ABSTRACT
Surface water quality is largely influenced by both
natural processes and anthropogenic inputs. This study involves the
characterization of the concentration of heavy metals of Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn,
Ni, Pb, and Zn, and the sources of pollution in water and sediment of the Upper
Litani River Basin (ULRB) in Lebanon. The
investigation was performed during three seasons of rainy, mid-rainy
spring and wet periods for two years during different flow rates. Sediments
were characterized by a set of chemical analyses, cation exchange capacity
(CEC), mineralogy of the sediments, X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Fourier
transformed infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). To assess metal contamination in sediment, Consensus-Based Sediment
Quality Guidelines of Wisconsin (CBSQG) were applied. The metals
contamination in the sediments was also evaluated by contamination factor (Cf).
The test results showed that the effect of seasonal variations was significant
in the Upper Litani River Basin. Principal
Compound Analysis (PCA) and Pearson’s correlation were also performed in
this study to compare and determine the correlation between metals in water and
sediments. The concentrations of Pb, Cd, Cu, Cr and Zn in all sediment samples
are above the norms in winter, while Fe was increased in summer. The results
showed that the importance of monitoring of changes of heavy metals values and
physico-chemical characterization of different parameters could represent the
possibility of a comprehensive assessment of negative pressures on the water
and soil ecosystem of Litani River Basin during different seasons.
Share and Cite:
Haydar, C. , Tarawneh, K. , Nehme, N. , Amaireh, M. , Yaacoub, A. and Diab, W. (2022) Heavy Metals Content in Water and Sediments in the Upper Litani River Basin, Lebanon.
Journal of Geoscience and Environment Protection,
10, 139-158. doi:
10.4236/gep.2022.107010.