[Accumulation and health risks of heavy metals in vegetables around a typical coal-fired power plant].
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the impacts of heavy metals from coal-fired power plant on the safety of the surrounding vegetables.


METHODS
Accumulation and distribution characteristics of six metals in the vegetables around a typical coal-fired power plant were investigated and the human risks were assessed using health risk assessment model.


RESULTS
In the ten kinds of vegetables, the standard-exceeding rates of Cu were 17.4%, 14.3% and 14.3% in leaf, leguminous and solanaceous fruit vegetables, respectively. In leaf vegetables, the standard-exceeding rates of Hg and Cr were 21.7%, 17.4%, respectively. Heavy metals in the other vegetables were below the food safety standards of China. The non-carcinogenic risk value from exposure to vegetable Cu was 1.09 for children, but those from other five metals were less than 1.0 for both adults and children. However, the health risk levels of multiclass metals in the vegetables were 2.18 and 3.00, for adults and children, respectively.


CONCLUSIONS
Around the coal-fired power plant, the metal levels in the vegetables were relatively lower, indicating there was no serious vegetable pollution from the power plant. There are on no obvious health hazards from exposure to vegetable metals, excluding Cu. But the risk of multiclass metals in the vegetables should be of great concern.
Jiali
J
Cheng
Xinwei
X
Zhang
Zhenwu
Z
Tang
D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D002681:China; D003031:Coal; D004787:Environmental Pollution; D005638:Fruit / Q000737:chemistry; D006801:Humans; D019216:Metals, Heavy / Q000032:analysis*; D018515:Plant Leaves / Q000737:chemistry; D011210:Power Plants; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012989:Soil Pollutants / Q000032:analysis*; D014675:Vegetables / Q000737:chemistry*
D003031:Coal; D019216:Metals, Heavy; D012989:Soil Pollutants