metals (Fe, Sr, Mn, Zn, Rb, Pb) detected on all the sampled sites, the series 2: including the metals (Cu, Ni, Cr, As, Co, Pt, Sn) detected only some sites, the series 3: including hazardous metals (Ag, Cd, Hg) which were under the limit of detection. The correlation analyses of heavy metal contents of two study periods indicated that a large part of examined heavy metals had common sources and behaved similarly during the transportation.

Keywords

• Key words: sediments, heavy metals, pollution, Inaouene River

References

1. Baize, D., Janiec, S. (1994) Les éléments traces métalliques dans les sols. Editions INRA., 1-52 pp.
2. Blanchard, G. (1982) Aspects du comportement des organo-métaux et des métaux dans l’environnement. Etude particulière des dérivés du Plomb. Thèse és-Sciences, 188 p.
3. Bouasria, S., Sadki, O., Benaabidate, L., Oummaggard H., Hamoumi, N. (2007) Geochemistry of heavy metals in the Moroccan Atlantic Coastline (Area of Safi City). J. Black Sea/Mediterranean Environment 13: 73-92.
4. Bouasria, S. (2008) Géochimie des métaux lourds dans les eaux et les sédiments du littoral marocain entre sidi bouzid et Souira Qdima. Thèse 3ème cycle ; Université Mohammed V Agdal, Fac. Sc. Rabat.
5. Chabert, D. (1980) Pollution d’un milieu lagunaire par les métaux lourds. Vie marine, Hors série, n°2, 145 p.
6. Dean, J. G., Bosqui, F.L., Lanouette, V.H. (1972) Removing heavy metals from Waste water. Environ. Sci. Technol., Nature Vol. 6: 518-522.
7. Fôrstner, U. (1987) Meta speciation in solid wastes. Factors affecting mobility. In: Speciation of Metals in Water, Sediment and Soil Systems. (ed., Landner), Springer, Berlin, Lecture notes in Earth Sci. 1: 13.
8. Forstner, U., Wittmann, G.T.W. (1979) Metal Pollution in the Aquatic Environment, Springer-Verlag, Berlin, 486 p.

9. James, R. O. (1978) Effects of Heavy Metals on Aquatic Life. C.S.I.R.O., Canberra.
10. Jeon, C., Park, J.Y., Yoo, Y.J. (2002) Characteristics of metal removal using carboxylated alginic acid. Water Res. 36: 1814-1824.
11. Morgan, J.J., Stimm, W. (1964) The role multivalent metal oxides in limnological transformations, as exemplified by iron and manganese. In: advances in water pollution research. Proceedings of the second international conference held in Tokyo, Jaag (Ed), Pergamon Press, Oxford 1: 103-131.
12. Nriagu, J.O., Pacyna, J.M. (1988) Quantitative assessment of worldwide contamination of air, water and soils by trace metals. Nature 333: 134-139.
13. Rose, A.W., Hawkes, H.E., Webb, J.S. (1979) Geochemistry in Mineral Exploration. Second edition. Academic Press, London, 657 p.