Spatial distribution and potential ecological risk assessment of heavy metals in Zhelin Bay sediments and its vicinity, China

We collected 18 surface sediment samples from Zhelin Bay and its vicinity in April 2011 and determined the concentration of selected heavy metals to study their potential ecological risks.The results reveal that the concentrations of lead (Pb), chromium (Cr), copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn) all meet the quality standard of class Ⅰ of China National Standard Criteria for Marine Sediment Quality, which are 7.71~31.20 mg · kg^-1 (Pb), 12.71~63.56 mg · kg^-1 (Cr), 2.36~20.38 mg · kg^-1 (Cu) and 12.50~85.58 mg · kg^-1 (Zn), respectively.The potential ecological risk index and factors indicate that the potential ecological risks of these heavy metals are of low level.The sequence of the degree of their potential ecological factors is Cr > Pb > Cu > Zn.