Trace elements and semi-volatile organic compounds in bed
sediments from streams and impoundments at Fort Gordon, Georgia
James B. McConnell, Timothy C. Stamey, Howard H. Persinger,
and Keith W. McFadden
U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 00-87, 39 pages
Cover illustration: U.S. Geological Survey
hydrologist collecting bed-sediment samples on tributary to
Butler Creek, Fort Gordon, Georgia, May 28, 1998. Photograph by
Timothy C. Stamey, U.S. Geological Survey.
ABSTRACT
In May 1998, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the
Environmental and Natural Resources Management Office of the U.S.
Army Signal Center and Fort Gordon, investigated the presence and
disbursal of trace elements and semi-volatile organic compounds
in bed sediments from selected streams and impoundments at the
Fort Gordon military installation near Augusta, Georgia.
Concentrations of 18 trace elements and total organic carbon, and
66 semi-volatile compounds were determined from analysis of the
fine-grained fraction of bed-sediment samples from 29 surface-water
deposition locations.
Analysis of the bed-sediment data indicates that commercial
and industrial land-use areas generally are associated with the
highest concentrations of trace elements and semi-volatile
organic compounds, and the greatest occurrence and distribution of
trace elements and semi-volatile organic compounds in bed
sediments at Fort Gordon. Bed sediment collected at sites having
drainage areas less than 1.0 square mile and greater than 45
percent commercial and industrial land uses, have the
most occurrences and the highest concentrations of trace elements
and semi-volatile organic compounds. Sampling sites having less
than 2 percent commercial and industrial land uses had the lowest
concentrations, regardless of drainage basin size. Relative
rankings and evaluation of individual trace element and
semi-volatile organic compound concentration data identified two
sites that have substantially higher
sediment-quality scores than the other sites. This suggests
that these sites have the greatest potential risk for
adverse effects on aquatic life. The effects of these elevated
trace element and semi-volatile organic compound concentrations
on aquatic life in these basins may merit further investigation.
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