PJB-2023-358
Risk Assessment and GIS-based Mapping of Cd Contamination in Wastewater Irrigated area of Multan Ghulam Farid1,2, *, Tanveer ul Haq1, Muhammad Baqir Hussain1,
Ghulam Farid
Abstract
Cadmium (Cd) is a highly noxious heavy metal for both plants and animals. Its existence in the agroecosystem is alarming for food security due to its presence in the food chain. The objective of this study was to evaluate the risk assessment for Cd contamination in wastewater irrigated areas of Multan. The concentration of Cd and other HMs (Pb, Ni, Zn and Cu) was assessed in 52 soil, plant and wastewater samples. Soil samples were taken from 0-20 cm depths and extracted by AB-DTPA for determination of Cd, Pb, Ni, Zn and Cu. The samples were collected, analyzed and digital maps for the area using GIS (Arc Map 10.3.1) were developed for soil samples. Plant samples were dried and digested in HClO4:HNO3. Soil extract, plants extract and water samples were analyzed on AAS (Analytik Jena nova P400). The concentration of Cd, Pb, Ni, Zn and Cu in soil samples ranged from 0.006-6.62, 0.62-6.23, 0.015-4.23, 0.08-4.47, and 0.09-4.94 mg kg-1respectively. The average concentration HMs (Cd, Pb, Ni, Zn and Cu) in water samples collected from the study area were 0.011, 0.024, 0.051, 0.066 and 0.142 mg L-1 in canal water samples, 0.0040, 0.019, 0.019, 0.048 and 0.092 mg L-1 in groundwater samples and 0.127, 0.067, 0.032, 0.229 and 0.343 mg L-1 in wastewater samples collected from the area of Multan. HMs concentration in different plant species collected from the area ranged from Cd (0.06-7.27 mg kg-1), Pb (0.18-11.35 mg kg-1) Ni (0.44-12.74 mg kg-1), Zn (0.68-15.50 mg kg-1) and Cu (0.80-14.11 mg kg-1). As the pollution indices viz. Geo accumulation Index, Enrichment factor illustrated that soil is contaminated with anthropogenic sources. The mean enrichment factor for the Cd was 8.22 which shows significant enrichment by the anthropogenic sources. While the EF for Pb, Ni and Zn was below the recommended criteria and it illustrated that these metals are naturally present in the soil. The Bioaccumulation factor was found in the sequence of Ni>Zn>Pb>Cu>Cd. Based on the study finding, the wastewater irrigated area of Multan was polluted with Cd and to some extent Pb, Ni, Zn and Cu. As a result of the powerful application of GIS, this study hopes to assist authorities and researchers to plan new research and GIS-based maps are available for assessing and prioritizing control and remediation measures in the polluted area.
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