Phthalate Ester Contamination in Intensively Managed Greenhouse Facilities and the Assessment of Carcinogenic and Non-Carcinogenic Risk: A Regional Study

Tingting Ma, Wei Zhou, Like Chen, Peter Christie, Yongming Luo and Peng Wu
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Tingting Ma: Institute of Hanjiang, Hubei University of Arts and Science, Xiangyang 441053, China
Wei Zhou: School of Civil Engineering and Architecture, Hubei University of Arts and Science, Xiangyang 441053, China
Like Chen: Shanghai Research Institute of Chemical Industry, Shanghai 200062, China
Peter Christie: Key Laboratory of Soil Environment and Pollution Remediation, Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China
Yongming Luo: Key Laboratory of Soil Environment and Pollution Remediation, Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China
Peng Wu: Jiangsu Rainfine Environmental Science and Technology Co. Ltd., Nanjing 210000, China

IJERPH, 2019, vol. 16, issue 16, 1-20

Abstract: The contamination status and the potential carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic health risks from six phthalate esters (PAEs), nominated as priority pollutants by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), were investigated in 40 typical greenhouses in three large-scale intensive greenhouse production areas in Jingmen city, Hubei province, central China. The total concentrations of PAEs in 40 soil samples and 80 vegetable samples ranged from 919 ± 134 to 7015 ± 475 µg kg −1 (dry weight, DW), and from 387 ± 63, to 11,683 ± 1313 µg kg −1 (DW), respectively. No carcinogenic risk was detected. The heat-map of the hazard quotient (HQ) values indicates the non-carcinogenic risks to children from di-n-butyl phthalate (DBP), at two sampling sites out of the 40, and from diethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP) (20 to young children and three to older children and adults) at 23 of the sites. The contamination risk from PAEs at Pengdun is of concern because only two of the 14 sampling sites selected there showed the non-carcinogenic risk to humans was unclear. The results of this study help to close a long-term knowledge gap resulting from a shortage of experimental data on PAE contamination in intensive greenhouse vegetable production in central China. The inclusion of DEHP in the Chinese list of priority pollutants is recommended, due to its increasing contamination and risk. This study provides valuable information for protected agricultural soil management and risk avoidance. It is a timely reminder to take PAE contamination and associated health risks into consideration, during the planning and introduction of intensively-managed greenhouse production systems.

Keywords: central China; health risks; phthalate esters; plastic greenhouses (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
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