Rare earth elements patterns in groundwater, surface water, soils and rocks in the Corumbataí River Watershed, in Analândia, SP

Abstract

The rare Earth elements (REE) are considered emerging contaminants and establishing natural concentrations enables the identification and regulation of anthropogenic pollution. In this research we intend to determine of REE typical concentrations in rocks, soils, groundwater (collected from springs) and surface water in the upper area of Corumbataí river watershed in Analândia, SP. The Piramboia, Botucatu, Serra Geral and Itaqueri Formations outcrop in this area. The focus will be to understand the dissolved REE pattern in groundwater and surface water, the occurrence of seasonality in this concentration patterns and to evaluate their correlation with REE distribution in local rocks and soils.In the selected watershed rural land-uses prevail and the main anthropogenic REE income sources are phosphorous fertilizers and soil concealers, such as limestone and gypsum. The use of REE concentrations in surface waters as diffuse pollution markers for fertilizers has been successfully tested by Lawrence et al (2006) and Moller et al. (2014). As part of the subwatersheds in the study area are occupied exclusively by non-pollutant land-uses and the other part is occupied by land-uses where fertilizers and soil concealers are applied to the soil (specially sugarcane crops), we expect to be able to establish whether there are or there are not correlations between REE patterns in surface water and REE patterns in groundwater, local soils and local rocks, as well as with different land-uses and verify the possibility of using REE patterns as diffuse pollution markers in this watershed. (AU)