Study of selected metal concentrations in sediments by inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry from a metropolitan and more pristine bayou in Southwest Louisiana, United States

• Metal concentrations in bayou
• Metal concentrations in metropolitan and pristine bayou
• Comparison to industrial bayou

This study presents the results of selected metals in sediments determined by inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry from fourteen sampling sites along approximately 12 km from Bayou Contraband (metropolitan bayou), which runs through the city of Lake Charles in Southwest Louisiana and three sediments along Bayou Black located in a more pristine area of the city. The concentrations of two of the three sediments from Bayou Black are in close agreement to one another. These two sites give average concentrations of 2370 ppm Al, 1760 ppm Fe, 555 ppm Mg, 35 ppm Mn and 14 ppm Zn. Sediment 3 was also able to detect 6 ppm Cr, 5 ppm Cu and 11 ppm V. The remaining metals that were examined at these two sites were below their detection limits. Using the above values from the two Bayou Black sites, there are noticeably higher values in the Contraband Bayou sites which is most likely due to anthropological effects. Sites 13 and 7 seem to have the greatest contrasts with respective concentrations of 6090 ppm and 6520 ppm Al, 3320 ppm and 5360 ppm Mg and 120 ppm and 83 ppm Zn. These value were about an order of magnitude lower than previous results from Bayou d'Inde.