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Health risks associated with accumulation of heavy metals in fish of Keenjhar Lake, Pakistan

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Abstract

The Keenjhar Lake in the southern part of Pakistan is exposed to heavy metal contamination, mainly due to the lack of proper upstream industrial effluent treatment. In this study, accumulation of heavy metals in five frequently consumed fish species Cirrhinus mrigala (Morakhi), Labeo rohita (Kur’ro), Solea solea (Mundi), Sperata seenghala (Singharo), and Anguilla bengalensis (Baam) from Keenjhar Lake were investigated. A total of 30 fish samples were collected from fishermen at the lake. Fish tissues were digested using standard methods and analyzed for metals using an atomic absorption spectrophotometer (AAS). Heavy metal (Cu, Ni, Pb, total Cr, Cr(VI), and Cd) concentrations were detected both in fish muscles and liver. Among the five targeted species, Cirrhinus mrigala appeared to be the most bioaccumulative fish, with Cr (219.78) > Pb (34.20) > Cu (22.49) > Ni ((16.24) > Cr(VI) (15.25) > Cd (0.01). The target hazard quotient (THQ) and hazard index (HI) were calculated to assess human health risk. The concentration of metals showed a significant difference among fish muscles and liver in the three studied locations. The total HI for heavy metals were estimated to be less than 1, but the cancer risk (CR) for Pb and Cr(VI) exceeded acceptable limits for fish consumption. From the human health perspective, this study informs local populations, i.e., fishing communities and population consuming approximately 150 g/day of Keenjhar Lake fish regularly are chronically exposed to Pb and Cr(VI) contamination with (10ˉ4 to 10ˉ6) carcinogenic risks.

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Acknowledgments

Authors also like to acknowledge USPCAS-W and Hi-Tech lab of Institute of Environmental Engineering & Management (IEEM), Mehran University of Engineering and Technology (MUET) Jamshoro, Sindh, Pakistan for providing laboratory facilities.

Funding information

The research funding was provided by USAID through U.S. Pakistan Centre for Advanced Studies in Water (USPCAS-W) for conducting this study under the project “Keenjhar Lake water quality assessment and valuing ecosystems services (KL-WAVES).”

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. U.S. Pakistan Center for Advanced Studies in Water, Mehran University of Engineering and Technology, Jamshoro, Sindh, 76062, Pakistan

    Raima Mehmood, Uzma Imran & Asmat Ullah

  2. The Joint Graduate School of Energy and Environment (JGSEE), King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi, 126 Prachauthit Road, Bangkok, 10140, Thailand

    Asmat Ullah

  3. Centre of Excellence on Energy Technology and Environment, PERDO, Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation, Bangkok, Thailand

    Asmat Ullah

  4. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Utah, 201 Presidents Circle, Room 201, Salt Lake City, UT, 84112, USA

    Jeffrey Layton Ullman & Jennifer Weidhaas

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  1. Raima Mehmood
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Correspondence to Asmat Ullah.

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Mehmood, R., Imran, U., Ullah, A. et al. Health risks associated with accumulation of heavy metals in fish of Keenjhar Lake, Pakistan. Environ Sci Pollut Res 27, 24162–24172 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-020-08705-4

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