Potential health risk assessment for soil heavy metal contamination in the central zone of Belgrade (Serbia)

Abstract

An investigation of the soil quality in the centre of Belgrade was performed to define how seriously the soil is polluted. On the basis of the heavy metal content (Zn, Cd, Pb, Co, Ni, Cu, Cr and Mn), the potential health risk assessment calculated for a lifetime of exposure (ingestion and inhalation), based on the USEPA model, was determined as the cumulative carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic risk for children and adults. The study proved that soil contamination in Belgrade is not insignificant; risk assessment indicated that the carcinogenic risk is completely insignificant but the cumulative non-carcinogenic risk tends to became significant, mainly for children, since it approaches unacceptable values. There is no particularly dangerous single heavy metal, but their cumulative effect, expressed as Child Soil Ingestion Hazardous Index, is for concern.

Ispitivanje zemljišta centralne zone Beograda rađeno je sa ciljem da se odredi nivo njegove zagađenosti teškim metalima. Polazeći od sadržaja teških metala (Zn, Cd, Pb, Co, Ni, Cu, Cr i Mn) procenjen je kumulativni potencijalni kancerogeni i nekancerogeni zdravstveni rizik (za ingestiju i inhalaciju) za životni vek čoveka, dece i odraslih, polazeći od modela koji je razvila američka agencija za zaštitu životne sredine. Istraživanja pokazuju da zagađenje zemljišta u Beogradu nije zanemarljivo iako procena kancerogenog rizika ukazuje da je on zanemarljiv, ali da nekancerogeni rizik postaje značajan, posebno u slučaju dece. Za sada ne postoji određeni teški metal koji se može identifikovati kao opasan, ali kumulativni efekat svih ispitivanih metala iskazan kroz ingestioni hazardni indeks za decu postaje zabrinjavajući pošto se približava vrednostima koje se smatraju nepovoljnim.