Heavy metals of Santiago Island (Cape Verde) top soils: estimated background value maps and environmental risk assessment

In this work we present maps of estimates of background values of some harmful metals (As, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Hg, Mn, Ni, Pb, V, and Zn) in the soils of Santiago Island, Cape Verde, analyse their relationships with the geological cartography, and assess their environmental risks. The geochemical survey (soil sampling at a spatial resolution of 3 sites per 10 km2, sample preparation, geochemical analysis, data treatment, and mapping) was conducted following the guidelines proposed by the International Projects IGCP 259 and IGCP 360. The concentration of the selected elements was determined in the fraction <2 mm. Each sample was digested with aqua regia and analysed by ICP-MS. The Estimated Background Value spatial distributions of the studied metals are found to be strongly linked to the geological cartography. These links are identified by a direct comparison of the geochemical maps with the geological cartography, and confirmed by either simple statistics and a Principal Component Analysis. The metals with higher loadings in the first Principal Component, Ni, Cr, Co, Cu, and V, clearly show the influence of a lithology rich in siderophile elements, typical of basic rocks and of its related minerals. The elements with higher loadings in the second Principal Component, Mn, Zn, Pb, As, Hg, and Cd, are chalcophile elements, except for Mn, but an anthropogenic contamination for these elements cannot be discarded. We propose an index to numerically access the environmental risk of one element, which we denominate by Environmental Risk Index, and a Multi-element Index which is simply the average taken over all elements. The occurrence of values greater than 1 in the maps of the Environmental Risk Index shows where the content of the respective element is above the permissible levels according to the available legislation for agricultural and residential purposes. The same applies to the multi-element risk index maps. High values of these risk indices are found, both for agricultural and residential purposes, for Co, Cr, Ni, Cu, and V. These metals are precisely those with higher loadings in PC1, which are demonstrated to be of natural origin in Santiago. This behaviour is also shown in the Multi-element Environmental Risk maps computed with these five metals. The high natural concentration levels of heavy metals at some areas of Santiago should be of concern not only to scientists but also to policymakers. To further evaluate the environmental risks associated with the presence of these metals, their bioavailability should be assessed in future works.