Chemical partitioning of trace metal contaminants in urban street dirt

Abstract

From a survey of trace metal contamination in soil and street dirt in Glasgow, 60 street dirt samples were selected for detailed investigation of chemical partitioning via a six-step sequential leaching procedure. Implications for the environmental mobility and bioavailability of lead, zinc, copper and cadmium are presented along with a comparison of soil and street dirt data. Results obtained for the solubilization of lead from street dirt by dilute hydrochloric acid are considered with respect to the health implications of street dirt ingestion by young children and also to the chemical associations revealed in the six-fraction study.