Temporal and seasonal variations of As, Cd and Pb atmospheric deposition flux in the vicinity of lead smelters in Jiyuan, China

Atmospheric deposition from non-ferrous mining and smelting is one of the dominant sources of heavy metal pollution in soil. Jiyuan City in Henan Province, China produces about 900 000 tonnes of lead annually. Heavy metal soil contamination and elevated blood lead levels (BLLs) of local children in Jiyuan have been reported. This work investigated As, Cd and Pb deposition fluxes over 17 consecutive months at collection sites about 1000 m from a major lead smelter in Jiyuan. Mean As, Cd and Pb deposition fluxes were 17.2, 3.45 and 88.8 mg/m2/(30 d), respectively, lower values occurred from July to September during the traditional rainy season. Decreasing deposition fluxes of Cd and Pb were observed during the 17 month period, while As increased in the same period. Deposition fluxes of As, Cd and Pb of the sites near the smelter were 22.6, 29.2 and 29.4 times of those of a clean background site (0.762, 0.118 and 3.03 mg/m2/(30 d), respectively) far away from the smelter. Annually, the deposition enriches agricultural soil (0–20 cm plow zone) at the sampling sites with 0.805, 0.161 and 4.16 mg/kg As, Cd and Pb, respectively.