Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 18, 2026

Design and Construction of an Urban Runoff Research Facility
Published on: August 8, 2014
Legacy contamination in Chicago urban park soils: Spatial patterns, socioeconomic disparities, and implications for
Eriell M Jenkins1, Holly Heafner1, James Montgomery2
1Delta Urban Soils Laboratory, School of Geosciences, University of Louisiana at Lafayette, Lafayette, LA 70504, USA.
Abstract:
Urban parks are increasingly used for recreation and urban agriculture, yet their soils may retain legacy contamination. This study quantified seven trace elements in topsoils of five Chicago parks (n = 233) using portable X-ray fluorescence. Pb, As, Cu, Zn, and Cr exceeded Illinois background levels in 89%-100% of samples; As and Pb exceeded EPA screening levels in 94% and 7%. Higher contamination was observed at parks farther from the city center: Douglass and Humboldt parks, in predominantly minority, lower income neighborhoods, versus Cottontail, Grant, and Webster. Principal-component analysis (PCA) confirmed an anthropogenic signature (PC1, 51.7%) driven by Pb, Zn, Cu, and As and a geogenic signature (PC2, 17.0%) associated with Mn and Ni. Areas in Douglass and Humboldt parks were classified as not safe for gardening in native soil; Webster as safe with minor restrictions. Park soil contamination follows socioeconomic gradients, reflecting environmental injustice and the need for targeted remediation.
More Related Videos
10:05Integrated Field Lysimetry and Porewater Sampling for Evaluation of Chemical Mobility in Soils and Established Vegetation
Published on: July 4, 2014
08:49Vegetated Treatment Systems for Removing Contaminants Associated with Surface Water Toxicity in Agriculture and Urban Runoff
Published on: May 15, 2017
Related Concept Videos
Sources of Food Contamination
Soil Microbial Ecology
Bioremediation
The Soil Ecosystem
Microbial Bioremediation of Pesticides