Source Identification and Health Risks of Heavy Metals in Huixian Karst Wetland Sediments: A Multi-Model Approach

Source Identification and Health Risks of Heavy Metals in Huixian Karst Wetland Sediments: A Multi-Model Approach | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Source Identification and Health Risks of Heavy Metals in Huixian Karst Wetland Sediments: A Multi-Model Approach Kun Dong, Jiayu Yang, Haixiang Li, Sze-Mun Lam, Jin-Chung Sin, and 2 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-8291708/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Published Journal Publication published 12 Feb, 2026 Read the published version in Environmental Geochemistry and Health → Version 1 posted 4 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Huixian Wetland faces severe heavy metal contamination (particularly Hg and Cd) from industrial, agricultural, and aquaculture activities, yet the widely-used USEPA health risk assessment model fails to capture the long-term bioaccumulation effects critical to understanding ecological risks in this karst wetland ecosystem. This study investigates the influence of anthropogenic activities on heavy metal contamination and bioaccumulation processes in sediments at Huixian Karst Wetland, Guilin, China. we collected 18 sediment points (58 sediment samples) and analyzed the contents of seven heavy metals (As, Hg, Cu, Cr, Ni, Pb, and Zn). Results revealed that the average concentrations of As, Hg, Cu, Cr, Ni, Pb, and Zn were 2.10, 1.54, 1.47, 1.92, 1.94, 2.22, and 3.15 times higher than the background values of Guangxi soils, respectively, with pollution severity ranked as: Zn > Pb > Cr > As > Ni > Hg > Cu. Source apportionment identified three primary pollution sources: (1) traffic-related emissions, contributing significantly to Ni (81.08%), Pb (63.07%), As (48.32%), and Cu (28.87%); (2) industrial activities, contributing to Hg (36.81%) and Cr (25.79%); and (3) mixed anthropogenic activities with natural background sources, contributing minimally to Zn (3.08%) and Cu (2.86%). Health risk assessment indicated non-carcinogenic risk probabilities of 2.8% for adults and 43.1% for children, while unacceptable carcinogenic risk probabilities were 0.03% for adults and 18.5% for children, with As identified as the primary carcinogenic substance. These findings underscore the urgent need for strict control of traffic emissions and agricultural non-point source pollution, enhanced industrial waste management, and regular monitoring with source-specific remediation of key pollutants, particularly As, to ensure regional ecological security and protect resident health. Health risk assessment Wetland sediment Pollution Source Analysis Heavy Metal Pollution Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Supplementary Files SupplementaryMaterialfortheManuscript.docx Cite Share Download PDF Status: Published Journal Publication published 12 Feb, 2026 Read the published version in Environmental Geochemistry and Health → Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Revision requested 08 Dec, 2025 Editor assigned by journal 08 Dec, 2025 Submission checks completed at journal 06 Dec, 2025 First submitted to journal 05 Dec, 2025 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-8291708","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":556870428,"identity":"e98e3a3b-56e1-44c7-809c-ab5ce925e955","order_by":0,"name":"Kun Dong","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Guilin University of Technology","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Kun","middleName":"","lastName":"Dong","suffix":""},{"id":556870433,"identity":"e25a28b1-1b5f-4281-ac7d-c0bcd20df05d","order_by":1,"name":"Jiayu Yang","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Guilin University of 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This study investigates the influence of anthropogenic activities on heavy metal contamination and bioaccumulation processes in sediments at Huixian Karst Wetland, Guilin, China. we collected 18 sediment points (58 sediment samples) and analyzed the contents of seven heavy metals (As, Hg, Cu, Cr, Ni, Pb, and Zn). Results revealed that the average concentrations of As, Hg, Cu, Cr, Ni, Pb, and Zn were 2.10, 1.54, 1.47, 1.92, 1.94, 2.22, and 3.15 times higher than the background values of Guangxi soils, respectively, with pollution severity ranked as: Zn \u003e Pb \u003e Cr \u003e As \u003e Ni \u003e Hg \u003e Cu. Source apportionment identified three primary pollution sources: (1) traffic-related emissions, contributing significantly to Ni (81.08%), Pb (63.07%), As (48.32%), and Cu (28.87%); (2) industrial activities, contributing to Hg (36.81%) and Cr (25.79%); and (3) mixed anthropogenic activities with natural background sources, contributing minimally to Zn (3.08%) and Cu (2.86%). Health risk assessment indicated non-carcinogenic risk probabilities of 2.8% for adults and 43.1% for children, while unacceptable carcinogenic risk probabilities were 0.03% for adults and 18.5% for children, with As identified as the primary carcinogenic substance. 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