Human Health Risk Assessment for Toxic Trace Elements in the Yaro Mine and Reclamation Options.

Min-Suk Kim,Jeong Hwa Yang,Sang-Hwan Lee,Mi Jeong Park

doi:10.3390/ijerph16245077

Min-Suk Kim, Jeong Hwa Yang + Show 2 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16245077

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Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the environmental impact and human health risks associated with toxic trace element (TTE) exposure in the abandoned Yaro Mine, Korea. Carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic risks were assessed separately for adults and children. Among the various pathways, the rate of TTE intake from the ingestion of groundwater was highest, followed in descending order by crop consumption, soil ingestion, and soil contact. The carcinogenic risk from the ingestion of groundwater was highest, followed by crop consumption and ingestion of contaminated surface soil. The non-carcinogenic risk from the ingestion of groundwater was highest (53.57% of the total non-carcinogenic risk), followed by crop intake (38.53%) and surface soil ingestion (4.80%). The risk assessment revealed that contaminated soil around Yaro mine posed a high risk to the health of inhabitants, mainly via groundwater ingestion and crop consumption. Reclamation measures should include methods of disrupting the high-risk routes between the source and recipient. Stabilization and covering techniques are promising options for reducing the hazard (i.e., exposure to the bioavailable fraction of TTE) and creating a chemical or physicochemical barrier to the potential migration pathways.

Highlights

Mining is one of the major anthropogenic sources of contamination in the environment
The mean concentrations of As, Cd, Cu, Pb, and Zn in soils near the abandoned mines were 31.77, 3.31, 19.87, 93.88, and 288.47 mg kg−1, respectively. These results suggested that the elevated toxic trace elements (TTE) concentrations in soils were related to the mining activities, and the land may not be suitable for agricultural uses
In the case of children, the HI value of each TTE in each route was less than 1, and their sum was less than 1 (Table 7). These results suggested that the non-carcinogenic risk from TTE in this area was not substantial for children

Summary

Introduction

Mining is one of the major anthropogenic sources of contamination in the environment. In areas where these activities are concentrated, various toxic trace elements (TTE), including arsenic (As) and other toxic heavy metals, could be released to the surrounding environment through acid mine drainage from mine tailing [1,2]. TTE released from mining sites could increase the concentration of aquatic and soil environments, which can have a detrimental effect on biota and human health [3,4]. The daily intake of TTE through crop consumption was highest, followed by groundwater ingestion, soil ingestion, soil contact, and soil inhalation. The intake via crop ingestion was highest in rice, followed by the red pepper and garlic.

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