Crops in District Hafizabad and Vehari, Pakistan. Fazila younas, Nabeel Khan Niazi, Irshad Bibi1, Muhammad Shahid and Muhammad Mahroz. Hussain.
Arsenic-Induced Human Health Risk Assessment from Different Crops in District Hafizabad and Vehari, Pakistan Fazila younas, Nabeel Khan Niazi, Irshad Bibi1, Muhammad Shahid and Muhammad Mahroz Hussain Institute of Soil and Environmental Sciences , University of Agriculture Faisalabad MARUM and Department of Geosciences, University of Bremen, 28359 Bremen, Germany Southern Cross GeoScience, Southern Cross University, Lismore 2480, NSW, Australia Department of Environmental Sciences, COMSATS Institute of Information and Technology, Vehari, Pakistan
Abstract Arsenic (As) is a metalloid that may represent a serious environmental threat due to its high toxicity to different life forms. Arsenic contaminated groundwater is thought to be the main cause of human exposure to As. The use of As-laced groundwater for irrigation may enhance possibility of As uptake into crop plants and is an important pathway of As-induced human health risk. The present study was planned to investigate total As concentration and assess health risk due to As exposure via food crops i.e., rice (Oryza sativaL.) and maize (Zea mays L.). Crop samples (n = 102) were collected from three previously unexplored areas (Gujranwala, Hafizabad and Vehari) of Punjab, Pakistan, where As-contaminated groundwater has been in use for irrigation. The mean and median values of As concentrations in samples were 890 and 580 μg·kg-1 dry weight (DW). A significant number of samples showed higher As values than FAO safe limit of As in food crops i.e. 200μg·kg1 DW. For As health risk assessment, the hazard quotient and cancer risk values were calculated which were higher than recommended values of US-EPA (i.e., 1.00 and 10-6, respectively). The results of the study showed that consumption of As-contaminated food crops maypose an emerging health concern to the communities in study area.
