Soil characterization and heavy metal pollution assessment in Orabi farms, El Obour, Egypt

Salman A Salman,Mahmoud A Abdel-Hafiz,Salah A M Zeid,El-Montser M Seleem

doi:10.1186/s42269-019-0082-1

Salman A Salman, Mahmoud A Abdel-Hafiz + Show 2 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1186/s42269-019-0082-1

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Abstract

BackgroundSoil pollution negatively impacts on food safety and human health. The main aim of this work is to determine the As, Cd, Cr, Cu, and Pb concentrations in Orabi farms, El Obour city, Egypt. The contamination of soil with these metals was assessed by contamination factors (CF), degree of contamination (DC), pollution load index (PLI), ecological risk factor (Er), potential ecological risk index (PRI), and index of geoaccumulation (Igeo). Eleven soil samples were collected from Orabi farms and analyzed for physicochemical characteristics.ResultsThe results indicate that Orabi soils are considered alkaline (pH = 8.11), weakly calcareous (CaCO3 = 3.6%), sandy (sand = 90.23%) soils, and non-saline to slightly saline (EC = 4840.68 μS/cm) in nature. In addition, it contains negligible organic matter percent (OM = 3.15%) and so it is classified as mineral soil. The average concentrations of As, Cd, Cr, Cu, and Pb were 147.46, 2.31, 44.50, 4.10, and 13.01 mg/kg, respectively.ConclusionThe calculated Igeo, CF, and Er recorded that investigated soil samples are uncontaminated with Cr, Cu, and Pb, considerably contaminated with Cd, and highly contaminated with As. The calculated integrated pollution indices PRI, PLI, and DC showed that soil samples were contaminated with the studied heavy metals. The high CF values of As and Cd are the main contributor to soil high contamination. The application of fertilizers and other agricultural practice in the study area must be paid attention.

Highlights

Soil pollution negatively impacts on food safety and human health
Chromium, and copper in more than 82% of the samples as well as all lead contents in the studied soil are below the upper critical limit
As a result of this study, it was found that the studied soils are of alkaline nature, non-saline to slightly saline, and weakly calcareous soils

Summary

Introduction

Soil pollution negatively impacts on food safety and human health. Eleven soil samples were collected from Orabi farms and analyzed for physicochemical characteristics. Soil pollution is often thought as a result of chemical contamination. The use of poor quality water and the application of excessive amounts of pesticides and fertilizers can result in soil contamination. The soil is classified as contaminated when metal concentrations in its bulk horizons exceed baseline values taken as higher limits for noncontaminated soils (Kabata-pendias and Pendias 2001; Proust et al 2013). Polluted water and soil pose a serious threat to plants, affecting crops and causing health risks by entering the food chain. Soil pollution has negative effects on food safety as well as result in increased health risks (Suresh and Nagesh 2015; Yonglong et al 2015; Salman et al 2016a)

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