WANG Jian-kang 1, 2, ZHOU Huai-dong 1, LU Jin 1, GAO Bo 1

1. Department of Water Environment, IWHR, Beijing 100038, China
2. College of Water Conservancy & Architectural Engineering, Shihezi University, Shihezi 832000, China

Abstract: Since the impounding completion of the Three Gorges Reservoir (Design water level is 175m), its environmental effect has been concerned widely. Heavy metal pollution is one of the important potential contaminants in water environment of the Three Gorges Reservoir. The concentration, morphology, distribution, accumulation and their transportation behavior of the heavy metals are very important in the research of heavy metal pollution in the Three Gorges reservoir. This paper outlines the pollution situation and pollution characteristics of heavy metals for the different environmental mediums (water, sediments, soils, municipal solid waste and aquatic organism) in the water environment of Three Gorges Reservoir. The paper also provided several useful suggestions for the future research. The paper is beneficial for the protection of water resources in the Three Gorges reservoir.

Key words: Three Gorges Reservoir, heavy metals, water environment, overview

Published in: Journal of China Institute of Water Resources and Hydropower Research (Vol. 12 No. 1, 2014)