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Journal of Hydro-environment Research 5 (2011) 169e176

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Research paper

Distribution of Pb, As, Cd, Sn and Hg in soil, sediment and surface water
of the tropical river watershed, Terengganu (Malaysia)
Khawar Sultan a,*, Noor Azhar Shazili b, Stefan Peiffer a
b

a
Department of Hydrology, University of Bayreuth, 95440 Bayreuth, Bavaria, Germany
Institute of Oceanography, University Malaysia Terengganu, Mengabang Telipot, 21030 Kuala Terengganu, Malaysia

Received 2 March 2009; revised 13 March 2011; accepted 14 March 2011

Abstract
Hydrogeochemistry and distribution of Pb, As, Cd, Sn and Hg in soils (n 53), sediments (n 42) and surface waters (n 51) of the tropical
Terengganu River basin, northeast coast of Peninsular Malaysia, were investigated. The order of abundance of the elements in soils followed
granite > metasedimentary > Quaternary deposit [ volcanic with slight enrichment as compared to the upper continental crust. Both soils and
sediments registered the order of concentration of Pb > Sn > As [ Cd [ Hg with an enrichment factor (EF) < 6 for sediments indicating
slight enrichment representing the regional background and less likely due to the anthropogenic activity related input. SEM analysis revealed the
presence of Malayaite (CaSnOSiO4) explaining elevated Sn concentration (up to w34 mg/kg; 3 times the upper continental crust) in soils. Soil
Pb distribution showed the geology as the primary control.
Dissolved concentrations of As showed an increasing and Cd decreasing with distance from upstream to downstream along the river flow
path. Lake surface waters registered 16 times higher Cd concentrations (average w 14.21 mg/L) than the river waters, but lake sediments
registered lower Cd concentration than the river sediments (average w 0.45 mg/kg) revealing Eh, pH and TDS control. Dissolved average Hg
concentration (w0.04 mg/L) was measured to be lower than the tropical river waters from the Central Africa river, but higher than the Mekong
and the Amazon Rivers.
2011 International Association of Hydro-environment Engineering and Research, Asia Pacific Division. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights
reserved.
Keywords: Tropical; Soil; Sediments; Surface water; Metals; Background; Malaysia

1. Introduction
Environmental management of natural resources (i.e. water,
soil, plant) in a world with ever increasing industrial activities
and urbanization has been the focus of extensive research to
protect and preserve them for future generations across the
globe (Bode and Nusch, 1999; Beck, 2005; Jia et al., 2007).
Both natural and anthropogenic factors can impact on the
environment by producing polluting components which may
enter into the food chain and pose a threat to the ecosystems.
However, input from anthropogenic related activities is much
* Corresponding author. Tel.: 49 (0) 921 55 2170; fax: 49 (0) 921 55 2366.
E-mail addresses: sultankha@gmail.com, sultan.khawar@uni-bayreuth.de
(K. Sultan).

greater than natural ones especially in the worlds industrial

regions. According to the Commission for the European
Communities (CEC, 1986), ATSDR (1989), ANZECC (1992)
and USEPA (2000) many heavy metals have been identified as
having adverse public health effects based on their toxicity.
Among these metals, Pb, As, Cd and Hg are well known global
contaminants and are listed as the most hazardous inorganic
contaminants on the EPA Hazardous Substance Priority List
due to significant environmental and public health concerns
(USEPA, 2000; WHO, 2006).
Equatorial/tropical climates with all year round warm
temperatures and high rainfall enhance both physical and
chemical weathering of rocks. High energy conditions (i.e.
wind, water discharge) favor the removal and transport of
solutes and particulates from the source to the sea in a relatively

1570-6443/$ - see front matter 2011 International Association of Hydro-environment Engineering and Research, Asia Pacific Division. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.jher.2011.03.001

170

K. Sultan et al. / Journal of Hydro-environment Research 5 (2011) 169e176

shorter residence time as compared to the temperate climate. It is

therefore important to study the concentration, distribution and
mobility of potentially toxic elements in a tropical environment
where the health of fauna and flora may be at risk. While
significant research has been carried out in watersheds of
temperate climates, comparatively little or no attention has been
paid to the potentially toxic elemental background concentrations of the tropical watersheds in Asia.
The rapid development of the tropical east coast of
Peninsular Malaysia poses a threat to the food chain system by
contamination from the industrial/municipal effluent, agricultural runoff, land clearing and tourism based activities. Thus, it
is vital to study the prevailing concentrations and geochemistry of the potentially toxic elements to understand the natural background/baseline levels to manage and monitor any
changes caused by anthropogenic activities in the future.
Hence, this work is significant in documenting the geochemistry and background concentrations of Pb, As, Cd, Sn and Hg
in the soil, sediment and water of the Terengganu River basin,
Malaysia.
2. Methods
2.1. Study area
The Terengganu River is located close to the equator (river
mouth w 500 N) in the northeastern region of the Peninsular
Malaysia and experiences a tropical physical regime during
the peak monsoon season (discharge w 14.6  109 m3 year1;

Fig. 1). The upper watershed encompasses Kenyir Lake in

a relatively pristine environmental setting separated by a hydro
electric power dam from the lower watershed with an urbanized and industrialized setting close to the river mouth
draining into the South China Sea. Geographically the Terengganu River watershed lies in wet tropics defined by high
temperature (>20  C) and rainfall (w3300 mm y1). The
Terengganu River provides major inputs of mass flux (i.e.
water, solute, particulate, sediment, organic matter) to the
Sunda Shelf, South China Sea. This study presents the current
situation for future reference the geochemical baselines of Pb,
Sn, As, Cd and Hg in soils, sediments and surface waters of
the Terengganu River basin.
This study investigated the concentration, distribution and
hydrochemistry of Pb, Sn, As, Cd and Hg in soil, sediment and
surface water samples of the Terengganu River basin.
2.2. Field sampling
Surface water samples (n 51) were collected in acidwashed polypropylene containers from the lake, river and
estuary in the Terengganu River basin. Surface water samples
were filtered through 0.45 mm cellulose acetate filters, acidified to pH  2 with ultrapure HNO3 for stabilization and
stored at 4  C until analysis. Surface sediment (n 42) and
topsoil (0e10 cm depth, n 53) samples were collected in
close proximity (<10 m circle) of surface water sampling
locations using a plastic scoop and stored in a clean plastic bag
until analysis The sampling locations are shown in Fig. 1 and

Fig. 1. Map showing sampling locations in the Terengganu River catchment.

K. Sultan et al. / Journal of Hydro-environment Research 5 (2011) 169e176

Table 1
Detection limit, accuracy and precision for measured elements.
Elements

Unit

Detection limit

Accuracy (%)

Precision (%PRD)

Pb
Sn
As
Cd
Hg

mg/kg
mg/kg
mg/kg
mg/kg
mg/kg

0.006
0.004
0.002
0.001
0.002

0.4
2.1
3.1
0.8
1.7

1.9
3.6
1.7
2.2
3.4

171

Soil samples were mounted on an aluminum stub with an

adhesive tape and coated with gold for the scanning electron
microscope (SEM, JEOL-JSM 5310) analysis. The concentration distribution and sampling location maps were developed using GIS software.
2.4. Geology

were chosen randomly along the river flow path keeping in

view the geological units, various land uses and accessibility.
The sampling locations were recorded using GPS for concentration distribution map development in GIS software. The
sampling campaign was carried out in November and represented the prevailing environmental conditions.
2.3. Analytical procedures
Sediment and soil samples were oven dried (<40  C),
passed through a 2 mm mesh sieve to remove coarser particles
and ground (Rayment and Higginson, 1992). About 0.1 g of
each sample was digested in HNO3:HCl:HF (9:3:2, v/v) in
a Teflon vessel and heated in a microwave oven at 150  C for
10 min. After cooling, 9 mL of 5% boric acid (B(OH)3) was
added to remove the fluoride residue. A clear solution with no
residue was obtained at this stage. The acid digest thus
obtained was filtered into a 50 mL volumetric flask and
brought to volume with double deionized water. Concentrations of elements were determined by inductively coupled
plasma mass spectrometry (ICPeMS Perkin Elmer ELAN
6100) at the Institute of Oceanography.
Standard solutions were prepared by serial dilution of the
stock solution (1000 mg/L; Merck, Darmstadt, Germany) of
various concentrations. Both field and laboratory blanks,
duplicates and certified reference materials (GBW-07401 and
PACS-2) were included in every batch for QA/QC. The
detection limit, accuracy and precision for the measured
elements are given in Table 1.

Quaternary deposits consisting of gravel, sand, clay and peat

are found along the east coast in the lower watershed of the
Terengganu River basin. Granite of Permian to Lower Triassic
age occurs as the Main Range Granite and contains hydrothermal veins of economic value (Gobbett and Hutchison,
1973). Granite appearing as high peaks forms the upper
watershed and covers about 40% of the surface area. Limestone
outcrops are restricted and appear only in the Kenyir Lake area.
Localized occurrence of volcanic rock of the Carboniferous age
covers <2% surface area and is dominantly andesitic and
rhyolitic. Metasedimentary rock (Carboniferous to Permian) is
the most dominant rock type (>43% area) forming the low and
undulating areas (Hadi and Fadzali, 2006; Gobbett and
Hutchison, 1973) and dominantly consists of phyllite and slate.
3. Results
Summary statistics of concentrations of Pb, Sn, As, Cd and
Hg in soil, sediment and surface water samples of the Terengganu River basin are listed in Table 2. The physicochemical parameters and concentrations of major, minor and
trace elements in tropical soils of the Terengganu River have
been described by Sultan and Shazili (2009).
3.1. Soil
Lead (Pb) concentrations ranged from 0.11 to 73.96 mg/kg
with an average value of 29.2  19.5 mg/kg. Soils developed on
granite registered the highest (average w 42.30 mg/kg) and
soils developed on volcanic rock registered the lowest

Table 2
Summary statistic of element concentration data of soils, sediments and surface water of the Terengganu River basin.
Media

Element

Unit

Minimum

Soil

Pb
Sn
As
Cd
Hg

mg/kg
mg/kg
mg/kg
mg/kg
mg/kg

0.110
0.958
0.246
0.026
0.011

Sediment

Pb
Sn
As
Cd
Hg

mg/kg
mg/kg
mg/kg
mg/kg
mg/kg

Water

Pb
Sn
As
Cd
Hg

mg/L
mg/L
mg/L
mg/L
mg/L

Maximum

Average

Median

Standard
deviation

Count

73.96
34.03
14.54
0.99
0.25

29.23
7.73
6.83
0.14
0.09

26.45
6.51
6.83
0.12
0.08

19.458
5.714
2.909
0.141
0.041

53
53
53
53
53

0.051
0.747
0.827
0.347
0.007

124.85
29.23
23.09
0.52
0.59

32.10
9.75
9.48
0.44
0.19

29.54
9.09
9.18
0.44
0.16

26.119
5.964
4.694
0.027
0.130

42
42
42
42
42

0.022
4.355
0.013
0.362
0.009

4.54
36.30
28.90
24.53
0.21

0.97
14.68
3.42
4.78
0.04

0.49
13.28
0.05
1.06
0.04

1.212
5.857
6.761
7.425
0.033

51
51
51
51
51

172

K. Sultan et al. / Journal of Hydro-environment Research 5 (2011) 169e176

(average w 2.61 mg/kg) Pb concentrations. The average Pb

concentration is measured to be 1.7 times higher than the upper
continental crust value of 17 mg/kg of Pb (Taylor and
McLennan, 1995; Wedepohl, 1995). None of the sampling
locations registered Pb concentrations above the Dutch Target
Value of 85 mg/kg of Pb (MHSPE, 1994).
Tin (Sn) concentrations varied between 0.96 and 34.03 mg/
kg with an average value of 7.7  5.7 mg/kg. Soils developed on
granite rock registered the highest (average w 10.87 mg/kg)
and soils developed on Quaternary deposits registered the lowest
(average w 5.04 mg/kg) Sn concentrations. The average Sn
concentration in soil was found to be three times higher than the
upper continental crust value of 2.5 mg/kg (Wedepohl, 1995).
Gobbett and Hutchison (1973) reported Sn mineral Cassiterite
(SnO2) and Malayaite (CaSnSiO5) in the local geology, which
have been mined commercially for tin.
Arsenic (As) concentrations varied from 0.25 to 14.54 mg/
kg with an average value of 6.8  2.9 mg/kg. Soils developed on metasedimentary rock registered the highest (average w 8.05 mg/kg) and soils developed on volcanic rock
registered the lowest (average w 4.79 mg/kg) As concentrations. All sampling locations registered As concentrations
below the Dutch Target Value of 29 mg/kg of As (MHSPE,
1994).
Cadmium (Cd) concentrations varied between 0.03 and
0.99 mg/kg with an average value of 0.14  0.14 mg/kg. Soils
developed on metasedimentary rock registered the highest
(average w 0.22 mg/kg) and soils developed on volcanic rock
registered the lowest (average w 0.05 mg/kg) Cd concentrations. Only one sampling location (TR5) registered Cd
concentration above the Dutch Target Value of 0.8 mg/kg Cd
(MHSPE, 1994).
Mercury (Hg) concentrations ranged from 0.01 to 0.25 mg/
kg with an average value of 0.09  0.04 mg/kg. Soils developed
on volcanic rock registered the highest (average w 0.103 mg/
kg) and the soils developed on metasedimentary rock registered
the lowest (average w 0.081 mg/kg) Hg concentrations. Both
the upper continental crust value of 0.06 mg/kg (Wedepohl,
1995) of Hg and the European geochemical baseline value of
0.061 of Hg (Salminen et al., 2005) have been found to be lower
than the average Hg concentration measured in the study area.
3.2. Sediment
Lead concentrations varied from 0.05 to 124.85 mg/kg with
an average value of 32.1  26.1 mg/kg. River sediments
registered higher Pb concentrations (average w 32.7 mg/kg)
than the lake sediments (average w 30.8 mg/kg). About 40%
of the sediment samples registered Pb concentrations above
the USEPA (2008) freshwater sediment screening benchmark
of 35.8 mg/kg of Pb.
Tin concentrations varied between 0.75 and 29.23 mg/kg
with an average value of 9.8  6.0 mg/kg. The highest Sn
concentration was recorded at a sampling site (TR50) closer to
the granite bedrock. Tin concentration in lake sediments was
measured to be higher (average w 11.91 mg/kg) than the river
sediments
(average w 8.78 mg/kg).
The
European

geochemical baseline value of 4.79 mg/kg of Sn (Salminen

et al., 2005) for stream sediments is nearly half the average
Sn measured in the study area.
Arsenic concentrations ranged from 0.83 to 23.09 mg/kg
with an average value of 9.5  4.7 mg/kg. Arsenic concentration in lake sediments was found to be slightly higher
(average w 9.98 mg/kg) than the river sediments (average w 9.25 mg/kg). About 40% of the sampling locations
registered sediment As concentrations exceeding the USEPA
(2008) freshwater sediment screening benchmark value of
9.8 mg/kg of As.
Cadmium concentrations ranged from 0.35 to 0.52 mg/kg
with an average value of 0.44  0.03 mg/kg. No significant
change in Cd concentration was observed in river (average w 0.45 mg/kg) or lake sediments (average w 0.43 mg/kg).
No sediment sample measured concentrations exceeding the
USEPA (2008) freshwater sediment screening benchmark of
0.99 mg/kg of Cd.
Mercury concentrations ranged between 0.01 and 0.59 mg/
kg with an average value of 0.19  0.13 mg/kg. River sediments
registered higher Hg concentrations (average w 0.20 mg/kg)
than the lake sediments (average w 0.16 mg/kg). The average
Hg concentration was measured to be 2.3 times higher than the
European geochemical baseline value of 0.08 mg/kg of Hg
(Salminen et al., 2005) in stream sediments. About 30% of the
sampling locations measured concentrations above the freshwater screening concentration of 0.18 mg/kg of Hg by USEPA
(2008).
3.3. Surface water
Dissolved Pb concentrations varied between 0.02 and
4.54 mg/L with an average value of 0.97  1.2 mg/L. River
water Pb concentration was measured to be higher (average w 1.08 mg/L) than the lake water (average w 0.70 mg/L).
No water sample registered Pb concentrations exceeding the
WHO (2006) drinking water guideline value of 10 mg/L of Pb.
Huang et al. (2008) reported a higher range from 2.52 to
15.2 mg/L of Pb concentrations in the Mekong River waters.
Dissolved Sn concentrations ranged between 4.35 and
36.3 mg/L with an average value of 14.7  5.9 mg/L. The
highest Sn concentration was recorded at a sampling site
(TR29) closer to the river mouth. River water Sn concentration
was measured to be higher (average w 16.25 mg/L) than the
lake water (average w 10.9 mg/L).
Dissolved As concentration varied from 0.01 to 28.9 mg/L
with an average value of 3.4  6.8 mg/L. River water As
concentrations were found to be higher (average w 4.3 mg/L)
than the lake water (average w 1.32 mg/L). The highest As
concentration was recorded at a sampling location (TR28)
closer to the river mouth and a heavily urbanized area. Five
sampling locations registered As concentrations above the
WHO (2006) drinking water guideline value of 10 mg/L of As.
Dissolved Cd concentrations varied between 0.36 and
24.53 mg/L with an average value of 4.8  7.4 mg/L. The
average lake water Cd concentration (w14.21 mg/L) was
measured to be sixteen times higher than the river water

K. Sultan et al. / Journal of Hydro-environment Research 5 (2011) 169e176

(w0.85 mg/L). About 10% of the sampling locations registered

concentrations above the WHO (2006) drinking water guideline value of 3 mg/L and the majority of locations from the
lake.
Dissolved Hg concentrations varied between 0.01 and
0.21 mg/L with an average value of 0.04  0.03 mg/L. River
water Hg concentration (average w 0.05 mg/L) was found to
be 1.7 times higher than the lake water (average w 0.03 mg/L).
No sampling location registered water Hg concentrations
above the WHO (2006) drinking water guideline value of
6 mg/L and ANZECC (1992) guideline value of 1 mg/L. Dissolved average Hg concentration was measured to be lower
than the tropical river waters from Central Africa (0.68 mg/L;
Ikingura et al., 1997), but higher than the Mekong River
(<0.001 mg/L; Huang et al., 2008) and the Amazon River
(4.5 ng/L; Fadini and Jardim, 2001).
4. Discussion
Overall, the order of abundance of measured metals in soils
was granite > metasedimentary > Quaternary deposit [ volcanic. The concentrations of metals were slightly enriched as
compared to the upper continental crust (UCC) and reflected on
the geology of material from which soils were derived. The UCC
normalized patterns of metals in soils showed that soils derived
from the volcanic rock were the most depleted in terms of
elemental budget. The soils derived from the Quaternary
deposits plot in the middle revealing the heterogeneity in the
source material comprising the upper watershed geology
(Fig. 2). This can be explained as the source of Quaternary
deposit is dominantly granite and metasedimentary rocks.
Among the metals, Pb showed more variation in soils developed
in volcanic rock which is possibly due to the preferential
weathering of soil minerals.
The enrichment of Sn seems to be the natural background
concentration in this region. Granite rock is host to mineralized zones enriched in metals (e.g. Sn, W) extending north
south in the study area. A number of Sn minerals occur
naturally of which Malayaite (CaSnSiO4) and Cassiterite
(SnO2) are the dominant minerals. SEM analysis revealed the
presence of tin mineral Malayaite explaining enrichment of Sn
in soils (Fig. 3). The study area has been subject to tin mining

Fig. 2. The upper continental crust (UCC) normalized patterns of the investigated elements for the Terengganu Basin surface soils (n 53) developed on
various rock units. The UCC values are after Wedepohl (1995).

173

operations in the past, the scale and extent of which is

unknown. The Sn deposits generally occur in the granite
pegmatites and have been mined for their commercial value in
Malaysia (Gobbett and Hutchison, 1973; Schwartz et al.,
1995). The edges morphology revealed that part of Sn is
mobilized but largely intact and seems to be stable under
prevailing environmental conditions.
Lead concentration in soils was measured to be slightly
higher than the upper continental crust which seems to be
naturally high in soils developed on granite rock. The Pb
distribution map shows a lower concentration of Pb in soils
developed on volcanic rock in the Kenyir Lake area (Fig. 4).
A positive correlation (r 0.56, n 53, r < 0.01) between Pb
and Sn indicated the possible presence of the mineral Teallite
(PbSnS2) which is found in hydrothermal tin veins in the study
area. Gobbett and Hutchison (1973) reported the Pb minerals
including Teallite (PbSnS2), Galena (PbS), Franckeite ((Pb,
Sn)6FeSn2Sb2S14) and Boulangerite (Pb5Sb4S11) in hydrothermal veins of the Main Range Granite. Lead concentration
also showed a positive correlation with Sn in sediments
(r 0.64, n 42, r < 0.01) but a very weak correlation was
observed between Pb and Sn in surface waters. The prevailing
EhepH conditions favor the fixation of Pb in the river sediments possibly onto the secondary Fe oxides. A brown to red
color coating on the sediments was observed which is likely
due to the Fe oxidation.
The enrichment factor (EF) was calculated in order to
evaluate anthropogenic activity related input of the potentially
toxic elements using Al as a reference element and is
described as:
EF Mes=Als=Meb=Alb
where [Me]s and [Al]s represent concentrations of metal and
Al in sediments, respectively, and [Me]b and [Al]b represent
the upper continental crust concentrations of metal and Al,
respectively. The EF value above 1 points to the enrichment
and below 1 points to the depletion as shown in Fig. 5. The EF
values ranged between 2.3 (for Pb) and 5.7 (for As). However,
only significantly high EF value (>5) is considered to be
enrichment by anthropogenic related activities (Atgin et al.,
2000). All the metals investigated recorded EF < 6 which
indicated a slight enrichment representing the regional
geochemical background and less likely due to land use
activities. The middle and upper catchment areas of the Terengganu River are in a relatively pristine environment and
home to one of the worlds oldest tropical rainforests.
Dissolved concentrations of As showed a multifold
increasing and Cd decreasing with distance from upstream to
the river mouth along the flow path (Fig. 6). However, Pb
concentrations did not show a systematic change with the flow
path from the upstream lake to the downstream river mouth
revealing heterogeneity in sources and/or hydrochemical
behavior. Both Sn and Hg registered higher average concentrations in river waters as compared to the lake waters (1.4 and
1.9 times, respectively) but the change in concentrations was
not systematic along the flow path. Dissolved concentration of

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K. Sultan et al. / Journal of Hydro-environment Research 5 (2011) 169e176

Fig. 3. SEM/BSE images of tin (Sn)-mineral Malayaite (CaSnSiO4) in a soil sample (location TR38). The Fe map is showing the possible secondary Fe-oxide
coating; the other mineral grain on the Si map is quartz.

measured elements is controlled by master variables including

pH (5e8), Eh (51 to 110 mV), EC (12e1670 mS/cm), water
residence time and changing bedrock lithology from the
dominantly granite in the upstream watershed to the Quaternary sediments in the downstream areas. Cadmium concentrations in sediments increased only slightly opposite to the
dissolved Cd in surface waters with the distance from
the upstream lake to the downstream river mouth (Fig. 6). This
can be explained as a result of reducing alkaline conditions
(i.e. low Ehehigh pH) in the lake favoring the dissolution of

Cd, but mildly acidic river water under oxidizing conditions favoring precipitation/adsorption of Cd possibly onto
secondary oxides of Fe, Al and Mn. A non-significant change
in sediment Cd concentrations between lake and river sediments also pointed to the absence of naturally enriched Cd
source in the upper watershed. In addition to natural weathering processes, Cd may be released to water by discharge
from metal and fertilizer industries, sewage treatment plants,
atmospheric deposition and by leaching from landfills or soil
(Elinder, 1985; ANZECC, 1992; WHO, 2006). Further

Fig. 4. Distribution of Pb in soils of the Terengganu River basin.

K. Sultan et al. / Journal of Hydro-environment Research 5 (2011) 169e176

175

agricultural runoff, urban/industrial effluent and past mining

operations in the study area. Sediments seem to play the role
of a sink for Pb, As and Hg due to elevated levels of Fe, Al and
Mn by providing adsorption sites.
5. Conclusion

Fig. 5. Bar chart for the enrichment factor (EF) of Pb, Sn, As, Cd and Hg in the
sediments of the Terengganu River basin.

research is required to investigate the potential sources of Cd

in the study area.
Both soil and sediment registered metal concentration in
the order of Pb > Sn > As [ Cd > Hg, but surface water
metal concentration followed the order Sn > Cd > As > Pb
[ Hg pointing to the mobilization of Sn. While Pb was the
most abundant metal in soils and sediments, it registered lower
concentration in surface waters. Overall, no significant threat
to the soil or surface water was found with the exception of
a few sampling sites close to the river mouth and in the upper
watershed of Kenyir Lake close to the mineralized zones of
SneW in the Main Range Granite. Sediments in general
showed enrichment of Pb, As and Hg which exceeded the
environmental guideline values at locations close to the river
mouth and in the mainstream. This is likely due to the
Estuary
(downstream)

Cd [ mg/kg]

0.55

Terengganu River

Kenyir Lake
(upstream)

Sediment

0.5
0.45
0.4
0.35
30

Acknowledgements

Cd [ug/L]

Surface water
20

The authors would like to thank INOS, University Malaysia

Terengganu for the funding support.

10
0

As [m g/ kg]

25

References

Sediment

20
15
10
5
0
30

Surface water
As [ug/L]

The order of abundance of Pb, As, Cd, Hg and Sn in soils

developed on various rock units followed granite >
metasedimentary > Quaternary deposit [ volcanic with slight
enrichment as compared to the upper continental crust. Both soils
and sediments registered the order of concentration as:
Pb > Sn > As [ Cd > Hg with an enrichment factor (EF) < 6
for sediments indicating slight enrichment representing the
regional background and less likely due to the anthropogenic
activity related input in the tropical Terengganu River basin.
Elevated levels of Sn in soils, sediments and surface waters
as compared to the global values are due to the presence of Sncontaining mineral deposits. SEM analysis also revealed the
presence of Malayaite (CaSnOSiO4) in soils. Soil Pb distribution showed the geology as the primary control.
Systematic multifold increasing in dissolved As and Hg
concentrations with distance from the upstream to downstream
along the river flow path is possibly due to the variations in Eh,
pH and TDS as master control variables. Lake surface waters
registered 16 times higher Cd concentrations than the river
waters but lake sediments registered lower Cd concentrations
than the river sediments.
Dissolved Hg concentrations were measured to be lower
than the tropical river waters from Central Africa but higher
than the Mekong and the Amazon Rivers. Dissolved Pb
concentration was measured to be higher than the river waters
of both the Mekong and Amazon. Overall, no significant threat
to the environment was found with the exception of a few
sampling sites close to the river mouth and others in the upper
watershed which is due to the mineralized zones.

20
10
0

20

40

60
Distance [km]

80

100

Fig. 6. Concentration changes of As and Cd in surface waters and sediments

with the distance from the river mouth to the upstream Kenyir Lake.

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