School of Water and Environment, Chang'an University, No. 126 Yanta Road, Xi'an, 710054, Shaanxi, China.
Key Laboratory of Subsurface Hydrology and Ecological Effects in Arid Region of the Ministry of Education, Chang'an University, No. 126 Yanta Road, Xi'an, 710054, Shaanxi, China.
Arch Environ Contam Toxicol. 2021 Jan;80(1):107-119. doi: 10.1007/s00244-020-00762-7. Epub 2020 Oct 3.
Groundwater nitrate pollution is a serious threat to human health in many regions of the world. The present study was performed to assess the nitrate contamination in groundwater in the region of Nirmal province, South India, where people purely depend on groundwater for drinking purposes. The associated human health risks for different age groups (male, female, and children) also were evaluated based on the United States Environmental Protection Agency model. Results indicate that nitrate concentration in groundwater is in the range of 0.8-130 mg/L with a mean of 36.51 mg/L. Furthermore, 26.47% of groundwater samples exceeded the WHO drinking water guidelines for NO in the study region. The contribution of oral ingestion is very higher than the dermal contact in the total hazard quotient or noncarcinogenic health risk. The total hazard quotient values ranged from 0.02 to 3.13 for adult males, 0.02 to 3.70 for adult females, and 0.03 to 4.32 for children. The health risk assessment highlights that children are more exposed to the noncarcinogenic health risks of nitrate than adult females and males in the study region. Therefore, specific groundwater quality measures should be formulated to address the health risk problems for children in the study region.
地下水硝酸盐污染是世界许多地区对人类健康的严重威胁。本研究旨在评估印度南部尼尔马尔省地下水的硝酸盐污染情况，该地区的人们完全依赖地下水作为饮用水。还根据美国环境保护署的模型评估了不同年龄组（男性、女性和儿童）的相关人类健康风险。结果表明，地下水的硝酸盐浓度范围在 0.8-130mg/L 之间，平均值为 36.51mg/L。此外，研究区域 26.47%的地下水样本超过了世界卫生组织饮用水中硝酸盐的指导值。在总危害商或非致癌健康风险中，口服摄入的贡献远高于皮肤接触。对于成年男性，总危害商值范围为 0.02-3.13；对于成年女性，总危害商值范围为 0.02-3.70；对于儿童，总危害商值范围为 0.03-4.32。健康风险评估突出表明，与成年女性和男性相比，研究区域的儿童更容易受到硝酸盐的非致癌健康风险的影响。因此，应制定具体的地下水质量措施来解决研究区域儿童的健康风险问题。
