Spatial trend and Probabilistic health risk assessment of heavy metals, Nitrate, and Fluoride in groundwater resources, West Azerbaijan province, Iran

Abstract

The quality of water resources used for drinking and their health effects is vitally important. The present study investigated the concentrations of F¯, NO3¯, and metal elements like Hg, Mn, As, and Pb in the groundwater resources and their health risk assessment. The study area was part of West Azerbaijan, west of Urmia Lake, located northwest of Iran. Sampling points were selected and were taken from 121 groundwater resources. Heavy metals (Pb, As, Mn, and Hg) and ions (Na+, NO3¯, F¯, and Cl¯) were measured, respectively. The probabilistic method and Monte-Carlo simulation are used to estimate carcinogenic and Noncarcinogenic risks. The Concentration of study elements was obtained in the range of the World Health Organization (WHO) recommended. The order of Heavy metals (HMs) concentrations is based on the overall mean: Mn > As > Hg > Pb. The hazard index (HI) level was found to be more than 1 for noncarcinogenic risk for As and NO3¯, also permissible risks for the other elements. ELCR levels of As were acceptable, except for some sampling points, the central region in the study area, near the seashore of Urmia Lake. Finally, it can be stated that the groundwater resources in the studied area are acceptable for drinking in most places. Still, due to the effects of As and NO3¯ contaminated water, the quality is unacceptable for drinking in some places. So, in the study area, monitoring water quality is recommended by finding contamination sources to decrease the health risks of drinking consumption.