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. 2024 May 14;14(2):634-650.
doi: 10.3390/jox14020037.

Heavy Metal(oid)s Contamination and Potential Ecological Risk Assessment in Agricultural Soils

Muhammad Saleem  1 , David Pierce  2 , Yuqiang Wang  2 , Donald A Sens  1 , Seema Somji  1 , Scott H Garrett  1
Affiliations

Heavy Metal(oid)s Contamination and Potential Ecological Risk Assessment in Agricultural Soils

Muhammad Saleem et al. J Xenobiot. .

Abstract

Soil pollution caused by heavy metal(oid)s has generated great concern worldwide due to their toxicity, persistence, and bio-accumulation properties. To assess the baseline data, the heavy metal(oid)s, including manganese (Mn), iron (Fe), Cobalt (Co), nickel (Ni), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), arsenic (As), lead (Pb), mercury (Hg), chromium (Cr), and cadmium (Cd), were evaluated in surface soil samples collected from the farmlands of Grand Forks County, North Dakota. Samples were digested via acid mixture and analyzed via inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP MS) analysis to assess the levels, ecological risks, and possible sources. The heavy metal(oid) median levels exhibited the following decreasing trend: Fe > Mn > Zn > Ni > Cr > Cu > Pb > Co > As > Cd > Hg. Principal component analysis (PCA) and hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) suggested the main lithogenic source for the studied metal(oid)s. Metal(oid) levels in the current investigation, except Mn, are lower than most of the guideline values set by international agencies. The contamination factor (Cf), geo accumulation index (Igeo) and enrichment factor (EF) showed considerable contamination, moderate contamination, and significant enrichment, respectively, for As and Cd on median value basis. Ecological risk factor (Er) results exhibited low ecological risk for all studied metal(oid)s except Cd, which showed considerable ecological risk. The potential ecological risk index (PERI) levels indicated low ecological risk to considerable risk. Overall, the results indicate the accumulation of As and Cd in the study area. The high nutrients of the soils potentially affect their accumulation in crops and impact on consumers' health. This drives the impetus for continued environmental monitoring programs.

Keywords: agriculture soils; ecological risk assessment; enrichment factor (EF); heavy metals; principal component analysis (PCA).

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Principal component analysis loading plots for the two rotated components.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Hierarchical Cluster Analysis for heavy metal(oid) levels in soil samples.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Risk assessment for heavy metal(oid)s; Geo-accumulation Factor (a), Enrichment Factor (b), Contamination factor (c), Ecological risk factor and Potential ecological risk index (d).
Figure 3
Figure 3
Risk assessment for heavy metal(oid)s; Geo-accumulation Factor (a), Enrichment Factor (b), Contamination factor (c), Ecological risk factor and Potential ecological risk index (d).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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