IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v17y2025i4p1569-d1590916.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Spatial Distribution Characteristics, Source Tracing with Cadmium Isotopes, and a Risk Assessment of Heavy Metals in Soils in the Metal Mining Area of the Qinling Mountains, Central China

Author

Listed:
  • Juan Feng

    (Shaanxi Experimental Center of Geological Survey, Shaanxi Institute of Geological Survey, Xi’an 710065, China)

  • Hao Ai

    (Shaanxi Experimental Center of Geological Survey, Shaanxi Institute of Geological Survey, Xi’an 710065, China
    China-Central Asia Belt and Road Joint Laboratory on Human and Environment Research, Xi’an 710000, China)

  • Hua Li

    (Shaanxi Experimental Center of Geological Survey, Shaanxi Institute of Geological Survey, Xi’an 710065, China)

  • Runfeng Lu

    (Shaanxi Experimental Center of Geological Survey, Shaanxi Institute of Geological Survey, Xi’an 710065, China)

  • Xing Cheng

    (Shaanxi Experimental Center of Geological Survey, Shaanxi Institute of Geological Survey, Xi’an 710065, China)

  • Qingmin Chen

    (Shaanxi Experimental Center of Geological Survey, Shaanxi Institute of Geological Survey, Xi’an 710065, China)

Abstract

The Qinling Mountains in central China are rich in polymetallic mineralizations (e.g., Pb-Zn-Au deposits), and historic mining has resulted in large amounts of heavy metals being released into the environment. Thus, it is important to evaluate the ecological risk triggered by historic mining at this location. In this work, a gold mine was investigated as a case study to better understand the health risks present in the Qinling Mountains. To address this issue, a total of 84 soil samples and 23 surface water samples were collected from the gold mining district. Major and trace elements in soils, coupled with the pH and SO 4 −2 contents in water samples, were analyzed. The multivariate statistical analysis shows that human activities were found to have a significant impact on the levels of heavy metals (e.g., As, Hg, and Cd), pH, and SO 4 −2 in the soil within the study area, and the coefficient of variation for all indicators falls within a medium to high range (0.20–2.73). The maximum concentration of Cd can reach as high as 3005 mg·kg −1 . The spatial distribution of Cd and its isotope signatures indicate that sedimentation ponds and slag piles are the primary sources of high pollution within the study area, with heavy metal concentrations decreasing gradually as they disperse into the surrounding cultivated areas. The present study confirms that Cd and its isotopes can be directly used to track heavy metal sources over a large area (0.8 km 2 ), and the conclusions drawn could be valuable for future restoration and management efforts. Simultaneously, this approach could offer a novel framework for the management of heavy metal contamination in soils at other metal mining sites.

Suggested Citation

  • Juan Feng & Hao Ai & Hua Li & Runfeng Lu & Xing Cheng & Qingmin Chen, 2025. "Spatial Distribution Characteristics, Source Tracing with Cadmium Isotopes, and a Risk Assessment of Heavy Metals in Soils in the Metal Mining Area of the Qinling Mountains, Central China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(4), pages 1-18, February.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:4:p:1569-:d:1590916
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/4/1569/pdf
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/4/1569/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Li Hua & Xue Yang & Yajun Liu & Xiuli Tan & Yong Yang, 2018. "Spatial Distributions, Pollution Assessment, and Qualified Source Apportionment of Soil Heavy Metals in a Typical Mineral Mining City in China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(9), pages 1-16, August.
    2. Pengtao Wang & Guan Huang & Le Chen & Jing Zhao & Xin Fan & Shang Gao & Wenxi Wang & Junping Yan & Kaiyu Li, 2024. "Spatio-Temporal Variations of Soil Conservation Service Supply–Demand Balance in the Qinling Mountains, China," Land, MDPI, vol. 13(10), pages 1-28, October.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Honggang Zang & Yidan Zhang & Junqin Yao & Huiying Ma, 2022. "Source Analysis of Heavy Metal Pollution Using UNMIX and PMF Models in Soils along the Shuimo River in Urumqi, China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(22), pages 1-13, November.
    2. Aman Fang & Jihong Dong & Yingli An, 2019. "Distribution Characteristics and Pollution Assessment of Soil Heavy Metals under Different Land-Use Types in Xuzhou City, China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(7), pages 1-12, March.
    3. Fuyao Chen & Yongjun Yang & Jiaxin Mi & Run Liu & Huping Hou & Shaoliang Zhang, 2019. "Effects of Vegetation Pattern and Spontaneous Succession on Remediation of Potential Toxic Metal-Polluted Soil in Mine Dumps," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(2), pages 1-13, January.
    4. Ran Lyu & Meng Yuan & Xiao Fu & Mingfang Tang & Laiye Qu & Zheng Yin & Gang Wu, 2025. "The Trade-Offs and Constraints of Watershed Ecosystem Services: A Case Study of the West Liao River Basin in China," Land, MDPI, vol. 14(1), pages 1-28, January.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:4:p:1569-:d:1590916. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.