Five years after the collapse of the Fundão Dam: lessons from temporal monitoring of chemistry and acute toxicity.

In November 2015, the Fundão Dam break released millions of tons of metal-rich tailings into the Doce River Basin (DRB), causing catastrophic damage and potential ecological effects that reached the Atlantic Ocean. This study aimed to evaluate the geochemistry and toxicity of water and sediments collected in the DRB from 2015 to 2019 and to determine the spatial and temporal trends. Water and sediment samples were analyzed for metals and As by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES), and acute toxicity for Daphnia similis or D. magna. Results were explored using geochemical indices and correlation analyzes. Overall, higher concentrations of metals and As in water and sediments were observed immediately after dam breakage, but the levels exhibited a decreasing trend over time, although the levels of some elements such as As and Mn remained high in the upper DRB. The geochemical indices indicated mostly low to moderate contamination, and the enrichment factor (EF) demonstrated a higher enrichment of Mn in the upper DRB. Acute toxicity to water fleas (D. similis and D. magna) was occasionally observed in waters and sediments, but the reference samples were toxic, and the short-term effects were not correlated with metals and As. Overall, the results showed limited bioavailability of metals and As and a decreasing trend in their concentrations, indicating an ongoing recovery process in DRB. These results are important to decision-making regarding the disaster and actions for environmental restoration.

Spatial-temporal variations of metals and arsenic in sediments from the Doce River after the Fundão Dam rupture and their bioaccumulation in Corbicula fluminea.

The rupture of the Fundão dam in Brazil released tons of mining tailings into the Doce River Basin (DRB). This investigation aimed to determine the bioaccumulation of metals in soft tissues of the bivalve Corbicula fluminea exposed to sediments collected in the DRB in four periods (just after, 1, 3, and 3.5 years after the dam rupture). In the exposure bioassays, the concentrations of Al, As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Zn in sediments and bivalve soft tissues were quantified. The concentration of some elements (As, Cd, Mn, and Al) in sediments exceeded the federal limits or regional backgrounds at some sampling sites, but their concentrations tended to decrease over time. However, higher concentrations of many elements were detected in the winter of 2019. Several elements were detected in C. fluminea soft tissues, but the bioaccumulation factors were generally low or not related to those elements associated with the ore tailings, evidencing that the bioavailability of metals to bivalves, in laboratory conditions, was limited. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2024;20:87-98. © 2023 SETAC.

Benthic foraminifera as proxies for assessing the effects of a pier marina construction: A case study in the naturally stressed environment of the Saco da Ribeira (Flamengo Bay, SE Brazil).

Brazilian coastal areas have been exposed to various anthropic influences including physical alteration such as marina construction. To assess the impact of the pier marina construction in the Saco da Ribeira cove (Flamengo Bay, SE Brazil), sedimentological (grain size), geochemical (organic and trace elements) parameters and benthic foraminifera were analyzed on a 50-cm-long dated sediment core covering the last century. The multiproxy approach applied to a numerical hydrodynamic model shows that the circulation in the study area underwent an overall reduction (ca. 30 %) after the pier marina construction in the 1970s, promoting an increase of mud accumulation and higher concentrations of total organic carbon and trace elements (i.e., Enrichment Factor Cu from 0.80 to 1.4) as well as a shift in the benthic foraminiferal assemblages (i.e., foraminiferal density from 63 to 23.20 specimens per 10 cm3 and dominance from 0.13 to 0.73). On the basis of these integrated data, better environmental conditions occurred before the 1970s, then an overall increase in environmental stress took place after the pier's marina construction. Our results provide a baseline for future biomonitoring projects in a stressed region and exemplify the strong capability and reliability of benthic foraminifera as bioindicators of paleoenvironmental changes in coastal environments and for understanding how human pressure might induce such changes.

Spatial distribution of arsenic and metals suggest a high ecotoxicological potential in Puno Bay, Lake Titicaca, Peru.

Spatial distribution and interpolation methods provide a summarized overview about the pollution dispersion, concerning the environment's quality. A high-altitude lake was taken as a model to assess the metalloid As and metals Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, Zn distribution in superficial sediment and classify them according to their ecotoxicological potential in the aquatic environment. Surface sediments were collected from 11 sites along Puno Bay located at the western area of Lake Titicaca, Peru, and analyzed for pseudo total-metals. Sediment concentration data and quality were plotted using the Inverse Distance Weighting (IDW) as an interpolation method. High concentrations of As were found especially in the outer bay (81.73 mg.kg-1). Spatial heterogeneity was evidenced for metal by the coefficient of variation, although no significative differences were observed between the two bays applying a Kruskall Wallis test (p < 0.05, df = 1). Sediment quality classification showed that most metal values were below TEL and toxicity was unlikely to occur, only As exceeded threefold PEL values, which categorized sediment as "Very Bad", indicating a rather high ecotoxicological potential to the aquatic environment. In conclusion, spatial analysis connected to interpolation methods demonstrated the superficial sediment heterogeneity in Puno Bay.

Historical mercury contamination in a major Latin American industrial and port complex: The case of the Santos estuary, Southeastern Brazil.

The present study determined total mercury (Hg) in four 210Pb dated sediment cores to assess the historical anthropogenic Hg accumulation in the Santos estuary, Southeastern Brazil. Background levels were identified using the deepest sections of the cores, corresponding to pre-industrial ages. Mercury distribution in the sediment cores (0.02-2.64 mg kg-1) presented a large spatial and temporal variation. Contamination is highest in the upper estuary and indicates that the industrial hub, especially a chlor-alkali plant is the primary source of Hg. A contaminant trap effect is observed in this area associated with high fine sediment accumulation and Hg fluxes. The contamination pattern indicates that the regions not affected by direct inputs are influenced by reworking, resuspension, and transport of contaminated sediments by tidal flows. The Hg enrichment in the upper layers of the sediment cores demonstrates that the environmental actions fulfilled in the 1980s were insufficient to control Hg pollution in the Santos estuary.

Trace element fluxes during the "Anthropocene" in a large South American industrial and port area (Santos and São Vicente estuarine system, SE, Brazil).

The worldwide evidence of human activities on the environment led the scientific community to recognize a new geologic time unit known as the "Anthropocene." Since the twentieth century, urbanization and industrialization needs driven by population and economic growth have impacted several ecosystems including the estuaries. To assess the contamination, provenance, and fluxes of trace elements (As, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, Sc, V, and Zn) over the last century, a geochemical and chemometric technique was employed in sediment cores of an industrial and port region of international importance, the Santos and São Vicente Estuarine System (SSVES). The results indicated low contamination, with the highest enrichment factors (EFs) for Cu (EF = 3.1), Pb (EF = 2.7), Zn (EF = 2.4), and As (EF = 2.3) found next to the harbor area. The Pre-industrial records confirm the relatively high concentrations of As and its naturally enriched occurrence on the Brazilian shelf. Sediment accumulation rates and trace element fluxes showed a general increase over the years, since the early 1960s, associated with the "Great Acceleration" of the mid-twentieth century. These alterations are human-induced and include urbanization and industrialization. Nonetheless, as the contents and enrichment of trace elements indicate that the region is not severely polluted, we hypothesize that the contamination in the SSVES is likely related to the drainage and erosion of the urbanized adjacent area, rather than direct disposal of inorganic contaminants from the industrial activity.

Insights into leaded gasoline registered in mud depocenters derived from multivariate statistical tool: southeastern Brazilian coast.

Lead has been widely used since antiquity, but its uses drastically increased during the Industrial Revolution. The global emission of Pb into the environment was mainly due to tetraethyl lead added to gasoline as an antiknock additive. Because of its toxicity and neurological effects, the compound was phased out in the 1980s. Isotopic signatures are widely applied to differentiate sources of Pb; however, this is an expensive and sophisticated analysis compared to elemental analysis. Thus, this study aims to gain insight into leaded gasoline registered in mud depocenters from the southeastern Brazilian coast using multivariate statistical tools on elemental analysis data of trace elements. Seven multiple cores were collected on board the Research Vessel Alpha Crucis. Al, As, Ba, Ca, Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Ni, P, Pb, Sc, Sr, V and Zn were analyzed by acid digestion and quantified by ICP-OES. Levels and enrichment factors of Pb resulted in homogeneous columns, indicating that small variations in concentrations can be attributed to grain size differences, not presenting contaminated levels. From statistical results, the highest contribution on the first component was represented by a lithogenic source with the leaching of continental rocks. Lead content was notable in its high loadings in other components, which suggests atmospheric deposition. An increase in these components in subsurface samples from vertical profiles between 1935 and 1996 could represent a fingerprint of the consumption of leaded gasoline in Brazil between 1923 and 1989. Thus, statistical analysis of elemental data enabled to infer possible sources and pathways of Pb to the environment, without isotopic analysis.

Organic contaminants and trace metals in the western South Atlantic upper continental margin: Anthropogenic influence on mud depocenters.

Trace metals, dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane (DDTs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were quantified in surface sediments from mud depocenters located in the western South Atlantic upper continental margin. There was no anthropogenic trace metal pollution observed, and the higher As values were attributed to high CaCO3 content in the area. The results indicate PCB sources associated with long-range atmospheric transport in addition to past DDT use for agriculture and pest control. PAHs were mainly originated from biomass and fossil fuel combustion, and their distribution is in alignment with the riverine runoff influence in southern region, which is transported towards the northern regions by coastal currents. Higher concentrations of 2-3 ring PAHs and DDTs in shallow and northern stations indicate a coastal influence. This work presents baseline information on the extent of anthropogenic influence in mud depocenters located in the western South Atlantic upper continental margin, showing these locations as potential source to sink of anthropogenic contaminants.

A multivariate approach and sediment quality index evaluation applied to Baixada Santista, Southeastern Brazil.

Current studies use indices and chemometric approaches to assess the health quality of estuarine systems to support estuarine management. This study aims to use a multivariate approach and a set of indices to evaluate sediment health quality. Levels of Al, As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, Ni, Pb, Sc, V, and Zn were quantified by ICP-OES, and nine indices were applied and evaluated individually. Most of the indices presented high values of Cu, Pb, and Zn, and the aggregative indices differed from each other in magnitude; however, the spatial distribution demonstrated the same trends. From PCA results, it was possible to differentiate lithogenic from the anthropogenic contribution, especially by Cu, Pb, and Zn. Thus, the integration of geochemical approaches and chemometric tools supported the interpretation of elemental contribution in terms of sources and pathway of heavy metals, which was similar to the results of other studies conducted in the area.

Critical evaluation of different methods to calculate the Geoaccumulation Index for environmental studies: A new approach for Baixada Santista - Southeastern Brazil.

Although the Igeo is widely used in heavy metal contamination studies, its application differs in each study in terms of the mathematical equation used, the chosen background, and whether the fine fraction or whole sediment matrix is used. This study aims to assess these different methods, propose a new equation to calculate this index and use the index to evaluate the environmental quality of Baixada Santista. The levels of heavy metals were quantified in fifty sediment samples using both in the whole sediment sample and only in the fine fraction. The index was calculated in both fractions and in the normalized levels. Using the fine fraction of the sample was more suitable to the classification. The ratio of the levels in the whole sediment to the fine content did not present a significant statistical difference compared to the levels obtained from the fine fraction. Based on this study, a new equation is proposed for use in future environmental studies.

Use of a chemometric tool to establish the regional background and assess trace metal enrichment at Baixada Santista - southeastern Brazil.

The trace metals in sediments consist of two components, anthropogenic and lithogenic or natural, which can cause misinterpretations for what actually exists in sediments. Normally, to investigate trace metal background levels, indices are applied in order to normalize the values and reduce natural variability, but it is well known that using the average shale or crust content is not the best choice and vertical sediment profiles are not always available. The purpose of this study is to use a prediction interval to assess metal enrichment without a reference level and to assess a regional background level using the same tool. The levels of eight elements were submitted to a partial digestion technique and analyzed by ICP-OES. The enrichment factor results suggested that using background values from the prediction interval and using values from vertical sediment profiles yield statistically similar results. Furthermore, the background equations present more realistic data than other methods because they consider the mud content of the samples. Thus, a prediction interval can be a useful tool to establish a regional background and assess trace metal enrichment.

Spatial distribution and enrichment assessment of heavy metals in surface sediments from Baixada Santista, Southeastern Brazil.

The Baixada Santista, besides being an important estuarine system, is responsible for most of the international trade and economic development in the region because of the Santos Port and the Cubatão Industrial Complex. The aim of this study is to assess heavy metal contamination of the Santos São Vicente Estuary using enrichment factors (EFs) and sediment quality guidelines (SQGs). Thus, superficial sediment samples were subjected to acid digestion and analyzed (Al, As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb, Sc, V, and Zn) by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES). The results indicated an absence of contamination, with the EFs indicating moderate enrichment. As and Pb presented higher enrichment probably due to the natural processes of weathering and sedimentation, and the influence of human activity. This conjoint analysis showed that potentially polluting activities are of concern as the highest values converge near the Cubatão Industrial Complex, which correspond to intense urbanization and industrial activity.