Health risk assessment of trace elements in drinking water from Najran City, southwestern Saudi Arabia

Abstract

The concentrations of 16 trace elements (Ag, Al, As, B, Ba, Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Mn, Ni, Pb, Se, Ti, U, and Zn) in drinking water from Najran City, Saudi Arabia, were determined by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) and compared with local, regional, and international guidelines. Water samples from 22 water treatment plants and 13 commercial bottled water brands were analyzed. Except for B and U, the trace element concentrations were below the permitted limits defined in SASO, GSO, and WHO drinking water quality guidelines. The B concentrations in three brands of bottled water were 533.19, 602.29, and 1471.96 μg/L, which were all higher than the GSO and SASO limit (500 μg/L). The U concentrations were higher than the SASO limits for drinking water in two samples; one in treatment plant (2.39 μg/L) and another in foreign bottled water (2.17 μg/L). The median As, Ba, Cu, Ni, U, and Zn concentrations were statistically significantly higher in the treatment plant water samples than those in the bottled water samples, and conversely, the B concentrations were higher in the bottled water samples. The Cd, Hg, and Ti concentrations were below the detection limits of ICP-MS in all of the water samples. Apart from few exceptions, trace element concentrations in drinking water of Najran City were all within limits permitted in the national, regional, and international drinking water quality guideline values.