Chukwuonye God'sgift N, Alqattan Zain Alabdain, Jones Miriam, Jones Christopher, Brusseau Mark L, Ramírez-Andreotta Mónica D
Department of Environmental Science, College of Agriculture, Life Sciences and Environmental Sciences, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA.
Agriculture & Natural Resources, Cooperative Extension-Gila County, University of Arizona, Globe, AZ, USA.
Sci Total Environ. 2024 Dec 20;957:177767. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.177767. Epub 2024 Dec 3.
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are pervasive environmental pollutants with significant impacts on ecosystems and public health. This study aimed to characterize PFAS concentrations in an environmental justice community impacted by active/legacy copper mining, compounded by wildfires and flash floods. Additionally, the study explored the (re)mobilization of PFAS and co-occurrence with metal(loid)s following these events. Twenty-eight PFAS compounds in 35 residential and 8 control surface soil samples were analyzed via liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LCMS/MS). The maximum total PFAS concentration observed in the residential samples was 96.40 μg kg, compared to 1.69 μgkg in the control samples. Perfluorobutanoic acid (PFBA) had a maximum concentration of 61 μg kg in residential samples, while Perfluorohexane sulfonic acid (PFHxS) had the highest concentration in the control samples at 0.92 μg kg. Long-chain PFAS were most dominant in this study. Perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) (58 % of the samples), Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) (35 %), and Perfluorohexane sulfonic acid (PFHxS) (72 %) exceeded the U.S. EPA Soil-to-Groundwater Risk-Based Screening Levels, highlighting the potential risk of contaminants migrating from soil to groundwater, which could ultimately impact groundwater quality. Co-occurrence analysis showed that increases in PFAS concentrations were positively associated with Zn (β = 1.25, p = 0.0034) and Ba (β = 1.23, p = 0.0284) but negatively associated with Pb (β = -0.83, p = 0.0115) and Co (β = -1.38, p = 0.04671). In general, a spatial distribution map indicated that greater PFAS concentrations were observed near potential sources i.e., active mines. This evidence combined with select metal co-occurrence highlights the potential role of mining activities on PFAS concentration.
全氟和多氟烷基物质（PFAS）是普遍存在的环境污染物，对生态系统和公众健康有重大影响。本研究旨在描述受活跃/遗留铜矿开采影响、同时遭受野火和山洪暴发的一个环境正义社区中的PFAS浓度特征。此外，该研究还探讨了这些事件之后PFAS的（再）迁移以及与金属（类金属）的共现情况。通过液相色谱-串联质谱法（LCMS/MS）分析了35个住宅表层土壤样品和8个对照表层土壤样品中的28种PFAS化合物。住宅样品中观测到的PFAS总浓度最高为96.40μg/kg，而对照样品中为1.69μg/kg。全氟丁酸（PFBA）在住宅样品中的最高浓度为61μg/kg，而全氟己烷磺酸（PFHxS）在对照样品中的浓度最高，为0.92μg/kg。长链PFAS在本研究中占主导地位。全氟辛烷磺酸（PFOS）（占样品的58%）、全氟辛酸（PFOA）（35%）和全氟己烷磺酸（PFHxS）（72%）超过了美国环境保护局基于土壤到地下水风险的筛选水平，突出了污染物从土壤迁移到地下水的潜在风险，这最终可能影响地下水质量。共现分析表明，PFAS浓度的增加与锌（β = 1.25，p = 0.0034）和钡（β = 1.23，p = 0.0284）呈正相关，但与铅（β = -0.83，p = 0.0115）和钴（β = -1.38，p = 0.04671）呈负相关。总体而言，空间分布图表明，在潜在来源（即活跃矿山）附近观测到的PFAS浓度更高。这些证据与选定金属的共现情况相结合，突出了采矿活动对PFAS浓度的潜在作用。
