CECOAL   02625
CENTRO DE ECOLOGIA APLICADA DEL LITORAL
Unidad Ejecutora - UE
artículos
Título:
Concentration of arsenic in water, sediments and fish species from naturally contaminated rivers
Autor/es:
JUAN JOSE ROSSO; NAHUEL FRANCISCO SCHENONE; ALEJO PÉREZ CARRERA; ALICIA FERNÁNDEZ CIRELLI
Revista:
ENVIRONMENTAL GEOCHEMISTRY AND HEALTH
Editorial:
SPRINGER
Referencias:
Lugar: Berlin; Año: 2012
ISSN:
0269-4042
Resumen:
 Arsenic (As) may occur in surface freshwater ecosystems as a consequence of both natural contamination and anthropogenic activities. In this paper, As concentrations in muscle samples of 10 fish species, sediments and surface water from three naturally contaminated rivers in a central region of Argentina are reported. The study area is one of the largest regions in the world with high As concentrations in groundwater. However, information of As in freshwater ecosystems and associated biota is scarce. An extensive spatial variability of As concentrations in water and sediments of sampled ecosystems was observed. Geochemical indices indicated that sediments ranged from mostly unpolluted to strongly polluted. The concentration of As in sediments averaged 6.58 μg/g ranging from 0.23 μg/g to 59.53 μg/g. Arsenic in sediments barely followed (r = 0.361; p = 0.118) the level of contamination of water. All rivers showed high concentrations of As in surface waters, ranging from 55 μg/L to 195 μg/L. The average concentration of As in fish was 1.76 μg/g. The level of contamination with As differed significantly between species. Moreover, the level of bioaccumulation of As in fish species related to the concentration of As in water and sediments also differed between species. Whilst some fish species seemed to be able to regulate the up-take of this metalloid, the concentration of As in the large catfish Rhamdia quelen mostly followed the concentration of As in abiotic compartments. The erratic pattern of As concentrations in fish and sediments regardless the invariable high levels in surface waters, suggests the existence of complex biogeochemical processes behind distribution patterns of As in these naturally contaminated ecosystems.