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Anthropogenic Contributions to and Environmental Implications of the rare earth element flux into the Baltic Sea from major rivers in Poland

The ever-increasing application of rare earth elements and yttrium (REY) in diverse sectors has led to their emergence as environmental contaminants. In this study of the Oder and Vistula rivers in Poland, total concentrations of REY (ƩREY) in the dissolved phase (0.2 µm-filtered water samples) decrease from the river’s upper reaches (98.1 and 139 ng/kg) to mid-sections (52.4 and 48.4 ng/kg) but rise again near the estuaries (65.1 and 61.4 ng/kg). The upper reaches exhibit high levels of REY due to the impacts of high population density, strong industrial activity, and the input of acid mine drainage. The rise at their lower reaches indicates input from additional sources, possibly from phosphogypsum tailings. The Gd anomalies (GdSN/GdSN*: 4.92 - 44.6) found at the studied sites reveal various Polish regions as hotspots of anthropogenic Gd microcontamination (where >95% of Gd is of anthropogenic origin), resulting in a significant flux into the Baltic Sea. Ultrafiltrates show HREY enrichment over LREY in the truly dissolved REY pool (<1 kDa), enhancing the trend seen in the dissolved phase as LREY preferentially associate with nanoparticles and colloids (NPCs: 0.2 µm - 1 kDa). The anthropogenic Gd is related to MRI contrast agents released with the effluents of wastewater treatment plants, displays negligible particle-reactivity, and resides almost exclusively in the truly dissolved REY fraction. Our results underscore the urgency of monitoring and understanding the anthropogenic impacts causing elevated REY levels and positive Gd anomalies in the Oder and Vistula rivers to protect the environment.

Details

Author
Addis Kokeb Alemu1, Keran Zhang2, David Ernst2, Michael Bau2
Institutionen
1Critical Metals for Enabling Technologies – CritMET, School of Science, Constructor University, Bremen, Germany;Departments of Chemistry, College of Natural and Computational Sciences, University of Gondar, Ethiopia; 2Critical Metals for Enabling Technologies – CritMET, School of Science, Constructor University, Bremen, Germany
Veranstaltung
GeoSaxonia 2024
Datum
2024
DOI
10.48380/ejn7-4832