Arsenic and trace elements in soil, water, grapevine and onion in Jáchal, Argentina

FUNES PINTER, IVÁN; SALOMON, M. VICTORIA; GIL, RAÚL; MASTRANTONIO, LEANDRO; BOTTINI, RUBÉN; PICCOLI, PATRICIA

THE SCIENCE OF TOTAL ENVIRONMENT

Elsevier SCI LTD

Año: 2018 vol. 615 p. 1485 - 1498

0048-9697

Contamination by trace elements (TE) is an increasing concernworldwide. In some areas, crop production couldbe limited by the presence of metals and metalloids, so it is important to determine their concentrations and mobility.The region of Jáchal, province of San Juan, Argentina, has good growing conditions for onion and grapevineproduction, but their quality and yield are affected by high TE concentration in soils and water. Soils, water,grapevine and onion were sampled and TE content determined. In soils elevated As, B, Cr, Hg, and Tl concentrationswere detected (506 ± 46, 149 ± 3, 2714 ± 217, 16 ± 7, and 12 ± 3 μg g−1, respectively, for maximumvalues measured), and physicochemical properties of the soil promotes these elements mobility. Water sampleshad high As, B, Cr, and Fe concentrations (1438 ± 400, 10,871 ± 471, 11,516 ± 2363, and 3071 ± 257 μg L−1,respectively, for maximum values measured) while in onion bulbs and grapevine berries, As, Cr, Cu, and Fe (92± 7 and 171±20, 1412±18 and 2965±32, 17 ± 3 and 126 ±88, and 418±204 and 377±213 μg g−1, respectively,for maximumvalues measured) exceeded the limits for food consumption established by Argentinianlaw. Correlation analyses indicated that: i) there is a common source of TE in this area, ii) each elements concentrationin plants is associated with different soil variables and different soils depths, and iii) the lack of correlationbetween soil and water indicates that concentration in water is not constant over the time and/or there exists adifferential accumulation of elements in soils depending on their own properties. Data obtained demonstratevery high concentration of TE in soil, grapevines, and onion plants in Jáchal region, and different remediationtechniques are necessary to stabilize and minimize the bioavailability of these elements.