Appraisal of pollution and health risks associated with coal mine contaminated soil using multimodal statistical and Fuzzy-TOPSIS approaches

Kumar, Sumit; Banerjee, Sonali; Ghosh, Saibal; Majumder, Santanu; Mandal, Jajati; Roy, Pankaj Kumar; Bhattacharyya, Pradip

Abstract

The present study assesses the concentration, probabilistic risk, source classification, and dietary risk arising from heavy metal (HMs) pollution in agricultural soils affected by coal mining in eastern part
of India. Analyses of soil and rice plant indicated significantly elevated levels of HMs beyond the permissible limit in the contaminated zones (zone 1: PbSoil: 108.24 ± 72.97, CuSoil: 57.26 ± 23.91, CdSoil: 8.44 ± 2.76, CrSoil: 180.05 ± 46.90, NiSoil: 70.79 ± 25.06 mg/kg; PbGrain: 0.96 ± 0.8, CuGrain: 8.6 ± 5.1, CdGrain: 0.65 ± 0.42, CrGrain: 4.78 ± 1.89, NiGrain: 11.74 ± 4.38 mg/kg. zone 2: PbSoil: 139.56 ±
69.46, CuSoil: 69.89 ± 19.86, CdSoil: 8.95 ± 2.57, CrSoil: 245.46 ± 70.66, NiSoil: 95.46 ± 22.89 mg/kg; PbGrain: 1.27 ± 0.84, CuGrain: 7.9 ± 4.57, CdGrain: 0.76 ± 0.43, CrGrain: 8.6 ± 1.58, NiGrain: 11.50 ±
2.46 mg/kg) compared to the uncontaminated zone (zone 3). Carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic
health risks were computed based on the HMs concentration in the soil and rice grain, with Pb, Cr, and
Ni identified as posing a high risk to human health. Monte Carlo simulation, the solubility-free ion
activity model (FIAM), and severity adjusted margin of exposure (SAMOE) were employed to predict
health risk. FIAM hazard quotient (HQ) values for Ni, Cr, Cd, and Pb were > 1, indicating a
significant non-carcinogenic risk. SAMOE (risk thermometer) results for contaminated zones ranged
from low to moderate risk (CrSAMOE: 0.05, and NiSAMOE: 0.03). Fuzzy-TOPSIS and variable
importance plots (from random forest) showed that Ni and Cr were mostly responsible for the toxicity
in the rice plant, respectively. A self-organizing map for source classification revealed common origin
for the studied HMs with zone 2 exhibiting the highest contamination. The positive matrix
factorization model for the source apportionment identified coal mining and transportation as the
predominant sources of HMs. Spatial distribution analysis indicated higher contamination near mining
sites as compared to distant sampling sites. Consequently, this study will aid environmental scientists
and policymakers controlling HM pollution in agricultural soils near coal mines.

Citation

Kumar, S., Banerjee, S., Ghosh, S., Majumder, S., Mandal, J., Roy, P. K., & Bhattacharyya, P. (2024). Appraisal of pollution and health risks associated with coal mine contaminated soil using multimodal statistical and Fuzzy-TOPSIS approaches. Frontiers of Environmental Science and Engineering, 18(5), https://doi.org/10.1007/s11783-024-1820-7

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jan 10, 2024
• Online Publication Date: Feb 10, 2024
• Publication Date: 2024-05
• Deposit Date: Feb 13, 2024
• Publicly Available Date: Feb 11, 2025
• Journal: Frontiers of Environmental Science & Engineering
• Electronic ISSN: 2095-221X
• Publisher: Springer Verlag
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 18
• Issue: 5
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11783-024-1820-7
• Keywords: General Environmental Science