The status of heavy metal levels in a Ramsar Site, Kuala Gula Bird Sanctuary: the impact of the anthropogenic inputs.

• Main Authors: R.M., Lomoljo, Ismail, Ahmad, Yap, Chee Kong, Ismail, Abdul Rahim
• Format: Article
• Language: English; English
• Published: Taylor & Francis 2010
• Online Access: http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/17343/1/The%20status%20of%20heavy%20metal%20levels%20in%20a%20Ramsar%20Site.pdf; http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/17343/

Distributions of Cd, Cu, Pb, and Zn in the surface sediments from two sites of the Kuala Gula Bird Sanctuary, Malaysia were monitored for a period of 6 months from October 2006 to March 2007. In December 2006, the concentration of Zn in one location was significantly ( p50.05) higher (3.91.3 mgkg1) than the other metals at both sites, but in the oxidizable organic fraction it was highest at both sites during October; with mean concentrations of 18mg kg1 at both locations. In the acid-reducible fraction, high concentrations of Pb (2.3 mg kg1) were detected at station 2 in February 2007, being highest among all four metals at both stations. The acid-reducible fraction found in Pb ranged from 0.10% to 3.1% in both stations. Percentages ranging from 51% to 96% were observed for all four metals in the resistant fraction throughout the sampling period. These results indicate low contributions from anthropogenic sources. The findings constitute a baseline data archive for future reference.