Soil contamination in Fildes Peninsula ( King George Island , Antarctic ) : Bio ( availability ) and Remediation strategies

The Fildes Bay, located on Fildes Peninsula, King George Island, is characterized by its high biodiversity, but also by the high density of scientific stations, becoming one of the most contaminated areas of Antarctica. In order to assess the contamination and distribution of several trace elements (Cr, Ni, Cu, Zn, As, Pb, Cd and Hg) in Fildes Bay, soil samples were collected, The results obtained in this study point to the existence of several contaminated hotspots mainly related to high levels of Cu, Zn, Pb, Cd, Cr and Ni. The comparison of the contaminant distribution pattern with previous works allows identifying the anthropogenic sources as well as proposing several remediation