Heavy metals and arsenic in foodstuffs in the vicinity of industrial enterprises and nuclear power plant

Abstract

Introduction. There is evaluated the content of seventeen elements in local agricultural and natural foodstuffs of the 30-km zone of influence of the Beloyarsk NPP, located in the industrially developed area of the Sverdlovsk region. Materials and methods. The study was conducted in 2013 and 2019 in the private sector of 27 settlements, 20 collective farms and forests of the 30-km zone around the Beloyarsk NPP, and a cooling reservoir. In crop products (grain, potatoes, roots, vegetables), animal husbandry (milk, meat, poultry) and natural foods (mushrooms, berries, fish) the content of Pb, Zn, Cd, As, Hg, Mo, Cu, Ni, Co, Cr, Sb, Sr, Mn, V, W, Ba and Fe was estimated. Elements in the samples were detected by atomic absorption and plasma emission methods of analysis. The results obtained for the most toxic Pb, Cd, As and Hg were compared with sanitary-hygienic standards (SanPiN 2.3.2.1078-01). Results. The trend in the content of heavy metals and arsenic in local foodstuffs before and after the commissioning of the BN-800 reactor is presented. The types of foods with the maximum accumulation of pollutants are identified. In the majority of local foodstuffs in the vicinity of the Beloyarsk NPP there was shown no risk of exceeding the sanitary-hygienic standards for the content of the most toxic elements. An excess of SanPiN standards was noted for arsenic content in 10-30% of grain samples, for cadmium in 15-20% of wild berry samples. Limitations. The content of toxicants was assessed in the main groups of local agricultural and natural foods available during the sampling period, and expanding the list of analyzed products and the number of elements may be the subject of further research. Conclusion. The assessment of the safety of foodstuffs in the vicinity of the Beloyarsk NPP showed that the operation of the BN-600 and BN-800 reactors doesn’t significantly affect the increase in the content of toxic elements in locally produced foods, and the accumulation of pollutants in them is determined by long-term emissions of industrial enterprises of Sverdlovsk region.