Environmental and human health risks of arsenic in gold mining areas in the eastern Amazon.
Environ Pollut
; 265(Pt B): 114969, 2020 Oct.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-32559696
Knowledge of arsenic (As) levels in gold (Au) mining areas in the Amazon is critical for determining environmental risks and the health of the local population, mainly because this region has the largest mineral potential in Brazil and one of the largest in the world. The objective of this study was to assess the environmental and human health risks of As in tailings from Au exploration in the eastern Amazon. Samples were collected from soils and tailings from different exploration forms from 25 points, and the total concentration, pollution indexes and human health risk were determined. Concentrations of As were very high in all exploration areas, especially in tailings, whose maximum value reached 10,000 mg kg-1, far above the investigation value established by the Brazilian National Council of the Environment, characterizing a polluted area with high environmental risk. Exposure based on the daily intake of As demonstrated a high health risk for children and adults, whose non-carcinogenic risk indexes of 17.8, extremely above the acceptable limit (1.0) established by the United States Environmental Protection Agency. High levels of As in reactive fractions in underground, cyanidation, and colluvium mining areas, as well as extremely high gastric and intestinal bioaccessibility were found, suggesting that high levels may be absorbed by the local population. The results show that the study area is highly polluted through Au mining activities, putting the environment and population health at risk, and that there is an urgent need for intervention by the environmental control agencies for remediation.
Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Arsênio
/
Poluentes do Solo
Tipo de estudo:
Etiology_studies
/
Risk_factors_studies
Limite:
Adult
/
Child
/
Humans
País/Região como assunto:
America do sul
/
Brasil
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Environ Pollut
Assunto da revista:
SAUDE AMBIENTAL
Ano de publicação:
2020
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
Brasil
País de publicação:
Reino Unido