Accumulation pattern and risk assessment of potentially toxic elements in selected wastewater-irrigated soils and plants in Vehari, Pakistan

Natasha Natasha; Muhammad Shahid; Behzad Murtaza; Irshad Bibi; Sana Khalid; Abdullah A Al-Kahtani; Rabia Naz; Esmat F Ali; Nabeel Khan Niazi; Jörg Rinklebe; Sabry M Shaheen

doi:10.1016/j.envres.2022.114033

Accumulation pattern and risk assessment of potentially toxic elements in selected wastewater-irrigated soils and plants in Vehari, Pakistan

Environ Res. 2022 Nov;214(Pt 3):114033. doi: 10.1016/j.envres.2022.114033. Epub 2022 Aug 8.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Department of Environmental Sciences, COMSATS University Islamabad, Vehari Campus, Vehari, 61100, Pakistan.
² Department of Environmental Sciences, COMSATS University Islamabad, Vehari Campus, Vehari, 61100, Pakistan. Electronic address: muhammadshahid@cuivehari.edu.pk.
³ Institute of Soil and Environmental Sciences, University of Agriculture Faisalabad, Faisalabad, 38040, Pakistan.
⁴ Department of Chemistry, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh, 11451, Saudi Arabia.
⁵ Department of Biosciences, COMSATS University Islamabad, Pakistan.
⁶ Department of Biology, College of Science, Taif University, P.O. Box 11099, Taif, 21944, Saudi Arabia.
⁷ University of Wuppertal, School of Architecture and Civil Engineering, Laboratory of Soil and Groundwater Management, Institute of Foundation Engineering, Water- and Waste-Management, Pauluskirchstraße 7, 42285, Wuppertal, Germany.
⁸ University of Wuppertal, School of Architecture and Civil Engineering, Laboratory of Soil and Groundwater Management, Institute of Foundation Engineering, Water- and Waste-Management, Pauluskirchstraße 7, 42285, Wuppertal, Germany; King Abdulaziz University, Faculty of Meteorology, Environment, and Arid Land Agriculture, Department of Arid Land Agriculture, 21589, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia; International Research Centre of Nanotechnology for Himalayan Sustainability (IRCNHS), Shoolini University, Solan, 173212 Himachal Pradesh, India. Electronic address: shaheen@uni-wuppertal.de.

PMID: 35952735
DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2022.114033

Abstract

There are scarce data about the accumulation pattern and risk assessment of potentially toxic elements (PTEs) in soil and associated potential ecological risks, especially in less-developed countries. This study aims to assess the pollution levels and potential ecological risks of PTEs (As, Cr, Cd, Cu, Ni, Mn, Pb and Zn) in wastewater-irrigated arable soils and different edible-grown plants in selected areas of Vehari, Pakistan. The results revealed that the values of PTEs in soil samples were higher than their respective limit values by 20% for As, 87% for Cd, 15% for Cu, 2% for Cr, 83% for Mn, 98% for Fe, and 7% for Zn. The values of soil risk indices such as the potential ecological risk (PERI >380 for all samples), pollution load index (PLI >4 for 94% of studied samples), and degree of contamination (Dc > 24 for all samples) showed severe soil contamination in the study area. Some vegetables exhibited a high metal accumulation index (e.g., 8.1 for onion), signifying potential associated health hazards. Thus, long-term wastewater irrigation has led to severe soil contamination, which can pose potential ecological risks via PTE accumulation in crops, particularly Cd. Therefore, to ensure food safety, frequent wastewater irrigation practices need to be minimized and managed in the study area.

Keywords: Arable soil pollution; Ecological risks; Mixed inorganic contaminates; Potential risk areas.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Cadmium
Environmental Monitoring / methods
Metals, Heavy* / analysis
Metals, Heavy* / toxicity
Pakistan
Risk Assessment
Soil
Soil Pollutants* / analysis
Soil Pollutants* / toxicity
Wastewater

Substances

Metals, Heavy
Soil
Soil Pollutants
Waste Water
Cadmium