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eISSN: 2083-5906
ISSN: 1230-1485
ISSN: 1230-1485
ORIGINAL RESEARCH
Heavy Metal Pollution in Soils
of the Oilfield-Wetland Zone in the Yellow
River Delta: Distribution, Source Analysis,
and Ecological Risk Assessment
1
Shandong Key Laboratory of Eco-environmental Science for the Yellow River Delta,
Shandong University of Aeronautics, Binzhou, 256600, China
Submission date: 2026-06-13
Final revision date: 2026-08-03
Acceptance date: 2026-08-16
Online publication date: 2026-09-30
Corresponding author
Zaiwang Zhang
Shandong Key Laboratory of Eco-environmental Science for the Yellow River Delta, Shandong University of Aeronautics, No. 391 Huanghe 5th Road, 256603, Binzhou, China
Shandong Key Laboratory of Eco-environmental Science for the Yellow River Delta, Shandong University of Aeronautics, No. 391 Huanghe 5th Road, 256603, Binzhou, China
KEYWORDS
TOPICS
ABSTRACT
Oilfield-wetland zones are ecologically fragile landscapes where petroleum extraction, traffic,
and agricultural activities may jointly affect soil metal accumulation. In this study, surface soils from
oilfield-wetland patches in the Yellow River Delta were analyzed for Cr, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Cd, and Pb,
together with selected soil properties. The concentrations of Cr, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Cd, and Pb ranged from
47.11 to 106.72, 11.01 to 23.53, 27.61 to 64.28, 6.41 to 60.45, 10.41 to 190.95, ND to 0.37,
and 16.53 to 104.58 mg/kg, respectively, and were below the Chinese agricultural soil risk-screening
values. Ni exceeded the local background value in all samples, while Pb, Co, Cr, and Cu showed frequent
background exceedance, indicating limited enrichment rather than regulatory risk. Spatial differences
were element-specific, with Cu differing significantly between Gudao and Xianhe towns and Zn
tending to be higher away from oil wells and in vegetated zones. Correlation and PCA results suggested
possible influences from both natural processes and anthropogenic activities. Pollution and ecological
risk indices indicated low overall risk, but Pb enrichment, consistent Ni background exceedance, and
localized Cd-related ecological risk require continued monitoring.
CONFLICT OF INTEREST
The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
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| eISSN: | 2083-5906 |
| ISSN: | 1230-1485 |
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