Heavy Metal's Environmental Impact

Amal I. Hassan, Riyam N. Khalef and Hosam M. Saleh

A chapter in Environmental Impact and Remediation of Heavy Metals from IntechOpen

Abstract: Heavy metals are inorganic elements with something like a density of more than 5 g/cm3. Essential and non-essential heavy metals were divided into two groups based on their toxicity. Heavy metals, unlike organic pollutants, are non-biodegradable and tend to accumulate in living things. Many heavy metal ions are hazardous or carcinogenic. The majority of heavy metals, such as cadmium, copper, and zinc, are linked to pollution and hazardous concerns. There are more than 50 elements categorized as heavy metals, with 17 of them being extremely hazardous and easily accessible. Metal pollutants are often non-degradable and have no recognized homeostasis mechanism. Their mere presence in aquatic habitats is enough to have a direct or indirect impact on living systems. The anthropogenic pollution of heavy metals in ancient mining regions refers to areas where the concentration of one or more heavy metals exceeds normal values. Heavy metals disrupt cellular organelles and components in biological systems. Nanoscale zero-valent iron is a promising alternative for heavy metal cleanup. Heavy metal ions are poisonous, non-degradable, and tend to bioaccumulate and biomagnify. The purpose of this chapter is to display some heavy metals and the environmental impact of these minerals, which includes soil, plants, and humans.

Keywords: heavy metals; chromium; lead; cadmium; mercury; copper; zinc; toxicity of heavy metals; remediation of heavy metals (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ito:pchaps:256889

DOI: 10.5772/intechopen.103907

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