Hervé Fourrier

Assessment of the Contamination of Cultivated Soils by Eighteen Trace Elements Around Smelters in the North of France

Ag, As, Bi, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Hg, In, Ni, Pb, Sb, Se, Sn,Tl, Th, U and Zn contamination of cultivated surfacehorizons has been assessed around two lead and zincsmelters in the North of France. The verticaldistribution of Ag, As, Bi, Cu, Hg, Se, Sb and Tl inthe soils has also been examined. The soils around thelead and zinc smelter at Noyelles-Godault arecontaminated by Ag, As, Bi, Cd, Cu, Hg, In, Ni, Pb, Sb,Se, Sn, Tl and Zn. The original concentration in themost contaminated soils may be multiplied by a factorof around 2 to 100, according to the element. Cadmium,Pb and Zn are the most abundant contaminants. The Pband Zn concentrations are correlated to those of theother contaminants, with the exception of Se. Aroundthe Auby zinc smelter, there is a contamination by thesame elements, but in different proportions, inaddition to Cr contamination. Contamination by Se canreach a depth of around 1 m, whereas contamination byAg, As, Bi, Cu, Hg, Sb and Tl is confined to the top 30cm. Although the contaminant content in most soilsdepends on the distance from the plant, Secontamination would appear to vary to a greater extentaccording to the physico-chemical soil conditions.

Assessment of potential health risk for inhabitants living near a former lead smelter. Part 1: metal concentrations in soils, agricultural crops, and homegrown vegetables

Soil contamination by metals engenders important environmental and health problems in northern France where a smelter (Metaleurop Nord) was in activity for more than a century. This study aims to look at the long-term effects of the smelter after its closedown by combining data on the degree of soil contamination and the quality of the crops grown (agricultural crops and homegrown vegetables) in these soils for a better assessment of the local population’s exposure to Cd, Pb, and Zn. Seven years after the Metaleurop Nord closedown, (1) the agricultural and urban topsoils were strongly contaminated by Cd, Pb, and Zn; (2) the kitchen garden topsoils were even more polluted than the agricultural soils, with great variability in metal concentrations within the gardens studied; (3) a high proportion of the agricultural crops for foodstuffs did not conform with the European legislation; (4) for feedstuffs, most samples did not exceed the Cd and Pb legislation limits, indicating that feedstuffs may be an opportunity for most agricultural produce; and (5) a high proportion of the vegetables produced in the kitchen gardens did not conform with the European foodstuff legislation. The high contamination level of the soils studied continues to be a risk for the environment and the population’s health. A further investigation (part 2) assesses the associated potential health risk for local inhabitants through consumption of homegrown vegetables and ingestion of soil particles by estimating the site-specific human health assessment criteria for Cd and Pb.

Contamination, Fractionation and Availability of Metals in Urban Soils in the Vicinity of Former Lead and Zinc Smelters, France

Abstract Soil contamination by metals from anthropogenic activities (e.g., mining and smelting) is a major concern for the environment and human health. Environmental availability of cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb), zinc (Zn), copper (Cu), and indium (In) in 27 urban soils located around two former Pb and Zn smelters in Northern France were studied by analysing the chemical forms of these metals and evaluating their phytoavailability. These metals were determined using flame or electrothermal absorption atomic spectrometry (FAAS or ETAAS), depending on their concentration levels. After optimisation of the ETAAS method, characteristic mass of In in water and aqua regia were 9.9 and 18 pg, respectively, showing the high sensitivity of the analytical procedure. Metal partitioning was conducted using a four-step sequential extraction procedure. The results showed that Cd and Zn were mainly in the acid-extractable and reducible forms in the urban soils studied. In contrast, Pb and In were largely in the reducible fraction. However, in some samples, the amount of In extracted in the residual or exchangeable fraction was higher than that in the reducible fraction. Copper was mainly found in the reducible and residual fractions. A pot experiment was conducted in a glasshouse with seven soils (six contaminated and one uncontaminated) and two plant species, ryegrass and lettuce. The results showed transfer of metals from the contaminated soils to the shoots of ryegrass and the edible part of lettuce. The metal bioconcentration factor was in the order of Cd ≫ Cu > In > Zn ≫ Pb for lettuce leaves, whereas for ryegrass shoots, three orders were found, Cd > Zn > Cu ≫ In > Pb, Cd ≥ In > Zn > Cu ≫ Pb, and Zn > Cd > Cu > In > Pb, depending on the physico-chemical properties of the soils, such as pH, cation exchange capacity, carbonates, and organic matter. It was established that the metal toxicity was related to the contamination levels and the physico-chemical properties, including pH, organic matter, and in a lesser extent, Ca, Mg, and phosphorus contents, of the soils. However, it was shown that lettuce could grow on soils having high Cd and CaCO3 contents. Cadmium was one of the most available metals while Pb was always the least available in the soils studied.

Assessment of a remediation technique using the replacement of contaminated soils in kitchen gardens nearby a former lead smelter in Northern France.

Vegetables cultivated in kitchen gardens that are strongly contaminated by heavy metals (Pb, Cd) may represent to consumers a means of exposure to these metals. This exposure is more problematic for those families that include a large quantity of home-grown vegetables in their diet. Researchers have shown that the majority of vegetables produced in kitchen gardens in the vicinity of the Metaleurop Nord smelter (Northern France) do not conform to European regulations. This study was carried out in three of these kitchen gardens. The concentrations of Cd and Pb in the topsoils were up to 24 and 3300 mg kg(-1) respectively. The method consisted of delineating a surface area of about 50 to 100 m(2) for each garden, then removing the contaminated soil and replacing it with a clean one. Seven species of vegetables were cultivated from 2003 to 2005 in the original contaminated soils and the remediated ones. The data showed a clear improvement of the quality of the vegetables cultivated in remediated soils, although 17% of them were still over the European legislative limits for foodstuffs. This suggested that there was a foliar contamination due to contaminated dust fallout coming from the closed smelter site and the adjacent polluted soils. In addition, the measurement of the Cd and Pb concentrations in the dust fallout showed that the substantial rise in metal concentrations in the remediated soil was not only due to atmospheric fallout. These results raise questions about possible technical, economic and sociological problems associated with this kind of remediation.

Factors affecting trace element concentrations in soils developed on recent marine deposits from northern France

Total concentrations of 18 trace and 2 major elements (Al, Fe) as well as physico-chemical characteristics (texture, organic C, pH, CaCO 3 , CEC) were measured in cultivated soil samples (fraction <2 mm) from 23 surface and 38 deeper horizons developed in recent marine deposits. Correlations between trace element contents and other soil parameters were compared in order to reveal those soil factors affecting the trace element distributions. Whatever the horizon type, Co, Cr, In, Ni and V are almost exclusively associated with the fine (<20 μm) mineral fraction and do not show a direct association with organic matter. Bismuth, Sn, Tl and Zn also show a close association with the fine mineral fraction of the deep horizons, but seem to be partly associated with organic matter in the ploughed horizons. In the deep horizons, the association of Cd, Cu and Pb with the fine mineral fraction is clearly less close, while these elements appear to be associated with organic matter in the ploughed horizons. The Mn content increases with that of the fine mineral fraction up to a certain point. Arsenic, Mo and Sb contents are poorly correlated with the fine solid phase of the deep horizons. The distribution of Hg does not appear to be associated with any specific soil component. The ploughed horizons are highly enriched with Pb, Cu, Cd, Hg and Se (+ 84% to + 225%) and moderately enriched with Tl, Mn, Sb, Bi, Sn and Zn (+ 7% to + 48%). There is no surface enrichment of As, Co, Cr, In, Mo, Ni and V. It is possible to model most of the trace element distributions with pedotransfer functions of the physico-chemical characteristics.

Sustainability of an in situ aided phytostabilisation on highly contaminated soils using fly ashes: Effects on the vertical distribution of physicochemical parameters and trace elements

Aided phytostabilisation using trees and fly ashes is a promising technique which has shown its effectiveness in the management of highly metal-contaminated soils. However, this success is generally established based on topsoil physicochemical analysis and short-term experiments. This paper focuses on the long-term effects of the afforestation and two fly ashes (silico-aluminous and sulfo-calcic called FA1 and FA2, respectively) by assessing the integrity of fly ashes 10 years after their incorporation into the soil as well as the vertical distribution of the physicochemical parameters and trace elements (TEs) in the amended soils (F1 and F2) in comparison with a non-amended soil (R). Ten years after the soil treatment, the particle size distribution analysis between fly ashes and their corresponding masses (fly ash + soil particles) showed a loss or an agglomeration of finer particles. This evolution matches with the appearance of gypsum (CaSO4 2H2O) in FA2m instead of anhydrite (CaSO4), which is the major compound of FA2. This finding corresponds well with the dissolution and the lixiviation of Ca, S and P included in FA2 along the F2 soil profile, generating an accumulation of these elements at 30 cm depth. However, no variation of TE contamination was found between 0 and 25 cm depth in F2 soil except for Cd. Conversely, Cd, Pb, Zn and Hg enrichment was observed at 25 cm depth in the F1 soil, whereas no enrichment was observed for As. The fly ashes studied, and notably FA2, were able to reduce Cd, Pb and Zn availability in soil and this capacity persists over the time despite their structural and chemical changes.