Assessment of Edaphic pollution indices and bioaccumulation of trace metals in Solanum lycopersicum, Spinacia oleracea and Triticum aestivum: an associated health risk evaluation

The present study investigates bioaccumulation factor (B-fc), Edaphic pollution indices and associated health risk assessment of trace metals (TMs) i.e., Cu, Fe, Zn, Mn and Co in the crops, agricultural soil (AgS), and irrigation water (IgW) collected from various peri-urban area of metropolitan city of India, Lucknow. Though the level of these TMs was within the permissible limits (PL) (FAO/WHO, 2011) in AgS and IgW however it was higher than PL in tomato, spinach and wheat cultivated in the fields. The bioaccumulation factor of Cu, Fe and Mn in edible parts of tomato, spinach and wheat was 8 to 25 times higher through the AgS and 10 to 300 times higher through the IgW in the tomato, spinach and wheat samples. The enrichment factor (E-fc), contamination factor (C-fc), contamination degree (C-dg) and modified contamination degree (mC(dg)) values of Co, Cu, Mn, Fe and Zn ranged from low to high levels of contamination, whereas the geo-accumulation index reflected low contamination in agricultural soil. on the other hand, the metal pollution load index (M-pi) was found strongly contaminated in most of the study areas. Due to the consumption of these contaminated vegetables and cereal (VCs) by human consumers, the hazard quotient (HQ), total hazard quotient (THQ) and hazard index (HI) were found to be more than the requisite value of 1, which indicates a far-long health risk in this crowded city and its surrounding regions.

Automated summary

The present study investigated the bioaccumulation factor, edaphic pollution indices, and associated health risk assessment of trace metals in crops, agricultural soil, and irrigation water collected from peri-urban areas of Lucknow, India. The levels of trace metals in agricultural soil and irrigation water were within permissible limits; however, they were higher in tomato, spinach, and wheat cultivated in the fields. Bioaccumulation factor values for Cu, Fe, and Mn in edible parts of these crops were significantly higher through the agricultural soil and irrigation water. Various contamination indices reflected different levels of contamination, with the metal pollution load index indicating strong contamination in most study areas. The consumption of contaminated vegetables and cereals posed a significant health risk to the crowded city and its surrounding regions, as indicated by hazard quotient, total hazard quotient, and hazard index values exceeding the requisite value of 1.