Concentrations of lead, cadmium and barium in urban garden-grown vegetables: The impact of soil variables

Abstract

Paired vegetable/soil samples from New York City and Buffalo, NY, gardens were analyzed for lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd) and barium (Ba). Vegetable aluminum (Al) was measured to assess soil adherence. Soil and vegetable metal concentrations did not correlate; vegetable concentrations varied by crop type. Pb was below health-based guidance values (EU standards) in virtually all fruits. 47% of root crops and 9% of leafy greens exceeded guidance values; over half the vegetables exceeded the 95th percentile of market-basket concentrations for Pb. Vegetable Pb correlated with Al; soil particle adherence/incorporation was more important than Pb uptake via roots. Cd was similar to market-basket concentrations and below guidance values in nearly all samples. Vegetable Ba was much higher than Pb or Cd, although soil Ba was lower than soil Pb. The poor relationship between vegetable and soil metal concentrations is attributable to particulate contamination of vegetables and soil characteristics that influence phytoavailability.

Using Stripping Voltammetry to Determine Heavy Metals in Cooking Spices Used in Iraq

“…Eight spices have lead content of more than 1 mg kg -1 (the highest were cinnamon at 4.159 and betony at 3.743 mg kg -1 ), whereas the rest of the samples showed lower lead content of less than 1 mg kg -1 . These data are in good agreement with six out of eight spice studies recently published in the literature (Table 7), and comparable with Pb contents (0.27-3.8 mg kg -1 ) recorded for different vegetables grown in uncontaminated areas [49].…”

Growing Gardens in Shrinking Cities: A Solution to the Soil Lead Problem?

“…Research has demonstrated that neighborhood soil lead levels are linked to blood lead levels in children [32]. Although humans can be exposed to small amounts of Pb by consuming produce [33,34] the greater public health challenge is direct exposure to contaminated soil, which can occur through inhaling air-borne dust or unintentionally consuming soil. For children, their high rates of hand to mouth contact make them especially vulnerable to lead poisoning when exposed to high soil lead levels [35].…”

Regional accumulation characteristics of cadmium in vegetables: Influencing factors, transfer model and indication of soil threshold content

“…Several studies focusing on the relation between Cd concentrations in vegetables and total Cd soil concentrations or soil pH, use empirical regression methods. In doing so, other environmental factors such as SOM, irrigation condition, and fertilizer usage, which related to the accumulation of Cd in vegetables are often overlooked (McBride, 2002(McBride, , 2014Hough et al, 2004). A large number of national environmental agencies recommend investigating the environmental factors related to the plant Cd uptake (Swartjes et al, 2013;Augustsson et al, 2015), but detailed studies are few.…”