Flux of nutrients and heavy metals from the Melai River sub-catchment into Lake Chini, Pekan, Pahang, Malaysia

Abstract

This study was carried out to determine the flux of nutrients and heavy metals from the Melai sub-catchment into Lake Chini through the process of erosion. Melai River is one of the seven feeder rivers that contributed to the present water level of Lake Chini. Three properties of soils, such as particle size, organic matter content, and soil hydraulic conductivity and three chemical soil properties, such as available nutrients, dissolved nutrients, and heavy metals, were analyzed and interpreted. Potential soil loss was estimated using the revised universal soil loss equation model. The results show that the soil textures in the study area consist of clay, silty clay, clay loam, and sandy silt loam. The organic matter content ranges from 3. 40 to 9. 92 %, while the hydraulic conductivity ranges from 5. 2 to 25. 3 cm/h. Mean values of available P, K, and Mg amount was 8. 5 ± 3. 7 μg/g, 24. 5 ± 3. 4 μg/g, and 20. 7 ± 18. 6 μg/g, respectively. The highest concentration of soluble nutrients was SO4-2 (815. 8 ± 624. 1 μg/g), followed by NO3--N (295. 5 ± 372. 7 μg/g), NH4+-N (24. 5 ± 22. 1 μg/g) and PO43- (2. 0 ± 0. 8 μg/g). The rainfall erosivity value was 1658. 7 MJ mm/ha/h/year. The soil erodibility and slope factor ranges from 0. 06 to 0. 26 ton h/MJ/mm and 7. 63 to 18. 33, respectively. The rate of soil loss from the Melai sub-catchment in the present condition is very low (0. 0028 ton/ha/year) to low (18. 93 ton/ha/year), and low level flow of nutrients and heavy metals, indicating that the Melai River was not the contaminant source of sediments, nutrients, and heavy metals to the lake. © 2012 The Author(s).