[Distribution Characteristics, Ecological Risks, and Source Identification of Heavy Metals in Cultivated Land Under...

The purpose of this study was to explore the distribution characteristics and potential ecological risks of soil heavy metal pollution of cultivated land under non-grain production. Taking a typical area around Hangzhou Bay as an example, 254 topsoil samples (0-20 cm) of cultivated land were collected, and the content of eight soil heavy metals in four different cultivated land use types, including grain, seedlings, vegetables, and fruits, was analyzed. The ecological risk was assessed by the Nemerow pollution index and the potential ecological risk index, and the PMF model was used to identify the source of soil heavy metals in the study area. The results showed that the average contents of As, Cr, Cd, Cu, Hg, Ni, and Zn were all higher than the soil background value, except for Pb, but were lower than the national risk control standard for soil contamination of agricultural land. Non-grain production had a significant impact on the accumulation of heavy metals in soil. The content of heavy metals in nurseries and orchards was relatively high, followed by vegetable fields, and the lowest in grain fields. The Nemerow index showed that the cultivated land in the study area was in a light pollution level as a whole, and the single-factor pollution risks of Hg, Cd, and As were relatively high. The potential ecological risk levels of heavy metals in different cultivated land use types were:nurseries>orchards>vegetable fields>grain fields. The PMF results showed that the main sources of soil heavy metals in the study area were mixed sources of industrial emissions (36.8%), natural parent material sources (28.4%), atmospheric deposition sources (21.4%), and agricultural activity sources (13.4%). In conclusion, the increase in the application of chemical fertilizers and pesticides was the direct reason for the increase in soil heavy metal content caused by non-grain production of the cultivated land, whereas the industrial and mining emissions and atmospheric deposition accelerated the increase in soil heavy metal content in the study area.