Evaluation of the Degree of Toxicity of Heavy Metals (Lead, Cadmium, Copper and Zinc) on Macrobenthic Communities in the Persian Gulf

Economic and industrial facilities in Bandar Abbas, the south of Iran, have been more developed in the past three decades, and as a result, industrial pollutants, especially heavy metals, have released to the marine ecosystem. The present study was conducted with the aim of evaluating the degree of toxicity of heavy metals (lead, cadmium, copper and zinc) on macrobenthic communities in North Persian Gulf, Bandar Abbas, Iran.

To evaluate the degree of toxicity of heavy metal pollutants such as lead, cadmium, copper and zinc on sediments and macrobenthic communities, sampling was carried out at 9 stations using a Van Veen Grab device along the Bandar Abbas coastline in Feb and July 2020.

The results of the factor analysis (PCA) suggested a common industrial source for zinc and copper that TOM may be the carrier of these metals. A domestic urban runoff source suggested for lead, and an industrial source different from the common source of zinc and copper suggested for cadmium. The calculated individual indices including geographic accumulation index (Igeo), pollution factor (Cfi) and ecological risk index (Eri) showed that all regions are in the significant to highly polluted range for lead, cadmium and copper and in low pollution in some areas to moderate pollution for other areas for zinc.

The results of this study demonstrated that sediments receiving heavy metals (lead, cadmium, copper and zinc) are toxic for macrobenthic communities and more control should be done by the city management in Bandar Abbas in this regard.