@article{10272/22702,
year = {2023},
month = {10},
url = {https://hdl.handle.net/10272/22702},
abstract = {Estuaries are excellent environments for identifying pollution episodes that have affected
river basins, as their sediments are the final destination of some of the pollutants. This paper
studies the geochemical evolution of five elements (As, Co, Cu, Pb, Zn) in a core extracted from
the middle estuary of the Tinto River (SW Spain). The results are based on facies interpretation,
ICP atomic emission spectrometry analysis, the application of a regional background to obtain the
geoaccumulation index and dating. The main objective of this communication is the detection of
natural or anthropogenic pollution episodes in the middle estuary of the Tinto River (SW Spain).
Four pollution episodes have been detected: (1) ~5.8 cal. kyr BP, probably caused by natural acid
rock drainage processes derived from the oxidation of the Iberian Pyritic Belt deposits found in
its drainage basin; (2) 4.7–4.5 kyr BP, coming from the first mining activities and characterized by
a significant increase in the concentrations of the five elements analyzed; (3) 1850–1960 interval,
coinciding with intensive mining and characterized by increasing values of As and, to a lesser extent,
Pb (intensive mining); and (4) the second half of the 20th century, with high element concentrations
from mining and industrial effluents. All episodes show an increase in their geochemical classes
deduced from the geoaccumulation index. This communication can serve as an example for assessing
the impact of different types of pollution in estuarine environments.},
organization = {This study was mainly financed by the Palos de la Frontera Council. It was also carried
out through the following projects: (a) DGYCIT project CTM2006-06722/MAR; (b) DGYCIT project
CGL2006-01412; (c) Roman cities of the Baetica, CORPVS VRBIVM BAETICARVM (I) (CUB) (Andalusian
Government); (d) From the Atlantic to the Tyrrhenian, the Hispanic ports and their commercial
relations with Ostia Antica, DEATLANTIR II—HAR2017-89154-P (Plan Nacional de I + D + i); and
(e) FEDER 2014–2020 project UHU-1260298. Other funds have come from the Andalusian Government
(groups HUM-132, RNM-238, and RNM-293). It is a contribution to the Research Center in
Historical, Cultural and Natural Heritage (CIPHCN) of the University of Huelva.},
publisher = {MDPI},
title = {Sediments as Sentinels of Pollution Episodes in the Middle Estuary of the Tinto River (SW Spain)},
doi = {10.3390/soilsystems7040095},
author = {Cáceres Puro, Luis Miguel and Ruiz Muñoz, Francisco and Bermejo Meléndez, Javier and Fernández Sutilo, Lucía and González-Regalado Montero, María Luz and Rodríguez Vidal, Joaquín and Abad de los Santos, Manuel and Izquierdo, Tatiana and Toscano Grande, Antonio and Gómez Gutiérrez, Paula and Romero Aguilar, Verónica},
}