Abstract
The Candiota region, located in the extreme south of Brazil, has the largest mineral coal deposit in the country, and this activity is capable of releasing pollutants in which they are associated with the contamination of different matrices (soil, water, and air). The present study aimed to carry out a risk assessment to human health of atmospheric pollutants NO2 and SO2 and PM10-bound metal(loid)s in the municipality of Candiota, in addition to evaluating the correlation of meteorological parameters for the dynamics and potential risk of these pollutants. Pollutants were sampled from stations located almost 4 km from coal exploration activities, and the trace elements As, Cd, Se, Pb, and Ni, in addition to NO2 and SO2, were evaluated. Risk assessment was conducted taking into account the risk to adults via the inhalation route. During the sampling period, all pollutants presented values lower than national legislation or internationally accepted values, and Pb was the element that presented the highest values throughout the sampled period. The risk assessment showed no carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic risks, even when considering the sum of the risk of all analyzed pollutants. It can be observed that the highest levels of Pb, As, and Se occurred in the winter season, while the levels of Ni and Cd were higher in the spring, and the meteorological parameters were correlated with the pollutants, even using a temporal lag of 5 days. Although the air pollutants evaluated did not present a risk to human health, continuous monitoring of regions with strong mineral exploration activity must be carried out with a view to maintaining the well-being of exposed populations, mainly because there are people living in areas closer to sources of coal pollution than distance to air quality monitoring stations.
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Data availability
The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.
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The authors thank the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior, CAPES, for the Doctoral scholarships (JOP and MS), and Fapergs, for undergraduate scholarships (ASB).
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This study was financed in part by the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior—Brasil (CAPES)—Finance Code 001 and Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico—310856/2020–5.
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LCH and FOR were responsible for writing the article, analyzing and interpreting the data. LCH, FOR, and FMRSJ were responsible for extracting the data from the databases and preparing the spreadsheets. PA, ALMB, and PRMB helped to formulate the key research question and to correct the text. FMRSJ was the advisor and responsible for the research.
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Honscha, L.C., Reis, F.O., Aikawa, P. et al. Human health risk assessment of air pollutants in the largest coal mining area in Brazil. Environ Sci Pollut Res 30, 59499–59509 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-023-26708-9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-023-26708-9