Cumulative Effect and Content Variation of Toxic Trace Elements in Human Hair around Xiaoqinling Gold Mining Area, Northwestern China

Min Yang, Youning Xu, Hailing Ke and Huaqing Chen
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Min Yang: School of Resources Engineering, Xi’an University of Architecture & Technology, Xi’an 710055, China
Youning Xu: Shaanxi Tongguan Observation Base on Geological Environment of Mines, Xi’an Center of China Geological Survey, Xi’an 710054, China
Hailing Ke: Shaanxi Tongguan Observation Base on Geological Environment of Mines, Xi’an Center of China Geological Survey, Xi’an 710054, China
Huaqing Chen: Shaanxi Tongguan Observation Base on Geological Environment of Mines, Xi’an Center of China Geological Survey, Xi’an 710054, China

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 4, 1-15

Abstract: The harm of toxic trace element polluted living environments to human health in mining areas has attracted extensive attention. In this study, human hair samples from a toxic trace element polluted area (village A) in a mineral processing area collected in 2015 and 2019 were studied in detail and the nonpolluted human hair samples from a contrast area (village B) with a relatively clean environment were also collected for comparison. The Hg and As in human hair samples were analyzed by Atomic Fluorescence Spectrometry (AFS) and the Pb, Cd, Cr, and Cu in human hair samples were analyzed by Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS). The single cumulative index (P i ) and the Nemerrow index (P z ) were used to evaluate the single and comprehensive cumulative pollution index. The results indicated that the average toxic trace element contents in human hair from different ages in the polluted area exhibited certain statistical significance. The average single cumulative indexes indicated a significant accumulation of Hg, Pb, and Cd in human hair of both genders and different ages from the polluted area, and the comprehensive cumulative pollution indexes revealed higher accumulation of toxic trace elements in the hair of males than in females. In general, the content of toxic trace elements in human hair from polluted area was still growing in accumulation. The high content of toxic trace elements in human hair shows a notable correlation with human health, and the environmental pollution in gold mining areas is seriously harmful to human health.

Keywords: toxic element accumulation; human hair; gold mining area; Xiaoqinling Mountains (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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