Risk assessment of trace elements distribution in soils of basaltic aquifers, southern Maharashtra, India

Abstract

An assessment of soil vulnerability was evaluated in Mann Ganga River basin, within the districts of Satara, Sangli and Solapur in Deccan Volcanic Province (DVP), to ascertain the concentration and the likely source of origin of the trace element concentration of metals such as Cobalt, Chromium, Copper, Nickel, Zinc, Vanadium, Iron and Manganese. Eighty soil samples were collected during December 2016 and examined by X-ray fluorescence spectrometer. The soil fitness was estimated using several risk assessment indices viz. geoaccumulation, enrichment factor and contamination factor. In order to delineate the probable sources of different trace elements, Pearson correlation coefficient analysis and multivariate analysis (principal component analysis) was also performed. The average concentration levels of Copper, Zinc, Iron and Manganese are exceeding the natural background limit. The risk assessment indices of trace elements Copper and Vanadium reveal moderate to significant contamination. These high indices level are probably due to geogenic, industrial and agricultural activities and other anthropogenic inputs. Significant linkage between the elements Cobalt, Copper, Zinc, Vanadium, Iron and Manganese is revealed through Pearson correlation coefficient and principal component analysis. The enhanced trace elements pollution in top soil is therefore a critical problem which can have hazardous bearing on flora, fauna and human life, and needs to be monitored recurrently for such enrichments of toxic elements in order to safeguard the environment.