Geostatistical Analyses and Contamination Assessment of Hazardous Metals in Urban Soil, NW China

The urban environment quality is of vital importance as the majority of people now live in cities. Due to the continuous urbanization and industrialization in many parts of the world, metals are continuously emitted into the urban environment and pose a great threat on human health. In this study, a total of 38 soil samples were collected from Weinan industrial urban areas, NW, China, and the concentrations of Pb, Cr, Ba, Zn, V, Mn, Co, Cu, Ni and As elements were measured by wavelength dispersive X-Ray fluorescence spectrometry (WDXRF). Based on geostatistical analyses (Spatial analysis using GIS) and metal enrichment factors (Efs) with Fe as the reference, the urban soil environment was found to be more contaminated from heavy metals Ba, Cu, Pb, Cr and Zn, which in turn further confirms the source identification. The results advocated the future tactics for Weinan environment quality control on a local scale had to concern not only the levels of hazardous but also the industrial emission abatement techniques and urban setting.