Open AccessAssessment of tea garden soils at An'xi County in southeast China reveals a mild threat from contamination of potentially harmful elements
Author(s) -
Hai–Lei Cao,
Feng–Ying Cai,
Wen-Bin Jiao,
Cheng Liu,
Ning Zhang,
Haiyuan Qiu,
Christopher Rensing,
Jian Lü
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
royal society open science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.84
H-Index - 51
ISSN - 2054-5703
DOI - 10.1098/rsos.180050
Subject(s) - camellia sinensis , soil water , tea garden , environmental science , china , contamination , organic matter , spatial distribution , geography , environmental chemistry , ecology , toxicology , environmental protection , soil science , biology , chemistry , botany , archaeology , remote sensing
An extensive study of the spatial distribution characteristics of potentially harmful elements (PHEs) in tea ( Camellia sinensis (L.) O. Kuntze) garden soils and ecological risk assessment at An'xi County, the birthplace of oolong tea in China, was implemented. A total of 78 soil samples were examined to determine the concentration of five PHEs (As, Cd, Cr, Hg and Pb), soil organic matter and pH by using geostatistical approaches combined with geographical information system analysis. All PHEs presented in the study area were slightly higher than their background values for provincial and national standards except Cr. Moreover, ecological risk assessment of PHEs in the tea garden soils at An'xi County was performed by means of the Håkanson method. The average ecological potential risk index ( E r ) of the five PHEs followed a descending order of Cd > Hg > Pb > As > Cr, and suggested a moderate ecological risk in the study area.