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Distribution of heavy metals in surface soil near a coal power production unit: potential risk to ecology and human health

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Abstract

Coal thermal power plants are the dominant factor in producing various hazardous elements in surrounding surface soil, resulting in a significant human health hazard. In the current study, the seasonal (pre- and post-monsoon) concentration of As, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Li, Mg, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Zn in surface soil around coal power production unit was analyzed using inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). The possible health risks throughout multiple exposure routes, i.e., ingestion, dermal, and inhalation were estimated for adult and children. Furthermore, geo-accumulation index (Igeo), enrichment factor (EF), pollution factor (CF), ecological risk index, and pollution load index (PLI) were applied to interpret the environmental pollution in the study area. The geospatial distribution pattern was computed to understand the trace and hazardous element distribution in the surface soil. As a result, the concentration of Fe (mg/kg) in pre-monsoon (15,620) and post-monsoon (27,180), Ni (mg/kg) in pre-monsoon (19.8), and post-monsoon (81.7) was found above the standard limits of soil prescribed by the WHO and FAO. Enrichment factor was observed between 0.95–6948 (pre-monsoon) and 0.53–116.09 (post-monsoon). The ecological risk index was found moderate to considerable for As and Cd metals during both seasons. In addition, the average PLI value was observed high for both seasons indicating the contamination of the study area with heavy metals. Moreover, Igeo values for Fe, Mg, and As were found relatively high. Conversely, health risks to the human population were found within the USEPA acceptable limits.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the Health Care Without Harm (HCWM) for partial support of the work. We are also grateful to the Department of Environment Studies, Panjab University, Chandigarh, India, for providing the necessary support to complete the experimental work.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Environment Studies, Panjab University, Chandigarh, 160014, India

    Suman Mor & Nitasha Vig

  2. Department of Community Medicine and School of Public Health, Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh, 160012, India

    Khaiwal Ravindra

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  1. Suman Mor
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  2. Nitasha Vig
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Contributions

Dr. Suman Mor: Conceptualization, methodology, resources, formal analysis, visualization and writing (reviewing and editing); Nitasha Vig: Methodology, software, validation, investigation, data curation, and visualization. Dr. Ravindra Khaiwal: Conceptualization, supervision, writing (reviewing and editing) visualization and writing (reviewing and editing).

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Correspondence to Khaiwal Ravindra.

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Mor, S., Vig, N. & Ravindra, K. Distribution of heavy metals in surface soil near a coal power production unit: potential risk to ecology and human health. Environ Monit Assess 194, 263 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-021-09692-w

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