Abstract: On the basis of the sediments of Taiyu River, a secondary tributary of the Yellow River affected by the gold mine development, 16 surface sediment samples were collected along the river and 10 reservoir sediment samples in vertical section were collected in layers. The values of heavy metals Hg, Pb, Cd Cr, As, Cu and Zn in the Taiyu River sediments were determined. The Hakanson potential ecological index method and the Tomlinson pollution load index method were used to evaluate the degree of heavy metal pollution and potential ecological risk. The results show that the mining activities are the main factors of heavy metal pollution in the sediments of Taiyu River system The coefficient of variation, enrichment coefficient and maximum pollution coefficient all show that heavy metals are the characteristic elements of Hg, Pb and Cd in the sediments of Taiyu water system, and the mass fraction of Cr and As is close to the background value of the region. The surface sediments of Taiyu water system are affected by extremely heavy pollution of heavy metals, and are more seriously polluted in the mountain section than in other areas. Hg, Pb and Cd in the whole basin have strong potential ecological risk, and the potential ecological risk of Cr, As and Zn is slight. Sediments are extremely polluted by heavy metals. The ecological problems are mainly the potential ecological hazards of Hg, Pb and Cd, and their pollution and ecological damage are all higher than deposits along the flow. The evaluation of potential ecological risk index highlights the toxic and harmful levels of different elements, the Pollution Load Index focuses on the degree of contamination of the sample space, and the complementary use of both is conducive to a comprehensive evaluation of practical problems.