| dc.description | An investigation was conducted to study the baseline levels of Ba, Cd, Cu, Cr, Ni, Pb,
Sr, V and Zn (aqua regia-extractable) based on 51 representative soils of the Torrelles and Sant
Climent Municipal Districts (Catalonia, Spain). The baseline concentrations of those elements were
(mg kg−1): Ba 73.9–617.9, Cr 9.2–120.2, Cu 4.0–111.6, Ni 6.1–118.6, Pb 5.6–217.5, Sr 19.6–128.8,
V 12.1–101.2, and Zn 16.8–326.8, respectively.
Forty-nine samples were reported as having less than the 0.67 mg kg−1 detection limit for cadmiun
and were therefore not useful for baseline determination; however, these results suggest that the
baseline average is probably below 0.67 mg kg−1.
Upper baseline values for most of the elements corresponded with those reported in the literature,
except for Pb and Zn, which were two to four times greater.
Soil properties, including clay fraction, OC, CEC and pHw were related to metal concentration
using correlation and factorial analysis. R-mode factor analysis separates the soil analysis data into
three factors. These factors explain 67.3% of the total variance, suggesting that metal concentration
was controlled by soil composition. | |
