HEAVY METALS INDICIES IN SHATT AL-ARAB RIVER, BASRAH PROVINCE, IRAQ. I: SEDIMENTSMOHSON A. ALHELLO, DOUNIA K. AL-KHUZIE, SALAH M. SALEH, A.A. ALHELLO, H.T. ALSAAD AND W. F. HASSANAbstract In this study, total concentration of nine heavy metals (Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb and Zn) were investigated along different sites of Shatt Al-Arab river in Basra South Iraq by using Atomic absorption. Geo accumulation index (Igeo) and Contamination Factor (CF) and Pollution Load Index (PLI) and Enrichment factor(EF) were computed and compared in different sites of the sediment. Total concentration of metals in sediment samples found to be in this order: Fe > Mn> Ni> Zn> Cu> Pb> Cr> Co> Cd. Igeo results indicated that the sediment strongly to extremely polluted for Cd and the other indexes results showed that the sediment is unpolluted for Pb in all station expect Al-Ashar and Cd were applied to metals also to investigate on Igeo results. The results of the present study showed that the sediment of Shatt Al-Arab is threatened by pollutants related to rivers entering it. So to preserve the environment of the sediment deterioration, the main act is to prevent the discharge of wastewater to rivers entering it. |