Metal Contamination in Seven Tributaries of the Ganga River and Assessment of Human Health Risk from Fish Consumption.

Abstract

We investigated the distribution of Zn, Cu, Ni, Pb, Cr, and Cd in water, sediment, and two dietary fish (an omnivore, Labeo rohita and a benthic carnivore, Clarias batrachus) and potential health risk to human consumers during summer low flow (2017-2018) at 28 sites across 7 tributary confluences of the Ganga River. We selected Devprayag, an upper reach site, as a reference for data comparison. We found significant spatial variations in the distribution of study metals and the concentrations remained higher in tributaries, confluences, and downstream cities. The pollution load index showed all sites except Devprayag in the polluted category. Ecological risk analysis indicated 1 site with very high risk, 7 with considerable risk, and 10 with moderate-risk category. The Zn did appear the most, and Cd the least accumulated metal in the fish. The metal accumulation was higher in C. batrachus. The levels of Cd, Cr, and Pb in the study fishes were higher compared with the international standards. The health risk analysis indicated safe levels for individual metals except for Cd where the target hazard quotient (THQ) did exceed 1 for C. batrachus at the Ramganga and Varuna confluences. When all metals were considered, the THQ was > 1 (> 2 for C. batrachus), indicating the full possibility of adverse health effects to human consumers. Our study highlights the importance of tributaries in creating a mosaic of metal-rich habitats in the Ganga River and food chain associated with a health risk to human consumers.