Non Carcinogenic Risk Assessment of Fluoride: A Case Study on Distribution of Water Quality Parameters in Groundwater of Kurnool District

Abstract

The current investigation was carried out to find available fluoride concentration in groundwater in Kurnool District, Andhra Pradesh where the major source for drinking is ground water. Around 141 samples are collected from bore wells and hand pumps of selected villages in Kurnool district by using Grid map. The samples were analyzed for selected Physico-chemical parameters. The fluoride ion content was found out in the range of 0.2 to 3.6 mg/l with mean 1.1 mg/l. Human risk assessment was carried out in terms of Hazard quotient. The Average Hazard Quotient observed for children were 1.13, for males were 1.04, and for females it is 0.92. The observed HQ values are above 1 which may prone to risk, particularly for children due to their low body weight. Compared to BIS water quality standards, the remaining parameters are also within the permissible limit except nitrate ion. The elevated nitrate level in groundwater was due to excess utilization of nitrogen based fertilizers.