ACCUMULATION AND BEHAVIOR OF SOME HEAVY METALS IN THE MAIN COMPONENTS OF ZINAV LAKE BASIN ECOSYSTEM

Abstract

Effects of Pb, Cu, Zn, Fe, Co, Al, and Cd on the ecosystem of Zinav Lake Basin in Turkey were investigated between 2011 and 2013. The ecosystem was handled in seven main components including fish, macrophyte, sediment, water, benthos, plankton, and soil. Heavy metal contents of the main components were determined by using Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometer (ICP-MS) and field samples. Relationships among the heavy metal contents of ecosystem components were investigated by using correlation (Pearson) analysis. Hierarchical Clustering Analysis (RCA) was applied to delineate the similar subgroups of ecosystem components according to their heavy metal contents. Fe, Al and Zn were found maximum and Cd was found minimum in almost all ecosystem components except plankton. The accumulation order of heavy metal levels was found as soil > sediment > macrophyte > fish = benthos > water > plankton (except Fe). Al, Co, Cu, Fe, and Zn behave similar in the ecosystem. However, Pb and Cd did not show any similarities neither to each other nor to the others.