Metal Exposure and Associated Health Risk to Human Beings by Street Dust in a Heavily Industrialized City of Hunan Province, Central China

Guangyi Sun, Zhonggen Li, Ting Liu, Ji Chen, Tingting Wu and Xinbin Feng
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Guangyi Sun: State Key Laboratory of Environmental Geochemistry, Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guiyang 550081, China
Zhonggen Li: State Key Laboratory of Environmental Geochemistry, Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guiyang 550081, China
Ting Liu: State Key Laboratory of Environmental Geochemistry, Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guiyang 550081, China
Ji Chen: State Key Laboratory of Environmental Geochemistry, Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guiyang 550081, China
Tingting Wu: State Key Laboratory of Environmental Geochemistry, Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guiyang 550081, China
Xinbin Feng: State Key Laboratory of Environmental Geochemistry, Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guiyang 550081, China

IJERPH, 2017, vol. 14, issue 3, 1-11

Abstract: Fifty-five urban street dust samples were collected from Zhuzhou, an industrial city in central China and analyzed for a range of toxic elements. Potential carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic health effects on children and adults due to exposure to street dust were assessed. Concerning the two subgroups, the child cohort is confronted with considerably greater health risks than adults. According to the Hazard Quotient (HQ) method, ingestion of dust particles poses primary risk to children and adults, followed by dermal contact and inhalation for all of the metals investigated except Hg, for which inhalation of its elemental vapor constitute a slightly higher risk than ingestion. For children, Pb, As, Cd, Cr, Hg and Sb exposure were deemed as the highest contributors to non-cancer health risks, while As and Cr represent an enhanced cancer risk for children. For adults, risk indicator values for both cancer and non-cancer effects obtained were within the safety threshold. In a comparison with other locations within and outside mainland China, exposure to arsenic is prominent for the population of Zhuzhou, indicating more attention and preventive actions should been taken.

Keywords: street dust; health risk; cancer; arsenic; metals (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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