Assessment of Soil Quality and Health Risks from Heavy Metal Contamination in the Industrial Zone of Samba District, Jammu and Kashmir, India

IJEP 46(9): 829-841 : Vol. 46 Issue 9 (September 2026)

Full Text

Radhika Kumari and Prasenjit Adak*

Lovely Professional University, School of Chemical Engineering and Physical Sciences, Phagwara – 144 411, Punjab, India

Abstract

Soil contamination with heavy metals is a critical environmental and public health issue. Even marginal heavy metal contamination in the soil may lead to bioaccumulation in locally grown spices and medicinal plants, while dust deposition on roadside food stalls may further increase exposure risks—especially for immunocompromised individuals. The present study investigated the levels of heavy metals (Co, Cd, Pb, Zn and Ni) in soil samples collected from 13 locations in the Samba industrial area of Jammu and Kashmir, India. Pb (range: 0.90-11.20 mg/kg) and Co (range: 0.10-8.10 mg/kg) were relatively higher, whereas Zn and Cd were lower and Ni was below detection limits. The soil was found to be mildly polluted (PBI=1.295) using various pollution indices. Ingestion was the major entry route and the estimated daily intake (EDC) of Co (12.21 mg/kg-day) and Pb (12.24 mg/kg-day) in children was nearly double that of adults. Ingestion and skin contact resulted in a hazard index greater than unity in children, indicating a serious non-carcinogenic risk, whereas the carcinogenic risk was less than USEPA guidelines. The present study reveals the existence of a health risk imposed by mildly polluted soil using the entry route factor.

Keywords

Heavy metals, Soil contamination, Health risk assessment, Pollution indices, Samba district

References

  1. Gupta, V., Yadav, S. and Kumar, A. 2023. Human health risk evaluation of heavy metals in soils from peri-urban agricultural areas: A case study from northern India. Env. Sci. Poll. Res., 30(12): 14235–14248. DOI: 10.1007/s11356-023-26419-0.
  2. Khan, S., Cao, Q., Zheng, Y.M., Huang, Y.Z. and Zhu, Y.G. 2008. Health risks of heavy metals in contaminated soils and food crops irrigated with wastewater in Beijing, China. Env. Poll., 152: 686–692. DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2007.06.056.
  3. Huang, Y., Chen, Q., Deng, M., Japenga, J., Li, T. and Yang, X. 2018. Heavy metal pollution and health risk assessment of agricultural soils in a typical peri-urban area in southeast China. J. Env. Manage., 207: 159–168. DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.20 17.10.072.
  4. Kamunda, C., Mathuthu, M. and Madhuku, M. 2016. Health risk assessment of heavy metals in soils from Witwatersrand gold mining basin, South Africa. Int. J. Env. Res. Public Health. 13(7): 663. DOI: 10.3390/ijerph13070663.
  5. Sharma, P., Singh, R. and Mehta, D. 2022. Spatial distribution and ecological risk assessment of heavy metals in soils near industrial hubs of north India. Env. Monit. Assess., 194(8): 567. DOI: 10.1007/s10661-022-10123-5.
  6. Xu, J., Liu, C., Hsu, P. C., Zhao, J., Wu, T., Tang, J., Liu, K. and Cui, K. 2019. Remediation of heavy metal contaminated soil by asymmetrical alternating current electrochemistry. Nature Commun., 10(1): 1-8.
  7. Kharazi, A., Leili, M., Khazaei, M., Alikhani, M. and Shokoohi, R. 2021. Human health risk assessment of heavy metals in agricultural soil and food crops in Hamadan, Iran. J. Food Compos. Anal., 100: 103912. DOI: 10.1016/j.jfca.2021.103890.
  8. Hakanson, L. 1980. An ecological risk index for aquatic pollution control: A sedimentological approach. Water Res., 14(8): 975-1001. DOI: 10.10 16/0043-1354(80)90143-8.
  9. Caeiro, S., Costa, M.H., Ramos, T.B., Fernandes, F., Silveira, N., Coimbra, A., Medeiros, G. and Painho, M. 2005. Assessing heavy metal contamination in Sado estuary sediment: An index analysis approach. Ecol. Indicators. 5(2): 151-169. DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolind.2005.02.001.
  10. Tong, S., Li, H., Wang, L., Tudi, M. and Yang, L. 2020. Concentration, spatial distribution, contamination degree and human health risk assessment of heavy metals in urban soils across China between 2003 and 2019—a systematic review. Int. J. Env. Res. Public Health. 17(9): 3099. DOI: 10.3390/ijerph17093099.
  11. USEPA. 2004. Risk assessment guidance for superfund. Volume I: Human health evaluation manual. Part E: Supplemental guidance for dermal risk assessment. United States Environmental Protection Agency, Washington DC, USA.
  12. USEPA. 2015. Regional screening level (RSL) summary table (TR=1E-6, HQ=1). United States Environmental Protection Agency, Washington DC, USA.
  13. Adimalla, N., Chen, J. and Qian, H. 2020. Spatial characteristics of heavy metal contamination and potential human health risk assessment of urban soils: A case study from an urban region of south India. Ecotoxicol. Env. Safety. 197: 110643. DOI: 10.1016/j.ecoenv.2020.110406.
  14. Nida, G., Mohammad, T.S., Khan, S. and Said, M. 2014. Quantification of the heavy metals in the agricultural soils of Mardan district, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. J. Global Innov. Agric. Soc. Sci., 2(4): 158-162. DOI: 10.17957/JGIASS/2.4.460.
  15. Parvez, M.S., Nawshin, S., Sultana, S., Hossain, M.S., Rashid Khan, M.H., Habib, M.A., Nijhum, Z.T. and Khan, R. 2023. Evaluation of heavy metal contamination in the soil samples around Rampal, Bangladesh. American Chem. Soc., 8(18): 15990-15999. DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.2c07 681.
  16. Chen, M. and Lena, Q.M. 2001. Comparison of three Aqua Regia digestion methods for twenty Florida soils. Soil Sci. Soc. American J., 65: 491–499.
  17. Kaur, M., Kumar, A., Mehra, R. and Kaur, I. 2019. Quantitative assessment of exposure to heavy metals in groundwater and soil on human health in Reasi district, Jammu and Kashmir. Env. Geochem. Health. 42: 77–94. DOI: 10.1007/s10653-019-00294-7.
  18. U.S. EPA. 1996. Method 3050B: Acid digestion of sediments, sludges and soils (revision 2). United States Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC, USA.
  19. Duan, Y., Yhang , Y., Li, S., Fang, Q., Miao, S. and Lin, Q. 2020. An integrated method of health risk assessment based on spatial interpolation and source apportionment. J. Clean. Prod., 276: 123 139. DOI: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.123218.
  20. Rashed, M.N. 2010. Monitoring of contaminated toxic and heavy metals, from mine tailings through age accumulation, in soil and some wild plants at southeast Egypt. J. Hazard. Mater., 178(1-3): 739-746. DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2010.01.147.
  21. Rai, P.K., Lee, S.S., Zhang, M., Tsang, Y.F. and Kim, K.H. 2019. Heavy metals in food crops: Health risks, fate, mechanisms and management. Env. Int., 125: 365-385. DOI: 10.1016/j.envint. 2019.01.067.
  22. USEPA. 1991. Human health evaluation manual, supplemental guidance: Standard default exposure factors. United States Environmental Protection Agency. Washington, DC, USA.
  23. Ajani, M.B., Maleka, P.P., Penabei, S. and Usman, I.T. 2022. Health risk assessment of heavy metals concentration from soil: A case study of the Mayo-Dallah in the southern area of Chad. J. Radiat. Res. Appl. Sci., 15: 130-138. DOI: 10.1016/j.jrras.2022. 01.013.
  24. U.S. EPA. 1999. Guidelines for carcinogen risk assessment (review draft, NCEA-F-0644). Risk Assessment Forum. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington DC, USA.
  25. WHO. 2007. Permissible limits for heavy metals in plant and soil. World Health Organization, Geneva.
  26. Khan, R., Parvez, M.P., Jolly, Y.N., Haydar, M.A., Alam, M.F., Khatun, M.A., Sarker, M.M.R., Habib, M.A., Tamim, U., Das, S., Sultana, S. and Islam, M.A. 2019. Elemental abundances, natural radioactivity and physico-chemical records of a southern part of Bangladesh: Implication for assessing the Environmental geochemistry. Env. Nanotech. Monitor. Manage., 12: 100225.
  27. Rahman, M.S., Khan, M.D.H., Jolly, Y.N., Kabir, J., Akter, S. and Salam, A. 2019. Assessing risk to human health for heavy metal contamination through street dust in the Southeast Asian megacity: Dhaka, Bangladesh. Sci. Total Env., 660: 1610–1622. DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv. 2018.12. 425.
  28. Lakshika, W., Magana-Arachchi, D.N., Abdul, M. Z., Ashantha, G. and Meththika, V. 2018. Health risk assessment of heavy metals in atmospheric deposition in a congested city environment in a developing country: Kandy city, Sri Lanka. J. Env. Manage., 220: 198–206. DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman. 2018.04.036.

29 Wu, Y., Xia, Y., Mu, L., Liu, W., Wang, Q., Su, T., Yang, Q., Milinga, A. and Zhang, Y. 2024. Health risk assessment of heavy metals in agricultural soils based on multi-receptor modeling combined with Monte Carlo simulation. Toxics. 12(1): 1–23.DOI: 10.3390/toxics12010023.

  1. Environmental Systems Research Institute. 2019. ArcGIS Earth (version 1.9). Available at: http://www.esri.com.
  2. Muller, G. 1969. Index of geoaccumulation in sediments of the Rhine river. GeoJ., 2: 108-118.
  3. DEA. 2010. The framework for the management of contaminated land. Department of Environmental Affairs, Republic of South Africa.
  4. Awasthi, S.K. 2000. Prevention of food adulteration act (act no. 37 of 1954). Central and state rules as amended for 1999 (3rd edn). Ashoka Law House, New Delhi.
  5. Adimalla, N. 2019. Heavy metals contamination in urban surface soils of Medak province, India and its risk assessment and spatial distribution. Env. Geochem. Health. 42: 59-75. DOI: 10.1007/s1065 3-019-00270-1.
  6. Bhatti, S.S., Kumar, V., Singh, N., Sambyal, V., Singh, J., Katnoria, J.K. and Nagpal, A.V. 2016. Physico-chemical properties and heavy metal contents of soils and kharif crops of Punjab, India. Procedia Env. Sci., 35: 801-808. DOI: 10.1016/j.proenv.2016.07.096.
  7. Dedeepya, S., Nagasamy, V.D. and Meyyanathan, S.N. 2012. Atomic absorption spectroscopy: A special emphasis on pharmaceutical and other applications. J. Pharm. Res., 5(3): 1614–1619.
  8. European Commission, Science Communication Unit, University of the West of England, Bristol. 2013. Science for environment policy in-depth report: Soil contamination: Impacts on human health. Report produced for the european Commission DG Environment.
  9. Khan, R., Rouf, M. A., Das, S., Tamim, U., Naher, K., Podder, J. and Hossain, S.M. 2017. Spatial and multi-layered assessment of heavy metals in the sand of Cox’s Bazar beach of Bangladesh. Reg. Stud. Marine Sci., 16: 171-180. DOI: 10.1016/j.rsma. 2017.09.003.
  10. Kwon, Y.T and Lee, C.W. 1998. Application of multiple ecological risk indices for the evaluation of heavy metal contamination in a coastal dredging area. Sci. Total Env., 214(1–3): 203-210. DOI: 10. 1016/S0048-9697(98)00069-2.
  11. Patel, H., Verma, S. and Rathore, P. 2023. Integrated risk modeling for heavy metal exposure in contaminated soils: Advances and applications. J. Hazard. Mater. Adv., 9: 100215. DOI: 10.101 6/j.hazadv.2023.100215.
  12. Qin, F., Ji, H., Li, Q., Guo, X., Tang, L. and Feng, J. 2014. Evaluation of trace elements and identification of pollution sources in particle size fractions of soil from iron ore areas along the Chao river. J. Geochem. Explor., 138: 33–49. DOI: 10.1016/j.gexplo.2013.12.005.
  13. Suresh, G., Ramasamy, V., Meenakshisundaram, V., Venkatachalapathy, R. and Ponnusamy, V. 2011. Influence of mineralogical and heavy metal composition on natural radionuclide concentrations in the river sediments. Appl. Radiat. Isot., 69(10): 1466-1474. DOI: 10.1016/j.ap radiso.2011.05.020.
  14. Tomlinson, D.C., Wilson, J.G., Harris, C.R. and Jeffrey, D.W. 1980. Problems in the assessment of heavy-metal levels in estuaries and the formation of a pollution index. Helgoländer Meeresunter-suchungen. 33: 566-575. DOI: 10.1007/BF02414 780.