Trace Metals In Environment

Trace metals those available in little quantity in environment. Trace metals in coastal environments, are resulting from three key sources

(i) The contiguous watershed,

(ii) The offshore marine environment, and

(iii) Industrial and/or urban runoffs (Jones and Jordan, 1979).

The Acid leachable trace metals are (Fe, Ni, Pb, Mn, Zn, Cu,Cr) the fraction easily available in the environment absorbed by biota. Metals which are representing the least mobile form they are entrapped in crystal structure of minerals in residual fraction (Miretzky et al. 2011).

The heavy metals atmospheric cycle has been mostly reliant on climate throughout pre-industrial period. These trace metals are not biodegradable and go through a global ecological cycle. Many

Toxicity depends not only on the level of the trace metal in the environment, but also where it is found in the environment (water, soil or air), the source, how acidic the environment is in the area of interest, and whether the metal exists by itself or as part of larger chemical compounds. In the North, we are most often concerned about trace metals in areas with mining, especially when there are old, abandoned mines with tailings that have leaked into lakes or streams. At the time that many of these older mines were operating, there were not many regulations about how to store and discharge tailings, so there was often pollution of local lakes and streams. Because these lakes and streams have often also become acidic due to the mine pollution, trace metals can become a problem and have toxic effects on local fish and

Hence valuation of trace metal enrichment in sediments on the acid leachable (non-residual) elements is of major interest, as it often yields more data on the level of trace metal augmentation than the total sediments, which include the residual or non-residual fraction, and so may mark the relationships required. Down core variations in sediment cores reflect the geochemical history of a given region, including any anthropogenic impact (Szefer and Skwarzec,