Contents and mass balances of cadmium and arsenic in a wastewater-fed fish pond of Hoang Mai, Hanoi, Vietnam

Wastewater-fed aquatic production has been practiced since the 1960s in peri-urban Hanoi. Wastewater is used as a cheap and reliable source of both water and nutrients but there is a risk that it may lead to accumulation of potentially toxic elements (PTEs) in the production systems and produce and thereby constitute a food safety risk. This study investigates the cadmium (Cd) and arsenic (As) concentrations in water, sediment, plant and fish of a wastewater fed-fish pond in Hoang Mai district, Hanoi, Vietnam. Cd concentrations in the water were lower than the Vietnamese quality guidelines (0.8-1.8 μg Cd/L) for protection of aquatic life but As concentrations in inlet and outlet water of 44.3 and 21.3 μg/L, respectively both were higher that the guidelines (20 μg As/L) and may cause toxicity to fish in the pond and the surrounding vegetable farms using the outlet water for irrigation. The concentrations of Cd and As in fish and Cd in water spinach did not constitute a food safety risk. However, As concentrations in water spinach may be of concern. A mass balance estimate for the fish pond showed that about 12% of the incoming As accumulate in suspended particular matters, 40% settle down to the sediment, less than 0.1% accumulate in the fish and water spinach and 48% overflow with the pond effluent. The concentrations of Cd were too low to make a mass balance for the fish pond.