Pollution and Potential Ecological Risk Assessment of Heavy Metals Around the Active Bukit Mendi Palm Oil Mill Area, Bera Pahang, Malaysia

The study on the impact of palm oil mill processing activities on the environment of Bukit Mendi Palm Oil Mill was conducted by determining the distribution of six heavy metal concentrations Cadmium (Cd), Copper (Cu), Manganese (Mn), Lead (Pb), Iron (Fe) and Zinc (Zn) and the selected pollution indices. This study provided some information on the accumulation of heavy metals in the selected area and served to identify the potential sources contributing to these heavy metals. Soil samples were collected from eight sampling sites around the palm oil mill and analysed for the selected metals using ICP-OES. Three types of pollution indices were used to observe the pollution level of the area, namely Enrichment Factor (EF), potential ecological risk index (PERI), and Contamination Factor (CF) of heavy metal content. The average total concentration of the selected metals was found to increase in the order of Fe, Mn, Zn, Cd, Pb, and Cu. The metal Fe showed the highest metal content, followed by Mn at 1573.00 mg/kg and 154.00 mg/kg, respectively. The values of EF showed that the metal was unevenly distributed throughout the sampling areas, where heavy metal content ranged from minimal to extremely high enrichment. The potential ecological risk ranging from low to severe was observed in this study. The CF values revealed that the area was heavily contaminated with Cd and only slightly contaminated with Pb. The pollution indices determined in this study suggested that the study area was moderately contaminated with metals, and the metal Cd was found to be the only metal potentially posing an ecological risk to the area.Keywords: ICP-OES, palm oil mill, heavy metals, soil pollution, pollution indices

Monitoring and Ecological Risks of Heavy Metals of Urban Soils in Different Functional Areas Based on Plasma Technology

Heavy metal pollution in soil has become a global environmental problem in recent years. This study assessed heavy metals' pollution distribution, level and ecological risk in soils from different functional areas in Shihezi City, China. Heavy metals (Cr, Cu, Pb, Zn, Ni, and Cd) were measured using atmospheric pressure discharge plasma and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer. The mean concentration of all heavy metals in soil was higher than heavy metals' background values. The spatial distribution of Cr is the most different, and the distribution of Cu and Zn are similar in other functional regions. The single pollution index indicated that the heavy metals in industrial, traffic, and residential areas were enriched, and the pollution of Cd was more severe than others. The Nemerow pollution index showed that the near Manas River basin coast is alert (still clean), the industrial area is moderately polluted, and all other functional areas are lightly polluted. The potential ecological risk index demonstrated that only the nearshore Manas River Basin is at a mild ecological risk level, while all other functional areas are at a moderate ecological risk level. The determinate power of DEM, temperature, and precipitation were all over 65%, which meant that the topographic and climatic factors were the main factors affecting the change of heavy metal content. Secondly, socio-economic factors are important factors to promote the change of heavy metal content in soil.

Analysis of research methodology on the content of heavy metals in sediments on the Indonesian coastal

Heavy metal pollution is one of the problems that often occurs in Indonesian coastal waters. Comparative methods of looking at heavy metal content in coastal sediments include a way to show similarities and differences between one or more articles by using certain criteria. Different comparison methods to see the heavy metal content in sediments include the AAS (Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer) method, AAN (Netron Activation Analysis), Regression, and USEPA methods. Based on the comparison of 2 methods, namely: AAS and AAN methods, the most efficient in analyzing heavy metals in sediments in coastal areas is the Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometry (AAS) method compared to the Neutron Activation Analysis (AAS) method.Keywords:CoastalSedimentHeavy MetalSpectrophotometer

Influence of environmental and geographical factor on the heavy metal content in the lungs of Hereford cattle

The problem of food contamination by heavy metals due to their accumulation in biosystems as a result of anthropogenic influences has been studied. The results of cadmium, lead, iron and manganese in cattle from the Novosibirsk Region and the Altai Territory are presented. The purpose of the study was to assess the impact of the ecological and geographical factor on the heavy metal content in the lungs of Hereford bulls. Lung samples were taken from 31 clinically healthy Hereford bulls aged 16-18 months. Sample preparation was carried out in accordance with GOST 26929-94 and 30178-96. The chemical composition of the samples was determined by atomic absorption spectrometry with flame and electrothermal atomization. The median values of the content of cadmium, lead, iron and manganese in the lungs of bull-calf were in the range of 0,01-0,12; 0,07-0,11; 70,9-89,1 and 0,3-0,4 mg/kg. The phenotypic variability of the level of iron and manganese was relatively low, while that of lead and cadmium was high. The dispersions of lead and cadmium levels in the animal groups studied were homogeneous, manganese and iron variants were heterogeneous. The influence of the ecological and geographical factor is characteristic only for cadmium levels. For manganese, iron, lead and cadmium the calculated reference ranges are: 0-1.12; 0-148.1 and 0-0.170 mg/kg respectively. They can serve as a guideline for Hereford cattle bred in the territories of Krasnozersky, Novosibirsky and Maslyaninsky districts of the Novosibirsk region and the Tselinny district of the Altai Territory.

Evaluation of Soil and Irrigation Water Quality in Caohai Lakeside Zone

Due to the rapid population growth and over-application of fertilizers in the Caohai surrounding farmlands, controlling the non-point source pollution in the Caohai Lakeside Zone is significant for the local ecology balance and human health safety. A total of 54 soil and 24 irrigation water samples were collected in the Caohai Lakeside Zone to evaluate the current status of soil fertility and heavy metal pollution by measuring soil and water heavy metal content and soil physicochemical properties such as soil total nitrogen, total phosphorus, organic matter, and soil pH. These results showed that the total amounts of organic matter, nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, and effective nutrient content in the Caohai Lakeside Zone were all at a rich level according to Chinese soil nutrient grade standard; the content of lead (Pb), chromium (Cr), cadmium (Cd), mercury (Hg), and arsenic (As) in the soil all exceeds the safety standard of Chinese classification of soil environmental quality assessment. In addition, the over-standard rates of Cd and Cr were 24.1% and 14.8%, respectively. On the whole, the comprehensive quality index (CQI) of the soil in the Caohai Lakeside Zone is 6.48, which is attributed to the heavy Cd pollution and the good soil fertility. The heavy metal content of the irrigation water met the requirements of irrigation water quality. It is feasible to use the irrigation water of Caohai Lake in the actual agricultural production process. Therefore, in terms of the comprehensive management and pollution control of Caohai, special attention should be paid to the control of Cd, Pb, As, and Hg pollution sources.

Heavy Metal Content Analysis and Toxicity Assessment of Oil-Based Drilling Mud using Zebrafish Embryos

Aim: Used oil-based drilling muds (OBDMs) are toxic to marine organisms due to the fluid’s complex chemical nature. The illegal dumping of used OBDMs is still rampant in many parts of the world despite of the stringent laws and regulations pertaining to its disposal. To date, study of the assessment of heavy metal content in used OBDMs from the Malaysian oil and gas industry has been limited. Furthermore, the study of the toxic effect of OBDMs using a zebrafish embryo model has never been reported before. Therefore, in this research, the used oil-based drilling muds (OBDMs) were analyzed for their heavy metal content and toxicity against Zebrafish embryos. Methods: Used OBDMs were collected from an Anchor Handling Tug Supply (AHTS) vessel mud tank from Kemaman, Terengganu. The heavy metal content in the mud was analyzed using ICP-AES. Zebrafish embryos were exposed to OBDMs of varying concentrations (i.e., 0.25 mg/ml, 0.125 mg/ml, 0.06 mg/ml, 0.03 mg/ml, 0.015 mg/ml, 0.0076 mg/ml, 0.0034 mg/ml and 0.0019 mg/ml). The toxicity and teratogenicity of the mud on zebrafish embryos were assessed every 24 hours, for 96 hours, using endpoints like embryo mortality, heart rate and hatching rate. Results: The heavy metal content of used OBDMs had the highest concentration of barium (Ba) 2360 ppm, followed by lead (Pb) 120 ppm, zinc (Zn) 104 ppm, arsenic (As) 9 ppm, and chromium (Cr) 16 ppm, with cadmium (Cd) concentration of less than 1 ppm being the lowest. The Ba (2360 mg/L) concentration in the OBDM sample exceeded the concentration of Ba in normal marine sediment reported to be around 2000 mg/L. The 96 h LC50 of the OBDM in zebrafish embryos was reported to be 0.005 mg/mL (5 ppm). Zebrafish embryos that were exposed to high concentrations of OBDMs exhibited a lower hatching rate and reduced heart rate than the control group. Conclusion: The findings of this study are indicative of the highly toxic nature of used OBDMs and its dosage-dependent teratogenicity effects on zebrafish embryo. Knowledge of the potential environmental impacts of OBDMs released into the marine environment can be the basis for prudent decision-making that will help minimize environmental damage.