Through the processes of precipitation and
sedimentation, some of the heavy metals that are
introduced in an aquatic system are deposited in
the sediment Avila-P´erez and Zaraz´ua-Ortega,
1993b; Baruah et al., 1996; Dekov et al., 1997;
Rodr´ıguez and Avila-P´erez, 1997.. Thus, the sediment
provides useful information on the history
of the water body quality Baryshev et al., 1995;
Von Gunten et al., 1997.. In spite of the economic
importance of this reservoir in the area, there is
not enough information about the contamination
by heavy metals. The main aim of this work is to
determine heavy metal concentrations in water
and sediment of the Alzate Reservoir, in order to
establish reference data on the reservoir quality
and evidence of the water self-cleaning capacity
of the reservoir.