Investigation of trace element sources from an industrialized area (Avilés, northern Spain) using multivariate statistical methods.

In the industrialized urban area of Avilés (Spain), pooled soil samples from grassland sites were taken after careful sampling design and then investigated for their content of trace elements. A combination of statistic and geostatistic techniques proved to be a reliable tool in the interpretation of the analytical results. Geochemical groups and areas influenced mainly by anthropogenic activities were distinguished by means of classic multivariate methods (factor analysis and cluster analysis) and innovative geostatistical tools (Fourier spectral analysis). The constitution of the groups is supported by the linked results of methods sequentially distributed in order to extract as much information as possible from the original data.