Investigating the potential correlations between metal and metalloid concentrations and soil color : A Minor Field Study on the island province of Marinduque, Philippines

Sammanfattning: This study was carried out as a bachelor's thesis at KTH Royal Institute of Technology during the spring of 2023, investigating the correlation between the color with the concentration of various metal and metalloids (MMs) in the soil of Marinduque, The Philippines. With a history of mineral exploitation, notably copper and gold, the island has faced persistent environmental challenges, exemplified by the catastrophic waste spills in 1993 and 1996 that contaminated the Boac and Mogpog Rivers. These incidents have left lasting consequences on the environment and human health. The research methodology involved an analysis of soil samples collected from Marinduque, using portable equipment such as Olympus Vanta X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF), color scanning using the Nix Pro 2 Color Sensor, followed by data processing through MATLAB version R2023a. The latter involved statistical methods such as Pearson correlation and p-value, which produced correlation coefficients and identified which correlations were statistically significant. The correlations yielded were those between varying MMs concentrations in the soil and CIE L'a'b' soil color parameters across different municipalities in Marinduque. These correlations offer insights into potential causal relationships between arsenic (As), iron (Fe), lead (Pb), manganese (Mn) and zinc (Zn), and soil discoloration. Based on correlations between MMs concentrations and soil color, future studies can encompass a broader range of soil assessment and contamination risks analysis, thus offering valuable guidance to local communities and authorities in devising effective strategies for mitigating MMs pollution in the natural environment.