Journal of Earth Science & Climatic Change
Open Access

Research Article

Physico-Chemical Composition of Saline Lakes of the Gobi Desert Region, Western Mongolia

¹Molecular and Biological Agricultural Sciences Program, Taiwan International Graduate Program, Academia Sinica, Taipei, and National Chung-Hsing University, National Unversity of Mongolia Taichung, Taiwan

²Biodiversity Research Center, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan

³Biotechnology Center, National Chung-Hsing University, Taichung, Taiwan

⁴Department of Biology, School of Arts and Sciences, National University of Mongolia, Ulaanbaatar 14201, Mongolia

⁵Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering, School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, National University of Mongolia, Ulaanbaatar 14201, Mongolia

⁶Department of Chemistry, School of Arts and Sciences, National University of Mongolia, Ulaanbaatar 14201, Mongolia

*Corresponding Author:

Bayanmunkh B
Molecular and Biological Agricultural Sciences
Program, Taiwan International Graduate Program
Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan, and National Chung-Hsing
University, National Unversity of Mongolia, Baga Toiruu-Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
Tel: 976-95950515
E-mail: analytchem.num@gmail.com

Received date: February 16, 2017; Accepted date: February 24, 2017; Published date: February 28, 2017

Citation: Bayanmunkh B, Sen-Lin T, Narangarvuu D, Ochirkhuyag B, Bolormaa O (2017) Physico-Chemical Composition of Saline Lakes of the Gobi Desert Region, Western Mongolia. J Earth Sci Clim Change 8:388. doi: 10.4172/2157-7617.1000388

Copyright: © 2017 Bayanmunkh B, et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

Mongolian saline lakes have been rarely studied. In particular, physicochemical composition of small shallow lakes of the Gobi Desertregion in western Mongolia is simply unknown. Objectives were to characterize chemical composition and describe biogeochemical characteristics of saline lakes in the Gobi Desertregions and steppe mountains, with an emphasis on environmental parameters associated with heavy metal ions. Major physicochemical parameters were determined in 14 lakes (with varying degrees of salinity) located in western Mongolia and associations with geographic variation and distance were determined. Vertical profiles for temperature, specific conductance, and dissolved oxygen were characterized. Salinity and pH were measured with multiparameter submersible profilers. Heavy metal ions (i.e., As, Pb, and Cd) and microelements (i.e., K, Na, Zn, Cu, Ni, Cr, and Co) were analyzed with Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometry. Hydrogen sulfide, ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate were also determined by commercial kits for elemental analysis. Overall, 43 environmental parameters were determined from 31 water samples from various locations, representing distinct geographic features, including Gobi Desert, mountain range and steppe area. Several of these lakes had harmful concentrations of arsenate (< 0.34 mg/L). Heavy metal concentrations were correlated with selected physico-chemical variables of lake salinity and geographic specificity. We inferred that various environmental features, in addition to environmental pollution and mining activity, may be responsible for increased heavy metal concentrations in the Gobi Desert of the western Mongolia. The outcome of this study not only provided insights into lake chemistry, but should also be valuable for water resource management to mitigate potential poisoning and improve public health.

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