Health risk assessment of exposure to atrazine in the soil of Shiraz farmlands, Iran

Abstract

Atrazine-contaminated soils can pose a carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic health risk through different routes for exposed people. This study aimed to assess the health risk of exposure to atrazine-contaminated soils through direct ingestion and dermal contact in farmlands nearby Shiraz. Atrazine concentration was measured in 22 selected sites using grid sampling. The carcinogenic and non-cancer risks associated with dermal and ingestion exposure in children and adults were estimated. The lowest and highest atrazine concentrations were in S1 (0.015 mg/kg soil) and S22 (0.55 mg/kg soil). Hazard Index (HI)¹ values ranged from 0.007 to 0.25 for children, and the values ranged from 0.0008 to 0.03 for adults. The mean cancer risk for children and adults was 6.01 × 10^-4 and 7.40 × 10^-5, respectively. The HI value was less than 1 for all sampling sites, indicating that exposure to atrazine does not threaten children and adults. However, the cancer risk exceeds the United States Environmental Protection Agency (US.EPA)² threshold risk limit (10^-6 to 10^-4) in all sampling sites. Therefore, it is recommended that children should avoid playing on atrazine-contaminated farms or soils near anywhere atrazine may have been used.

Keywords: Atrazine; Health risk assessment; Shiraz; Soil.