Health risk assessment of multiple exposure pathways of soil heavy metals pollution in China
Soil heavy metals(SHMs)contamination has been widely concerned owing to its high toxicity,concealment,persistence,and bioaccumulation.Therefore,accurately quantifying the human input pathways and their harm risks of SHMs is crucial to safeguarding people's lives and health.This study reconstructed a multi-category hybrid soil HM(Cu,Pb,Zn,Cd,Cr,As,Ni,and Hg)concentration fusion dataset at the national scale through a combination of multiple sample measurements and literature retrieval,selected 856 references and 563 measurement samples collected in the past three years,and improved a health risk assessment model based on the localized and refined soil-dietary food chain enrichment model.Through three channels of food intake,skin contact,and inhalation,six fine food chains of meat,eggs,grains,vegetables,fruits,and fish,the non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic health risks of SHM were accurately quantified,and the main human input pathways were identified.The results showed that the average concentration of SHM in southern China was generally higher than that in northern China,Zn(84.35 mg·kg-1)was 702 times higher than Hg(0.12 mg·kg-1)in soil.Cd was the most common pollutant in China soil,about 90％of total Cd of sampling sites exceeded the latest risk screening values.Food ingestion is the most common pathway for SHMs to enter the human body,followed by skin contact.Among them,food intake contributes 88％and 86％to the Non-carcinogenic Hazard index(HI)and Carcinogenic Risk index(CRI)of human exposure,respectively.It is worth noting that the HI of Cu,Pb,Zn,Cd,Cr,Ni,and Hg did not exceed 1,except for some non-carcinogenic risks of As in Hunan,and Cd,Cr,As,and Ni had acceptable carcinogenic risk for CRI was within the range of threshold values(10-4 to 10-6).Among the six fine food chains studied herein,meat and grains are the animal and plant food chains that result in the highest exposure of SHMs to the human body.Overall,the health risks caused by HM-contaminated soil on humans are within acceptable limits.This study will be of value in developing accurate SHMs health risk management strategies and protecting the environment.
万方数据
维普
