ORIGINAL RESEARCH
Spatiotemporal Assessment of Heavy Metal (Loid) Pollution in Water and Surface Sediment of the Mohlapitsi River, South Africa
 
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Department of Biodiversity, University of Limpopo, Private Bag X1106, Sovenga, 0727, South Africa
 
 
Submission date: 2023-06-13
 
 
Final revision date: 2023-06-28
 
 
Acceptance date: 2023-07-10
 
 
Online publication date: 2024-04-15
 
 
Publication date: 2024-04-18
 
 
Corresponding author
Abraham Addo-Bediako   

Department of Biodiversity, University of Limpopo, Private Bag X1106, Sovenga, 0727, South Africa
 
 
Pol. J. Environ. Stud. 2024;33(4):3545-3554
 
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ABSTRACT
Freshwater ecosystems are being polluted in many ways with heavy metal (loid)s, mostly due to human activities that affect aquatic biota and threaten human health. Water and surface sediment samples were collected from different sites of the Mohlapitsi River, South Africa, during the high flow and low flow seasons. The samples were analyzed for As, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Zn levels using inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES). In the water, only Fe, Mn, and Zn were detected, but the concentrations were below the standard guideline values except for Mn. However, in the sediment, all the metal (loid)s were detected in considerable concentrations. The mean concentrations of the metal (loid)s were higher during high flow than low flow, except for Fe. The enrichment factor (EF) of the heavy metal (loid)s ranged from low enrichment to moderate enrichment. Geo-accumulation index (Igeo) Shows moderate contamination levels with Cr and Mn. The main sources of contamination are attributed to discharges from agricultural fields and grazing areas in the catchment. The results provide baseline information on metal (loid) contamination in the Mohlapitsi River for management purposes.
eISSN:2083-5906
ISSN:1230-1485
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