Geochemistry of Arsenic in the Huanghe (Yellow River) and Its Delta Region - A Review of Available Data

Water and suspended sediment samples from the Huanghe and its delta region were analyzed to determine arsenic concentrations. Comparison with the data of previous studies and other world pristine and less disturbed rivers reveals high levels of both dissolved and particulate As in this high turbidity river. Relatively stable distribution along the river course and in delta sediment cores shows that antrhopogenic activities have not altered As concentrations by any significant magnitude since the 1940s. Therefore, high levels of As in the Huanghe should be controlled by natural weathering and lithology. In the estuary, biological removal/regeneration and abiotic events (e.g. remobilization) have been identified to cause the active (non-conservative) As distributions. With the limited data set of the present study, the abiotic and biological contributions cannot be assessed accurately, however.