Ecological risk assessment of the riverine and deltaic environments (Rozechai River, Urmia Lake, Iran), using sediment quality indices

Rozechai River is one of the tributaries of Urmia Lake (the nrthwest of Iran), which has experienced severe pollution and water level fluctuations in the coastal zone over the past four decades. The present study aimed to assess the ecological risk for aquatic life and human health. Research methods were designed for applying the sediment quality guidelines (LEL, PEL, SEL), sediment quality indices ( C f , C d , E r , RI ), and enrichment factor ( EF ) based on the concentration of toxic metals in sediments. Event-based geochronology of the sediment column showed that the high stands in the water level of the Urmia Lake (> 1274 m) occurred in 1983, 1989, and 1995. Thus, As, Pb, Zn, Cd, Cr, and Ni reached a moderate to considerable enrichment under the oxidation and alkaline condition. Consequently, a moderated level of ecological risk index ( RI ) was predominant between 1983 and 1999. The uppermost 35 cm of the sediment column was deposited during a severe drought period to which H 2 S bearing water and reducing status contributed. In such conditions, the low ecological risk was resulted in the basin due to the lower rate of the toxic metal influx. The industrial, urban, and agricultural wastewaters contributed to the release of toxic metals and the dominance of moderate to considerable enrichment, which led to a moderate ecological risk at the coastal zone of the Rozechai River. The sediment column of the deltaic area has experienced a mean sedimentation rate of 1.66 cm year −1 since 1982.