• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.85-98
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• 2001

This study was conducted to investigate the geochemical factors governing the distribution of heavy metals(Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Zn) in the marine surface sediment samples collected from the Samcheonpo coal-fired power plant. Variations of absolute metal concentrations were related to those in textural and/or carbonate and organic matter content. Most elements, except for Pb, showed generally lower contents compared with the average shale concentration, and the effect of anthropogenic input appeared to be minimal in the sediments. Computations of LF%(labile fraction) and EF(enrichment factor) based on all trace metal data indicated the presence of mineralogical control for Co, Cr, Cu, Ni, and Zn, and anthropogenic contamination for Pb, which needs to be considered in the design of long term monitoring programmes.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.12 no.10
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• pp.1121-1129
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• 2003

We report the distributions of Sb and As in the surface sediment of the Yellow Sea and the coastal areas of Korea. The mean concentrations of Sb and As range from 0.68 ppm to 1.01 ppm and from 7.4 ppm to 15.8 ppm, respectively, and show relatively the high concentrations at the coast of Weolseong in the East Sea for Sb and at the coast of Gadeok Island in the South Sea far As. This may be due to the anthropogenic input of these elements via river and atmosphere from industry complex and agriculture regions around the study areas. Because of the difference of clay to silt proportion, the correlation between silt plus clay contents and Sb, As in the coastal surface sediment of Korea is not shown, the concentrations of Sb and As vary widely for the sample in which the silt plus clay contents are the same. Therefore, we suggest that the distribution patterns of Sb and As in surface sediment of the Yellow Sea and the coastal areas of Korea are mainly controlled by the anthropogenic inputs and the sediment characteristics. On the other hand, the Sb concentrations are lower than those of the lowest effect level which is the standard of judgment for contamination, while the As concentrations are higher than those of the lowest effect level. This implies that the surface sediments of the Yellow Sea and the coastal areas of Korea are considerably contaminated for As.

• Ocean and Polar Research
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.379-389
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• 2007

This paper presents an attempt to determine natural background levels of heavy metals which could be used for assessing heavy metal contamination. For this study, a large archive dataset of heavy metal concentration (Cu, Cr, Ni, Pb, Zn) for more than 900 surface sediment samples from various Korean coastal environments was newly compiled. These data were normalized for aluminum (grain-size normalizer) concentration to isolate natural factors from anthropogenic ones. The normalization was based on the hypothesis that heavy metal concentrations vary consistently with the concentration of aluminum, unless these metals are of anthropogenic origin. So, the samples (outliers) suspected of receivingany anthropogenic input were removed from regression to ascertain the "background" relationship between the metals and aluminum. Identification of these outliers was tested using a model of predicted limits at 95%. The process of testing for normality (Kolmogorov-Smirnov Test) and selection of outliers was iterated until a normal distribution was achieved. On the basis of the linear regression analysis of the large archive (please check) dataset, background levels, which are applicable to heavy metal assessment of Korean coastal sediments, were successfully developed for Cu, Cr, Ni, Zn. As an example, we tested the applicability of this baseline level for metal pollution assessment of Masan Bay sediments.

• Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.33-40
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• 2008

Levels of arsenic in stream and reservoir waters affected by an abandoned gold mine were examined. The abandoned mine has been left without proper civil and remedial works preventing potential environmental hazards. Field and laboratory chemical analyses revealed that the stream waters downgradient from the mine area were severely contaminated with arsenic and furthermore the reservoir water, 2-3 km away from the mine, also contained substantial levels of As, far exceeding the Korean stream water standard. Relatively higher pH values (6.5-9.4) enhanced mobility of As and mainly sustained substantial As concentration in waters. Chemistries of the stream water, groundwater and reservoir water were dominated by two main factors including effects of mine effluent and anthropogenic agricultural activities. Considering that there has been a substantial As input to the reservoir and the reservoir water has been used for agricultural and domestic uses, immediate remedial works are essentially required.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.1-9
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• 2015

Groundwater has been a very precious resource for human life and economic development in the world. With increasing population and food demand, the groundwater use especially for agriculture is largely elevated worldwide. The very much large groundwater use results in depletion of major aquifers, land subsidences in many large cities, anthropogenic groundwater contamination, seawater intrusion in coastal areas and accompanying severe conflicts for water security. Furthermore, with the advent of changing climate, securing freshwater supply including groundwater becomes a pressing and critical issue for sustainable societal development in every country because prediction of precipitation is more difficult, its uneven distribution is aggravating, weather extremes are more frequent, and rising sea level is also threatening the freshwater resource. Under these difficulties, can groundwater be sustaining its role as essential element for human and society in the near future? We have to focus our efforts and wisdom on answering the question. Korean government should increase its investment in securing groundwater resources for changing climate.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Soil and Groundwater Environment Conference
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• 2004.04a
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• pp.499-502
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• 2004

Groundwater chemistry in a coastal region having complex contaminant sources was investigated. Water analysis data for 197 groundwater samples collected from the uniformly distributed sixty-six wells were used. Chemical analysis rand results indicate that groundwaters show wide concentration ranges in major inorganic ions, reflecting complex hydrochemical processes of pollutants. Due to the complexity of groundwater chemistry, Results illustrate that thirty five percent of the wells do not fit for drinking based on nitrate and chloride concentration in the study area. the samples were classified into four groups based on Cl and NO$_3$ concentrations and the processes controlling water chemistry were evaluated based on the reaction stoichiometry. The results explained the importance of mineral weathering, anthropogenic activities (nitrification and oxidation of organic matters), and Cl-salt inputs (seawater, deicer, NaCl, etc.) on groundwater chemistry. It was revealed that mineral dissolution is the major process controlling the water chemistry of the low Cl and NO$_3$ group (Group 1). Groundwaters high in NO$_3$ (Groups 2 and 4) are acidic in nature, and their chemistry is largely influenced by nitrification, oxidation of organic matters and mineral dissolution. In the case of chloride rich waters (Group 3), groundwater chemistry is highly influenced by mineral weathering and seawater intrusion associated with cation-exchange reactions.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.241-252
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• 2000

Twenty-two water samples(fifteen groundwater and seven geothermal water samples) were collected to elucidate chemical characteristics of the ground and geothermal waters in the Haeundae hot spring area and its vicinity. Major and honor elements were analyzed for ground and geothermal water samples. The concentrations of $K^+$, Na+$, $Ca^{2+}$, $SO_4^{2-}$, $Cl^-$, ^F^-$ and $SiO_2$ were higher in the geothermal water samples than the groundwater samples except $HCO_3^- and Mg^{2+}$ ions. Based on the contents of Fe, Zn, Cu, Al, Mn and Pb, some of the ground and geothermal water samples are contaminated by anthropogenic sources. The ground waters shown on the Piper diagram belong to $Ca-HCO_3$ type, while the geothermal waters Na-Cl type. The graphs of $Cl^-$ versus $Na^+$, $Ca^{2+}, Mg^{2+}, K^+, SO_4^{2-} and HCO_3^-$ indicate that the groundwater is related partly with mineral-water reaction and partly with anthropogenic contamination, while the geothermal water is related with saline water. On the phase stability diagram, groundwater and thermal water mostly fall in the field of stability of kaolinite. This indicates that the ground and geothermal waters proceed with forming kaolinite. Factor and correlation analyses were carried out to simplify the physicochemical data into grouping some factors and to find interaction between them. Based on the Na-K, Na-K-Ca and Na-K-Ca-Mg geothermometers and silica geothermometers, the geothermal reservoir is estimated to have equilibrium temperature between 125${$\mid$circ}C$ and 160${$\mid$circ}C$.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.55 no.6
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• pp.717-726
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• 2022

This study was conducted to assess the geochemical contamination degree of As, Cd, Cu, Pb, Sb, and Zn in the soil and water samples from an abandoned gold mine. Enrichment Factor (EF), Geoaccumulation Index (Igeo), and Pollution Load Index (PLI) were carried out to assess the geochemical contamination degree of the soil samples. Variations of sulfate and heavy metals concentration in water samples were determined to identify the geochemical distribution with respect to the distance from the mine tailing dam. Geochemical pollution indices indicated significant contaminated with As, Cd, Pb, and Zn in the soil samples that areas close to the mine tailing dam, while, Sb showed similar indices in all soil samples. These results indicated that the As, Cd, Pb, and Zn dispersion has occurred via anthropogenic sources, such as mining activities. In terms of water samples, anomalies in the concentrations of As, Cd, Zn, and SO₄^2- was determined at specific area, in addition, the concentrations of the elements gradually decreased with distance. This result implies the heavy metals distribution in water has carried out by the weathering of sulfide minerals in the mine tailing and soil. The study area has been conducted the remediation of contaminated soil in the past, however, the geochemical dispersion of heavy metals was supposed to be occurred from the potential contamination source. Therefore, continuous monitoring of the soil and water is necessary after the completion of remediation.

• Journal of Environmental Analysis, Health and Toxicology
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.292-303
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• 2018

The particle sizes and heavy metal concentrations (Pb, Zn, Cu, Cd, Hg, As, Cr, Ni, Li, Al) of surface sediments of the Yeongsan River were analyzed to assess the distribution and pollution level of heavy metals. The distribution of particle sizes was dominated by sand in the upstream sites (MS1-MS7) and by silt loam in the downstream sites (MS8-ML3), but MS3 and MS6, located slightly upstream of the two weirs, were found to be loamy sand and silt loam, respectively. The concentrations of Pb, Zn, Cu, Cd and Hg were higher at the upstream sites, while As, Cr, Ni and Li were higher at the downstream sites. The heavy metals of crustal origin (As, Cr, Ni and Li) were strongly correlated with particle size, while the other heavy metals (Pb, Zn, Cu, Cd and Hg) were weakly correlated with particle size. Considering their concentrations, most of heavy metals were evaluated as having almost no toxic effects on benthic organisms, at all sites. In addition, anthropogenic contamination by the $I_{geo}$, EF and CF were found to have no impact at most sites, with only low levels of pollution at the others. Using the PLI method, the MS2 and MS3 sites, located upstream, were assessed to be affected by anthropogenic contamination. Most importantly, Zn, Cu and Hg were found to be the elements responsible for most pollution, and they were highest at the upstream sites, implying pollution by domestic sewage and urban discharge.

• Journal of Environmental Policy
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• v.4 no.1
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• pp.39-67
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• 2005

In order to properly define the terms such as soil, soil contamination, soil contamination site and remediation, which are the key terms under the Soil Environment Conservation Act(SECA) in Korea, we analyzed the legal definitions of the similar key words in legislations of the developed western countries. The selected countries were the United States of America, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Germany, and Denmark. The legal definitions of these keywords were very much diversified due to different levels of soil contamination, as well as different industrial, social, and legal backgrounds in each country. However, fair suggestions for definitions of the key terms in SECA were derived from the comparative analyses of these countries. First and foremost, SECA should provide a definition of 'soil' which includes a concept of the natural soil layer produced from soil mineralization processes. Groundwater and sublayer of the groundwater would. be excluded in the boundary of the soil with regards to the Groundwater Act of Korea. Definition of 'soil contamination' of SECA should include a concept of risk assessment(soil contaminants, pathway, and receptors), purpose of land use, and the acquired limitation levels of soil contaminants. Soil contamination activity either industrial or anthropogenic in SECA article2-1, could be substituted for a concept of soil risk assessment. Definition of 'soil contamination site' could derive from amalgamating the concepts of i) soil contamination in conjunction with contaminants, ii) risk assessment, iii) a concept of land use, and iv) knowing limitation of contamination site designation. Definition of 'remediation of contaminated site' should include the objective, intention, action, methodology and limit of the remediation. These suggested definitions would increase the efficacy of soil environment conservation policies, which includes the survey of the potentially contaminated area, remediation, and removal of the site.