Soil heavy metal contamination and risk assessment around the Fenhe Reservoir, China.

Heavy metal contamination in the soil around a water source is a particularly serious issue, because these heavy metals can be transferred into the water source and can pose significant human health risks through the contamination of drinking water or farmland irrigation water. In this paper, we collected surface soil samples from the area surrounding the Fenhe Reservoir. The concentrations of As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, and Zn were determined and the potential ecological risks posed by the heavy metals were quantitatively evaluated. The primary inputs for As, Ni, and Zn were natural sources, whereas the other elements were derived from mainly anthropogenic sources. Hg displays more serious environmental impacts than the other heavy metals. The upper reaches of the reservoir, located in the northwest, display a higher potential ecological risk.