Studies on Arsenic and Lead contamination in Crops and Vegetables of Harischandrapur Village of Jessore District in Bangladesh

Abstract

Various fruits and vegetables such as Mango (Mangifera indica L.), Jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus L.), Guava (Psidiun guajava L.), Pummelo (Citrus grandis L.), Lime (Citrus aurantifollia), Papaya (Carica papaya L.), Coconut (Cocos nucifera L.), Sapodilla (Manilkara zapota),Yard long bean (Vigna sesquipedalis), Okra(Abelmoschus esculentus), Ribbed gourd (Luffa acutangula), Plantain (Musa paradisiacal), Cucumber (Cucumis sativus), Green hot chili (Capsicum frutescens), Stem Amaranth leaf (Amaranthus lividus), Red Amaranth (Amaranthus gangeticus), Indian Spinach (Basella rubra), Brinjal (Solanum melongena), Pumpkin (Cucurbita moschata), Pea seed (Pisum sativum), Rice (Oryza sativa L), Leaf of Taro (Colocasia esculenta) and Corm of elephant yam (Amorphophallus paeoniifolius) were collected from Harischandrapur village of Jessore district of Bangladesh and screened for arsenic, lead, iron, manganese, copper and zinc by Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer (AAS). The average moisture contents in soil, fruits, fruity vegetables, root-stem vegetables, leafy vegetables and seed vegetables were found 19.91%, 82.25%, 87.67%, 88.65%, 83.36% and 45.00% respectively. The mean concentrations of arsenic, iron and manganese in irrigation water were 0.11 mg/L, 4.28 mg/L and 0.48 mg/L respectively which are higher than Bangladesh drinking water standard. The average concentration of arsenic in irrigation water is higher than FAO standard (<0.100 mg/L for irrigation water). The average concentrations of arsenic, iron, manganese, copper and zinc were found 8.63 mg/Kg, 12162.78 mg/Kg, 256.07 mg/Kg, 21.91 mg/Kg and 57.40 mg/Kg respectively in soils which are lower than FAO, USEPA & EU standard for agricultural soil. The average concentrations of arsenic in fruits, fruity vegetables, root-stem vegetables, leafy vegetables and seed vegetables were detected 0.17 mg/Kg, 0.14 mg/Kg, 0.23 mg/Kg, 0.51 mg/Kg and 0.15 mg/Kg respectively which are lower than that of standard value recommended by WHO and FAO (<1.00 mg/Kg) for food. The average concentrations of iron in fruits, fruity vegetables, leafy vegetables and seed vegetables were monitored 31.13 mg/Kg, 60.38 mg/Kg, 338.68 mg/Kg and 42.83 mg/Kg respectively that are lower than WHO/FAO standard (<1.00mg/Kg) for food. The mean concentrations of manganese in fruits, fruity vegetables, leafy vegetables and seed vegetables were detected 2.86 mg/Kg, 12.90 mg/Kg, 24.26 mg/Kg and 8.48 mg/Kg respectively which are lower than EU standard (<500mg/Kg). The mean concentrations of copper were found 3.40 mg/Kg, 9.36 mg/Kg, 4.76 mg/Kg, 9.70 mg/Kg respectively in fruits, fruity vegetables, leafy vegetables and seed vegetables which are lower than EU standard (<20.00 mg/Kg) for food. The average concentrations of zinc in fruits, fruity vegetables, leafy vegetables and seed vegetables were detected 14.72 mg/Kg, 28.48 mg/Kg, 23.37 mg/Kg and 27.15 mg/Kg respectively which are lower than EU standard (<50.00 mg/Kg). The concentration of lead in all selected soil, water, fruits and vegetables were lower than detection level. Maximum average concentration of arsenic, iron and manganese was found in leafy vegetables. On the other hand maximum mean concentration of copper and zinc were measured in fruity and seed vegetables. In our research, 40 peoples were monitored for calculating the consuming of arsenic, iron, manganese, copper and zinc through daily intake of food (fruits and vegetables), water and their health risk factors were also analyzed. In this study area, the people’s average age, body weight and daily intake of water, rice, vegetables and fruits were 28.48 years, 46.60Kg, 2.80L, 0.39Kg, 0.12Kg and 0.14Kg respectively. The order of daily intake and health risk index of metals from food and water was Iron>Manganese>Arsenic>Zinc>Copper. The fruits and vegetables of the study area are safe for human health according to WHO oral dose reference data (Rfd) for metals and health risk index.