Chromated copper arsenate-treated fence posts in the agronomic landscape: soil properties controlling arsenic speciation and spatial distribution.

Soils adjacent to chromated copper arsenate (CCA)-treated fence posts along a fence line transecting different soil series, parent material, drainage classes, and slope were used to determine which soil properties had the most influence on As spatial distribution and speciation. Metal distribution was evaluated at macroscopic (total metal concentration contour maps) and microscopic scales (micro-synchrotron X-ray fluorescence maps), As speciation was determined using extended X-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy, and redox status and a myriad of other basic soil properties were elucidated. All geochemical parameters measured point to a condition in which the mobilization of As becomes more favorable moving down the topographic gradient, likely resulting through competition (Meh-P, SOM), neutral or slightly basic pH, and redox conditions that are favorable for As mobilization (higher Fe(II) and total-Fe concentrations in water extracts).