Accumulation of Heavy Metals and Determination of Natural Radioactivity in the Soil-Thyme System in Omerli, Istanbul: Assessment of Ecological and Health Risk

Abstract

A significant pathway for human exposure to environmental pollutants is the metal transfer from soil to plants. In this study accumulation of different metals was investigated and natural radioactivity levels were measured in the soil–thyme system. It was found that the soil had higher concentrations of Br, Cr, Mn, Ni, and Pb than the world average and P, Ca, and Zn had higher transfer factors. The natural radioactivity level in the soils is similar to the World average. For thyme samples the average values for 226Ra, 232Th and 40K were found as 22.7 ± 10.9 Bqkg-1, 61.3 ± 19.9 Bqkg-1 and 722 ± 391 Bqkg-1, respectively. The health and ecological risks of soil were evaluated. The total hazard index of the child was 1.453 on average, greater than that of the adult (0.175), primarily due to the contribution of Cr. Ecological risk assessed based on various indices indicated that Pb and Ni show environmental contamination risk. Our findings confirm that metal concentrations in plants are influenced by metal concentrations in soil, and that metal interactions are important for pollution risk management.