Quantitative assessment of worldwide contamination of air, water and soils by trace metals
Abstract
Calculated loading rates of trace metals into the three environmental compartments demonstrate that human activities now have major impacts on the global and regional cycles of most of the trace elements. There is significant contamination of freshwater resources and an accelerating accumulation of toxic metals in the human food chain.
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The main estimated anthropogenic source of atmospheric selenium is coal combustion, and the predominant natural atmospheric selenium source may be the marine biosphere via biomethylation of selenium by marine organisms.
“The main estimated anthropogenic source is coal combustion (3 × 109 g·year−1 [86]; 1.83 × 109 g·year−1 [87]) and the predominant natural atmospheric Se source may be the marine biosphere via biomethylation of Se by marine organisms [40,91]”
From Selenium Cycling Across Soil-Plant-Atmosphere Interfaces: A Critical Review (2015) · cites this paper as [87]
Global atmospheric selenium budgets indicate atmospheric selenium input fluxes between 15.5 and 15.7 × 10^9 g/year, of which about 60% are natural and 40% anthropogenic emissions, although the natural contribution was smaller (25%) in the northern hemisphere due to anthropogenic emissions.
“Global atmospheric Se budgets [85,86,87,88,89] indicated that atmospheric Se input fluxes are between 15.5 and 15.7 × 109 g·year−1, of which ~60 and 40% are natural and anthropogenic emissions, respectively [40], although the contribution of natural emissions was found to be smaller (i.e., 25%) in the northern hemisphere due to anthropogenic emissions [90].”
From Selenium Cycling Across Soil-Plant-Atmosphere Interfaces: A Critical Review (2015) · cites this paper as [87]
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Winkel, L., Vriens, B., Jones, G., Schneider, L., Pilon-Smits, E., & Bañuelos, G. (2015) · Nutrients · doi:10.3390/nu7064199 · Cited by 476 · see citing works
“83 × 109 g·year−1 [87]) and the predominant natural atmospheric Se source may be the marine biosphere via biomethylation of Se by marine organisms [40,91] (see chapter 7).”
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- Authors
- Nriagu, J. O., & Pacyna, J. M.
- Affiliations
- Environment and Climate Change Canada (CA)
- ORCID
- Nriagu, Jerome O.
- Venue
- Nature
- Published
- 1988-05
- Volume
- 333
- Issue
- 6169
- Pages
- 134-139
- ISSN
- 0028-0836 (ISSN-L)
- 1476-4687
- OpenAlex
- W2091202236
- Cited by
- 4,368
- References
- 1
- Citations by year
- 2026: 63 · 2025: 77 · 2024: 113 · 2023: 133 · 2022: 118 · 2021: 173 · 2020: 190 · 2019: 163 · 2018: 175 · 2017: 153 · 2016: 128 · 2015: 154 · 2014: 196 · 2013: 182 · 2012: 181
- FWCI
- 5.69
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Licence
- www.springer.com/tdm (tdm)
- Locations
- Nature (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Pollution › Heavy metals in environment
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis › Environmental Toxicology and Ecotoxicology
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Environmental Engineering › Sustainability and Ecological Systems Analysis
- Keywords
- trace metals, heavy metal contamination, air pollution, water pollution, soil contamination, human activities, freshwater resources, food chain accumulation, toxic metals
- MeSH terms
- Air Pollution, Food Contamination, Humans, Soil Pollutants, Trace Elements, Water Pollution
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