EVALUATION OF SEDIMENT QUALITY ALONG THE RIVER OF BALOK MANGROVE FOREST, KUANTAN, PAHANG, MALAYSIA

Abstract

In the modern world, water has been a serious threat including heavy metals contamination. Certain heavy metals can be hazardous when accumulated and can travel through several routes to reach different parts of the body. A field study has been conducted to determine the heavy metals and selected nutrients content in sediment collected along the river of mangrove area located in Balok River, Kuantan, Pahang. A total of 10 sediment samples were collected and analysed for pH, total organic carbon (TOC), heavy metals mainly Zn and Cu) and selected available nutrients particularly Ca, Mg, and K using atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS). Sediment samples were digested with aqua regia acids prior to the analysis. To assess the level of contamination, heavy metals results were compared to the average continental shale level and assessment through Geoaccumulation Index (Igeo) value. The soil pH ranges from neutral to slightly acidic and the TOC showed a comparable value with other studies. The average concentration of Zn and Cu were 152.985 ± 36.93 ppm and 31.125 ± 15 ppm, respectively. The average concentration of nutrients element, Ca, Mg, and K were 239.1 ± 147.04, 587.9 ± 326.87 and 176.891 ± 178.76 ppm. The Cu was categorized as uncontaminated and Zn were in the category 1, range from uncontaminated to moderately contaminated. Hence, findings of this study may suggest that Balok mangrove river is contaminated by Zn element.
Keywords: Soil, Heavy Metals, River, Contamination