Assessment of Heavy Metal Pollution in Surface Sediment of Mangroves from Selected Locations in Peninsular Malaysia
Research Paper
Assessment of Heavy Metal Pollution in Surface Sediment of Mangroves from Selected Locations in Peninsular Malaysia
Fatin Amalina Binti Hishamudina, Haris Hafizal Abd Hamidb, Narayanan Kannan*c
a University Putra Malaysia, Environmental Studies, Serdang Selangor,43400, Malaysia
c Professor, MD, Smart Green Consultancy Sdn Bhd, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
A B S T R A C T
Mangrove ecosystem in Peninsular Malaysia is endangered from human encroachment, shipping/sportive activities, wood harvesting and industrial pollution. This study was conducted to determine the presence of certain toxic heavy metals such as Chromium (Cr), Manganese (Mn), Arsenic (As), Zinc (Zn) and Lead (Pb) in surface sediments of the mangrove. The sampling locations were carefully selected to represent various types of anthropogenic inputs. The metals concentrations were analyzed using inductively-couple plasma mass spectrometer (ICPMS). The range of metal concentrations was as follows: Cr (14.31 – 132.95) µg/g., Mn (11.34 – 996.04) µg/g., As (7.31 – 138.82) µg/g., Zn (59.33 – 343.56) µg/g. and Pb (27.12 – 151.15) µg/g. These were compared with international guidelines and strikingly, the levels at most sites exceeded the prescribed levels. Compared to previous studies in Malaysia, Mn, Zn and Pb pollution in mangroves increased over the years. The geoaccumulation index revealed that most of the mangrove is strongly polluted with As, unpolluted to moderately polluted with Cr and Mn, moderately polluted with Zn and moderately to strongly polluted with Pb. Therefore, mangrove ecosystems need to be monitored regularly to understand the extent of pollution with increasing population. Finally, this study can be considered as a baseline study on heavy metal pollution in mangrove sediments in Malaysia.
Volume 1, Issue 1 (April-May. 2021)
Accepted 29 August 2021