Quantification of health risks and spatial distribution of heavy metals in groundwater of Lower Himalayas, India

Kaur, S and Mehra, R and Kumar, MR (2022) Quantification of health risks and spatial distribution of heavy metals in groundwater of Lower Himalayas, India. In: International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology, 19 (4). pp. 3201-3218.

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Abstract

In this systematic research work, fifty-four groundwater samples of Solan and Shimla districts of Himachal Pradesh, India, have been analysed for heavy metals like As, Cd, Cr, Co, Cu, Ni and Pb using atomic absorption spectrophotometer as well as physico-chemical parameters like pH, redox potential, electrical conductivity and total dissolved salts (TDS). Most of the water samples were found to be alkaline. Based on their TDS values, 53 groundwater samples were considered 'fresh' and 'desirable for drinking'. The investigated groundwater samples were found to be heavily contaminated with As, Co, Cr, Ni and Pb, as their average values of 84.3, 106.7, 101.4, 84.1 and 131.9 ppb, respectively, far exceeded the guideline values recommended by World Health Organization and United States Environment Protection Agency. Doses due to ingestion via drinking water pathway and dermal absorption were computed for two different age groups of child and adult. The non-carcinogenic risk expressed in terms of target hazard quotient was found to be greater than unity for As, Co, Cr and Pb. The average carcinogenic risk of As and Cr calculated as 1.56 × 10–3 and 2.38 × 10–2, respectively, crossed the acceptable range of 10–6–10–4. It may thus be concluded that the residents of the study region have high probability of developing adverse health effects from heavy metal exposure.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Publication:	International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology
Publisher:	Springer Science and Business Media Deutschland GmbH
Additional Information:	The copyright for this article belongs to the Springer Science and Business Media Deutschland GmbH.
Keywords:	Alkalinity; Groundwater; Groundwater pollution; Health; Heavy metals; Potable water; Redox reactions; Water absorption, Adverse health effects; Atomic absorption spectrophotometer; Electrical conductivity; Environment protection agency; Himachal Pradesh , India; Physico - chemical parameters; Target hazard quotients; World Health Organization, Health risks, carcinogen; groundwater; health risk; heavy metal; mortality risk; physicochemical property; quantitative analysis; risk factor; spatial distribution; spatiotemporal analysis, Himalayas
Department/Centre:	Division of Mechanical Sciences > Divecha Centre for Climate Change
Date Deposited:	15 Jun 2022 09:54
Last Modified:	15 Jun 2022 09:54
URI:	https://eprints.iisc.ac.in/id/eprint/73741

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