ORIGINAL RESEARCH
Assessment of Soil Heavy Metals and Intake Risk
in Typical Se-Rich Areas, Xianyushan Area, China
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Anhui Normal University, China
Submission date: 2023-12-29
Final revision date: 2024-02-06
Acceptance date: 2024-03-12
Online publication date: 2024-09-13
Corresponding author
Xiaoguo Wu
School of Ecology and Environment, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui, 241002, PR China
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ABSTRACT
The concentrations of heavy metals (HMs) and the associated pollution risk and dietary exposure
risk were assessed by collecting 154 soil samples and 6 food types from the Xianyushan area.
The concentrations of Zn, Cd, and As in the soil were 1.2, 3.4, and 2.8 times the background values,
and the percentages of samples exceeding the background value were 47%, 65%, and 96%, respectively.
Concentrations of Cd, Cr, and As exhibited significant variations among the three land use types,
which were potentially attributed to soil properties, agricultural amendments, and other contributing
factors. Based on the integrated results from spatial distribution analysis, correlation analysis (CA),
and principal component analysis (PCA), it can be inferred that these HMs mainly originated from soil
parent materials. Pollution risk assessment indicated that Cd and As were the dominating soil pollutants.
Although HM levels in different food types were lower than the limit defined in China’s national food
safety standards, the total estimated daily intakes (EDIs) of Cd and As exceeded permissible tolerable
daily intake (PTDI) values as well as reference doses (RfD). The target hazard quotient (THQ)
values indicated that Cd, As, and Hg present lower risks from dietary intake compared to other HMs,
especially, since cereals present a high risk of HM intake and need further attention.