Cadmium in agricultural soils, vegetables and rice and potential health risk in vicinity of Dabaoshan Mine in Shaoguan, China

Abstract

Soil cadmium (Cd) contamination resulted from mining and smelting is a major environmental concern, and health risk associated with Cd exposure to multi-media through muti-pathway is increasing. Cd concentrations in soils, vegetables and paddy rice were investigated, and potential non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic health risks exposure to Cd were estimated at six villages around the Dabaoshan Mine, South China. A total of 87 soil samples were found to exceed the China’s maximum permission level (MPL) for Cd, while the highest value of 4.42 mg/kg was found near irrigation ditch associated with Hengshi River in Xinyi (XY) Village. Cd contents in vegetables and rice exceeded the maximum permissible concentration by more than five times in every village. Cadmium accumulation in plants is in the order of celery > lactuca sativa L > Chinese cabbage > Romaine lettuce > asparagus lettuce > mustard > cabbage mustard > cabbage. The mean hazard quotient (HQ) of all villages is in the range of [5.29, 25.75], and the mean values of cancer risk for investigated areas are more than 10 times greater than the USEPA (2009) threshold limit value of 10⁻⁴. Moreover, human non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic risks are mainly attributable to paddy rice intake, followed by vegetables intake, soil ingestion, inhalation, and dermal contact. The results indicate that Cd has a huge potential risk on human health for the local residents.

Keywords

cadmium / health risk / soil pollution / vegetables / paddy rice / dietary intake

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