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Spatial distribution and health risk assessment in urban surface soils of Mediterranean Sea region, Cyprus İsland

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Abstract

Soil pollution with heavy metals (HMs) has become an increasingly serious environmental concern and needs assessment of ecological and human health risks, especially in an urban area. For this purpose, the contents of eight HMs (As, Mn, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb, and Zn) in surface (0–5 cm) soil samples from 32 urban sites in the North area of Cyprus were examined using EDXRF spectrometer analysis. The average concentrations for As, Mn, Ni, Pb Cr, Cu, Hg, and Zn in soil samples were 4.7, 950.6, 230.5, 48.2, 1.8, 186.8, 15.1, and 87.5 mg/kg, respectively. The results showed that the mean concentrations of the HMs in the soil samples followed the order Mn > Cr > Ni > Zn > Cu > Pb > As > Hg, respectively. The mean geo-accumulation index (Igeo) of Hg was found in strong/extreme contamination. The potential ecological risk index (PERI) mean value was calculated in moderate ecological risk. Also, health risks assessment through three exposures pathways in adults and children showed that the total hazard index (HI) values for children were higher than for adults.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Engineering, University of Kyrenia, Girne, Northern Cyprus, 10, Mersin, Turkey

    Akbar Abbasi

  2. Faculty of Engineering, Near East University, Nicosia, Northern Cyprus, 10, Mersin, Turkey

    Fatemeh Mirekhtiary

  3. Department of Physics, Faculty of Science and Letters, Kastamonu University, 37150, Kastamonu, Turkey

    Şeref Turhan & Asli Kurnaz

  4. Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, Menoufia University, Shebin El-Koom, 32511, Menoufia, Egypt

    Y. S. Rammah

  5. Department of Chemistry, College of Science, Taif University, P.O.Box 11099, Taif, 21944, Saudi Arabia

    Shams H. Abdel-Hafez

  6. Physics Department, Faculty of Science, Al-Azhar University, 71524, Assiut, Egypt

    Hesham M. H. Zakaly

  7. Institute of Physics and Technology, Ural Federal University, Ekaterinburg, 620002, Russia

    Hesham M. H. Zakaly

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  1. Akbar Abbasi
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  2. Fatemeh Mirekhtiary
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  4. Asli Kurnaz
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  5. Y. S. Rammah
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  7. Hesham M. H. Zakaly
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Contributions

AA: Writing, modeling, and proofing. FM: Project management. ŞT: Experimental contrbution. AK: Experimental contrbution. YR: Sample preparation, Analysis. SA: Proofing, graphing. HZ: project supporting.

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Correspondence to Akbar Abbasi.

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Responsible Editor: Amjad Kallel

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Abbasi, A., Mirekhtiary, F., Turhan, Ş. et al. Spatial distribution and health risk assessment in urban surface soils of Mediterranean Sea region, Cyprus İsland. Arab J Geosci 15, 987 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-022-10249-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-022-10249-5

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