Risk Assessment of Heavy Metals Pollution in Agricultural Soils of Siling Reservoir Watershed in Zhejiang Province, China

Abstract

Presence of heavy metals in agriculture soils above the permissible limit poses threats to public health. In this study, concentrations of seven metals were determined in agricultural soils from Yuhang county, Zhejiang, China. Multivariate statistical approaches were used to study the variation of metals in soils during summer and winter seasons. Contamination of soils was evaluated on the basis of enrichment factor (EF), geoaccumulation index (Igeo), contamination factor (Cf), and degree of contamination (Cdeg). Heavy metal concentrations were observed higher in winter as compared to summer season. Cr and Cd revealed random distribution with diverse correlations in both seasons. Principal component analysis and cluster analysis showed significant anthropogenic intrusions of Zn, Cd, Pb, Cr, and Cu in the soils. Enrichment factor revealed significant enrichment (EF>5) of Zn, Cd, and Pb, whereas geoaccumulation index and contamination factor exhibited moderate to high contamination for Zn, Cr, Cd, and Pb. In light of the studied parameters, permissible limit to very high degree of contamination (Cdeg>16) was observed in both seasons.