Trace metal inputs reconstitution and migration assessment in a sandy Luvisol after 100 years of massive irrigation with raw wastewaters

Raw wastewaters were massively spread on sandy luvisols near Paris from 1899 to 2002, leading to high trace metals (TM) pollution of soils. Mass balance calculations were performed on a soil profile to assess vertical migration of TM. The contamination was estimated by subtracting the natural pedo-geochemical background of the horizons. TM inputs were estimated using Cr as an invariant. It is shown that Pb and Cr remained in the surface horizon, while Ni, Cd, Cu and Zn migrated downward, being more or less trapped depending on the physicochemical properties of the horizons. (c) 2006 Academie des sciences. Publie par Elsevier SAS. Tons droits reserves.