Spatial health risk assessment and hierarchical risk management for mercury in soils from a typical contaminated site, China

Abstract

Due to rapid urbanization and the implementation of ecological civilization construction in China, many industrial factories have been closed or relocated. Therefore, numbers of contaminated sites were generated with contaminated soils which may pose a risk to receptors living nearby. This study presented a spatial health risk assessment and hierarchical risk management policy making for mercury (Hg) in soils from a typical contaminated site in the Hunan Province, central China. Compared with the second class value (0.3 mg/kg) of the Chinese Environmental Quality Standard for Soils, the mean concentrations of Hg in the three soil depths exceeded the second class value. The non-carcinogenic risk of Hg probably posed adverse health effects in 41, 30 and 36 % of the surface soil, the moderate soil and subsoil, respectively, under a sensitive land scenario. The non-carcinogenic risk temporarily posed no adverse health effects in most areas under an insensitive land scenario except for the area around sampling site S29. Spatially, the central, southwest and northeast parts of the contaminated land under a sensitive land scenario should be regarded as the priority regions. For non-carcinogenic effects, the exposure pathways that resulted in the higher levels of exposure risk were ingestion and inhalation of vapors, followed by dermal contact and inhalation of particles. A risk-based integrated risk management policy including the hierarchical risk control values for different soil depths and the calculated remediation earthwork was proposed with consideration of the cost-benefit effect for the related decision-makers.

Non-Competitive and Competitive Adsorption of Pb2+, Cd2+ and Zn2+ Ions onto SDS in Process of Micellar-Enhanced Ultrafiltration

“…Upon a surfactant being added into the polluted aqueous phase, it aggregates and forms micelles at a concentration higher than its critical micellar concentration (CMC). Micelle can facilitate the solubilization of organic matters and integrates them into its hydrophobic core or/and adsorb counter metal ions on its surface [2][3][4][5].…”

“…Among these studies, MEUF could remove many metal ions, including Cd 2+ , Ni 2+ , Zn 2+ [10][11][12], Cr 3+ , Mn 2+ , Pb 2+ , CrO 4 3− , Cu 2+ , …”

Spatial Characteristics, Health Risk Assessment and Sustainable Management of Heavy Metals and Metalloids in Soils from Central China

“…Heavy metals and metalloids that accumulate in the soil can inhibit soil function, poison plants and contaminate the food chain [4][5][6]. When heavy metals and metalloids have been transported from the soil to other environmental media, such as groundwater or crops, they can pose a threat to human health as a consequence of inhalation or of three kinds of industry-agriculture, industries and services-is 10 …”

Characteristics of Particulate Pollution (PM2.5 and PM10) and Their Spacescale-Dependent Relationships with Meteorological Elements in China

“…PM 10 denotes particles with an aerodynamic diameter of 10 µm or less, and PM 2.5 denotes those with a diameter of 2.5 µm or less. High concentrations of air particulates can have environmental impacts, such as degraded atmospheric visibility, and human impacts, such as acute or chronic respiratory diseases [8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15]. Between 1990 and 2005, global population-weighted PM 2.5 increased by 6%, with noted increases in Asia [16].…”