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Source analysis and health risk assessment of groundwater pollution based on multivariate statistical techniques in Kashgar Delta Area, Xinjiang, China

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Abstract

In this study, 63 groundwater samples were collected in the Kashgar Delta Area in Xinjiang in 2016, and then, the samples were tested and the test results were analyzed. Multivariate statistical techniques were used to determine the sources of pollution, and the USEPA (United States Environmental Protection Agency) model was used to assess the long-term health risk of groundwater to adults and children in the study area. The concentrations of groundwater chemical Na+, Cl−, SO42−, NH4+-N, TDS, F−, I−, As, Fe, Mn, Pb, Hg, pH, TH, and CODMn, which exceed the permissible level in the study based on groundwater quality index and possibly pose a potential threat to the health of the residents in the area, which are mainly influenced by geological conditions. The source of the pollutants is the dissolution of minerals in the aquifer medium, which is greatly affected by the high-salinity groundwater environment, pH conditions, redox conditions, and evaporation and concentration effect. The values of the noncarcinogenic health risk index HQn follow the descending order of Cl− > F− > As > Fe > Mn > Pb > Hg > NH4+-N; There are eight nonarcinogens and one carcinogen in groundwater of which Cl− is the dominant noncarcinogenic factor, while As is the main carcinogenic pollutant in the study area. The health risk ratio results show that Cl− and As are the main pollutants that pose the greatest threat to both adults’ and children’s health, and they should be considered as the primary indicators for health risk management and control.

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Data availability

The datasets generated during and/or analyzed during the current study are not publicly available due to [REASON(S) WHY DATA ARE NOT PUBLIC] but are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Acknowledgements

The research was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China “Migration and enrichment mechanism of iodine in high iodine groundwater system in oasis zone of Tarim basin” (42067035), Natural Science Foundation project of Education Department of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region “Study on the mechanism of salinization and desalination of confined water in the plains of the Kashgar River Basin, Xinjiang” (XJEDU2018Y020), the Natural Science Foundation Project of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region “Research on the Formation Mechanism of High Sulphate Groundwater in Xinjiang Kashgar River Basin” (2019D01B18), and Water Conservancy Engineering Key Discipline Project of Xinjiang Agricultural University “Formation Mechanism of High Iodine Groundwater in the Kashgar River Basin, Xinjiang” (SLXK2019-10).

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Author notes

  1. Ailihamu Aikelamu and Dong Yu contributed the same to this work and should regarded as the co-first author

Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Water Conservancy and Civil Engineering, Xinjiang Agricultural University, Urumqi, 830052, China

    Dong Yu, Jinlong Zhou, Ailihamu Aikelamu, Yanyan Zeng & Jie Zhang

  2. Xinjiang Hydrology and Water Resources Engineering Research Center, Urumqi, 830052, China

    Dong Yu, Jinlong Zhou, Ailihamu Aikelamu, Yanyan Zeng & Jie Zhang

  3. Xinjiang Key Laboratory of Hydraulic Engineering Security and Water Disasters Prevention, Urumqi, 830052, China

    Dong Yu, Jinlong Zhou, Ailihamu Aikelamu, Yanyan Zeng & Jie Zhang

  4. State Key Laboratory of Geohazard Prevention and Geological Environment Protection, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu, 610059, China

    Dong Yu

  5. College of Resources and Environmental Science, Xinjiang University, Urumqi, 830046, China

    Wei Fan

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  1. Dong Yu
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Yu, D., Zhou, J., Aikelamu, A. et al. Source analysis and health risk assessment of groundwater pollution based on multivariate statistical techniques in Kashgar Delta Area, Xinjiang, China. Environ Monit Assess 193, 805 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-021-09517-w

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-021-09517-w

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