Abstract: The soil samples were collected from the locations near a coal-fired power plant. The atomic fluorescence spectrometry was applied in the total arsenic detection, and the arsenic in the soil samples was further fractionated into different fractions by a sequential extraction procedure. The results indicate that the arsenic content in the soil samples is below the national environmental quality standards for soil and decreases vertically with the deeper sampling spot. Taking the chimney as the origin, the arsenic content is distributed horizontally in agreement with parabola characteristics and is also related to the wind direction. The fractions of arsenic are mainly in iron and aluminum hydration oxide binding fractions and residuals, which are not easily uptaken by plants and animals.

Key words: coal-fired power plant, environmental protection, soil, arsenic, mode of occurrence