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The use of phosphate fertilizers is essential in agriculture, because they supply farmland with nutrients for growing plants. However, heavy metals might be included as impurities in natural materials and minerals, so heavy metals can also be present in phosphate fertilizers or other chemical fertilizers. The aim of this work was to assess the heavy metal content and contamination status of agricultural soils in the Hamadan province of Iran used for the cultivation of different crops, including cucumber, potatoes, and sugar beet. Surface soil samples were collected and analyzed to determine the total concentration of specific elements (As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Zn), before the pollution index was calculated for each element. Soils used for the cultivation of the three types of crop were not contaminated with As, Cr, Cu, Pb, or Zn. However, the pollution indices for Cd were 1.1, 4.4, and 3.8 in cucumber, potato, and sugar beet fields, respectively, which indicated moderate, high, and high levels of contamination, respectively. Soils from potato and sugar beet fields were heavily contaminated with Cd, which may have resulted from long-term overuse of phosphate fertilizers.

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The long-term application of phosphate fertilizers on vegetable production fields has raised concerns about the potential health risks of heavy metal contamination of crops grown on contaminated soils in the Hamadan province, western Iran. This study found that long-term fertilizer use led to a growing accumulation of heavy metals in soils. High concentrations of elemental As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Pb, and Zn were found in potatoes sampled from overused phosphate-fertilized soils, which increased the daily intake of metals in food. However, the ingestion of potatoes from soils affected by phosphate fertilizers posed a low health risk when compared with the health risk index of <1 for heavy metals. Nevertheless, heavy metal concentrations should be periodically monitored in vegetables grown in these soils. It would also be beneficial to implement effective remediation technologies to minimize possible impacts on human health.

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