Issue 5, 2024

Risk assessment of heavy metals in soil and simultaneous monitoring in wheat irrigated with groundwater and treated wastewater and its long-term effects for residents of adjacent regions

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the health risks posed by heavy metals in irrigation water, soil, and wheat in areas of Iran that are either groundwater-irrigated (Gerdkhoon) or wastewater-irrigated (Shorghan). Concentrations of metals including Fe, Zn, Cu, Mn, and As were higher in effluent than groundwater; however, all heavy metal concentrations were below the irrigation water standard in both Shorghan and Gerdkhoon. The effluent-irrigated area had elevated soil concentrations of Fe, Mn, Ni, Cr, Cu, Co, and As, which exceeded WHO safety limits for Fe. Moreover, the concentrations of As, Cr, Ni, Fe, Mn, and Zn were higher in effluent-irrigated wheat by, respectively, 0.25, 3.4, 3.75, 370.85, 3.08, and 242.18 mg kg−1 than in groundwater-irrigated wheat. Ingestion was the primary source of exposure for both carcinogenic and noncarcinogenic risk assessments. Besides, the HQ of exposure to soil was less than the threshold adopted by EPA, while the HQ of exposure to wheat was more than the EPA's threshold in both study areas. These findings demonstrate propagation of metals through the water-soil-crop continuum, indicating the need for better wastewater treatment and crop monitoring to reduce health risks. The integrated exposure and risk analysis provides an exemplar methodology for comprehensive assessment of a ubiquitous pollutant.

Graphical abstract: Risk assessment of heavy metals in soil and simultaneous monitoring in wheat irrigated with groundwater and treated wastewater and its long-term effects for residents of adjacent regions

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
24 Aug 2023
Accepted
14 Feb 2024
First published
01 Mar 2024

Environ. Sci.: Water Res. Technol., 2024,10, 1135-1146

Risk assessment of heavy metals in soil and simultaneous monitoring in wheat irrigated with groundwater and treated wastewater and its long-term effects for residents of adjacent regions

A. Azhdarpoor, Z. Moeini, F. Ranjbar, M. Samaei and H. Hashemi, Environ. Sci.: Water Res. Technol., 2024, 10, 1135 DOI: 10.1039/D3EW00630A

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements