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Journal of Environmental Hydrology
ISSN 1058-3912 |
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Electronic Journal of the International Association for
Environmental Hydrology
JEH Volume 17 (2009), Paper 29 Posted October 26, 2009 EVALUATING CHEMICAL POLLUTION ON THE COAST OF LEBANON: LEAD AND CADMIUM CONTENT IN SEDIMENTS
Nadine Nassif ABSTRACT Being of a toxic nature, lead and cadmium present a high risk for both marine ecology and human life. Studying the concentration of these elements in marine sediments serves to raise awareness about their threat. In this study, samples from selected localities were collected from different sediment layers and at different depths of seawater. These localities, namely Beirut, Jounieh, and Batroun, represent major cities with intensive human activities. The analysis was designed to detect the effect of sediment layers, depths, and location on the concentration of heavy metals. Results show that different layers in Batroun contain varied lead and cadmium concentrations at the same water depth. However, in Jounieh, the concentrations varied in relation to water depth and are not influenced by the sequence of sediment layers. In Beirut, the concentration of lead varies with depth, but the concentration of cadmium is not affected by the depth of water or even by the sequence of layers. As an empirical result, and compared to French tolerable concentration limits, the lead and cadmium concentrations in Lebanon are within normal limits. This conflicts with the expectation regarding heavy metals in sediments along the littoral zone at major Lebanese cities. Reference: Nassif, N., and M. Hatab. 2009. Evaluating chemical pollution on the coast of Lebanon: lead and cadmium content in sediments. Journal of Environmental Hydrology, Vol. 17, Paper 29. CONTACT: Nadine Nassif Faculty of Agriculture Department of Environment Lebanese University Beirut, Lebanon E-mail: nadinenassif3@hotmail.com |
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