Assessment of benzo(a)pyrene soil contamination in Khabarovsk

Abstract

AIM: To assess the level of benzo(a)pyrene contamination of the functional areas of Khabarovsk in comparison with other cities of the Far East and other regions of the Russian Federation. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Benzo(a)pyrene concentration was assessed in the surface soil layer in the industrial, agro-residential and residential areas of Khabarovsk using a liquid chromatography with a multi-wave fluorescence detector Waters HPLC 2475 (Waters, USA) in accordance with the Operations Guidelines (MUK) 4.1.1274-03. In total, 78 soil samples were studied, 48.7% and 41.0% of them were collected in residential areas and industrial areas, respectively. Assessment of the pollution level was carried out by the hazard ratio and in accordance with SanPiN (Sanitary Norms and Regulations) 1.2.3685-21. Boxplots methods in MS Excel software were used for statistical analysis of the data. RESULTS: Benzo(a)pyrene concentration was below the detection limit in 35.9% of the samples while in 33.3% of the samples it exceeded Maximum Permissible Concentration (MPC). The average benzo(a)pyrene content in Khabarovsk soils was 0.079550.04310 mg/kg while the highest was 0.776 mg/kg (38.8 MPC). Benzo(a)pyrene content was 0.0050.145 mg/kg in 86% of samples, in residential areas 81.5% of samples fall within the range of 0.0050.215 mg/kg, in industrial areas 90.5% of samples within the range of 0.0070.157 mg/kg. According to SanPiN (Sanitary Norms and Regulations) 1.2.3685-21, 62.8% of samples are classified as clean, 12.8% permissible, 15.4% hazardous, 9.0% extremely hazardous. Benzo(a)pyrene distribution in the soil surface layer is characterized by the presence of technogenic anomalies with hazard ratios varying from 9.7 to 38.8. Residential areas located within the impact zone of the largest stationary sources of emissions have the greatest levels of pollution. CONCLUSION: The average benzo(a)pyrene concentration in the soils of Khabarovsk is higher compared to the cities in the Far East and in the European part of the Russian Federation. This situation can be at least partly explained by poor urban planning ignoring aerogenic inflow of pollutants and their accumulation in the soil in esidential areas.