Heavy Metals (Cr, Zn, Ni, V, Pb, Cd) in Lingonberries (Vaccinium vitis-idaea L.) and Assessment of Human Exposure in Two Industrial Areas in the Kemi-Tornio Region, Northern Finland

Abstract

The concentration of Cr, Zn, Ni, V, Pb, and Cd were measured in lingonberries (Vaccinium vitis-idaea L.) sampled at 23 sampling sites around a ferrochrome and stainless steel works and opencast chromium mine in the Kemi-Tornio region, Northern Finland. Two different microwave-assisted digestion procedures were used for sample digestion, i.e., a mixture of HNO3 + H2O2 and a mixture of HNO3 + H2O2 + HCl + HF + H3BO3. According to the results, the digestion procedure with the mixture of HNO3 + H2O2 underestimated especially the Cr concentrations in plant material. The maximum concentrations of Cr (1.3 mg kg(-1), wet weight), Ni (358 microg kg(-1); ww), V (36 microg kg(-1); ww), and Cd (2.4 microg kg(-1); ww) in the immediate vicinity of the point sources were 33, 6, 4, and 8 times higher than the background levels, respectively. The dietary intakes of Cd and Pb were assessed and compared to the health criteria recommendations set by the joint Food and Agriculture Organization and World Health Organization Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA). The results showed that, depending on the consumption of lingonberries, human exposure based on the mean concentrations for Pb and Cd varied between 0.04% and 0.07% for Pb and between 0.04% and 0.09% for Cd compared to the tolerable total quantities of 25 microg kg(-1) for Pb and 7 microg kg(-1) for Cd per body weight per week set by JECFA.

Particle size distribution and dissolution properties of metals in cyclone fly ash

“…In addition, metal (Ba, Zn, Cr, Cu, Pb, Ni, V, Cd, Co and Mo) concentrations for different particle sizes in the cyclone fly ash were determined and assessed the ability of different dissolution methods to release metals in ash. This study is part of a major project carried out in northern Finland between 2000 -2008, in which various wet digestion decomposition methods and extraction tests are used in assessing the efficiency of the mineralization procedures to release of metals in environmental samples and process residues (Nurmesniemi et al, 2005;Pöykiö and Perämäki, 2003;Pöykiö et al, 2000Pöykiö et al, , 2004Pöykiö et al, and 2005.…”

Anthropogenic Sources Dominate Foliar Chromium Dust Deposition in a Mining-Based Urban Region of South Africa

“…The higher deposition possibility of re-suspended road dust, especially chromite ore particles dispersed during transportation [ 23 ], might further explain the findings of this study. Comparable to this study, previous investigations have also linked greater dust deposition on leaves and other aerial plant parts to proximity to different types of Cr sources such as chromite mines, Cr metal processing industries, quarries, and roads [ 17 , 44 ].…”

“…Moreover, various silicate minerals could be present as dominant gangue minerals in chromite [ 23 , 40 ]. In which case, chromite rich particles dispersed from tailing dams, mining and smelting operations, and ore spillage during transportation [ 23 , 44 , 45 ] could be the primary dust sources. For the abaxial leaf side, a different origin of Mg compared to the adaxial leaf surface could be related to Mg-richness of the chromitite seams in the RLS and specifically the natural abundance of Mg in the ultramafic soils of Sekhukhuneland [ 38 , 39 , 40 ].…”

Harmful Elements (Al, Cd, Cr, Ni, and Pb) in Wild Berries and Fruits Collected in Croatia

“…Cranberries from polluted areas (close to a Ni-Cu-smelter) showed elevated levels (up to 97 mg/kg d.w.), whereas the background contents were in the same range as the results from the current study, i.e., 2 mg/kg to 9 mg/kg [ 3 ]. No high Ni accumulation in lingonberries collected in the vicinity of a chromium mine was reported by a Finnish research group [ 51 ]. Blueberries from the same contaminated area did not accumulate Ni that much, with contents being in the range from 4 mg/kg to 11 mg/kg for all sampling sites [ 3 ].…”

“…Even less Pb was found in lingonberries from Finland, whose contents ranged from 0.0006 mg/kg to 0.0011 mg/kg f.w. [ 51 ], corresponding to approx. 0.006 mg/kg to 0.011 mg/kg dried berries.…”