Assessment of Chemical Contamination of Sediments and Agricultural Soils by Gold Mining Activities: Case of the Ity-Floleu Zone, Zouan-Hounien Sub-Prefecture, West of Cote dIvoire

In this work, the concentrations of nutrients (NO3-, NO2-, NH4+, PO43-, SO42-), major (Ca, Fe, K, Mg, Mn and Na) and traces (As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb and Zn) were measured in different seasons over two successive years. The results show that the nutrient content in sediments and agricultural soils are generally higher in the rainy season than in the dry season. The levels of As in some stations of sediment and agricultural soils greatly exceed the standards set by the WHO during the two seasons, those of Cd in some stations of sediment and agricultural soils in the dry season and those of Hg in certain agricultural soils in the season. dried. The presence of other prohibited products present in certain soils demonstrates the fraudulent use of formulations containing these substances. Principal component analysis (PCA) and ascending hierarchical classification (AHC) have shown that pollution of these receiving environments is of natural origin but would be greatly intensified by human activities. This pollution could constitute risks of bioaccumulation and toxicity and generate negative impacts on the health of the population.