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Arsenic and lead in the soils of San Antonio–El Triunfo mining district, B.C.S., México: a human health risk assessment

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Abstract

The MD SA-ET in Baja California Sur, Mexico, had over 200 years of intermittent mining activities. Studies in the area have reported Pb, Cd, Zn, and As dispersion from waste to soils, sediments, and groundwater, suggesting that even after all this time, biogeochemical processes have not completely mitigated the risk. Furthermore, evaluating how the fine particles in soils could control the human health risk by geochemical and mineralogical mechanisms has not yet been initiated. This study discusses the geoavailability and bioaccessibility based on the environmental and human health risks in an arid environment where the population is currently exposed to abandoned mining waste. The results show that urban soils (US) and stream sediments (SS) have very high total concentrations of As and Pb, but with low geoavailability, suggesting low environmental risk. Despite this, bioaccessibilities up to 100% were observed for As and Pb in the US, suggesting high risks for the inhabitants of San Antonio and El Triunfo towns. The blood Pb levels and the carcinogenic risk for As exposure assessed here show maximum values of 115.77 µgPb dL−1 and 85 × 10–4, respectively, which exceed the recommended limits according to USEPA. Chemical identification of microparticles (< 250 μm) by SEM–EDS shows bright metal solids with high iron content, commonly interpreted as iron oxide. However, it was possible to identify microparticles (< 5 μm) rich in Fe associated with ultrafine particles (< 1 μm) with high Pb and As contents. We conclude that differences between the geoavailability and bioaccessibility for soils and sediments in this study indicate that the solid microphases (possible Fe-oxides and oxyhydroxides) present in the fine soil fraction from MD SA-ET may control the geoavailability and bioavailability of As and Pb, as well as the environmental and human health risks.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to acknowledge the Instituto Nacional de Ecología y Cambio Climático (INECC) for their analytical support and Q. Astrid Vázquez Salgado for their support in obtaining the MEB-EDS images.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Instituto de Geología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Ciudad Universitaria, 04510, Mexico, Mexico

    Ernesto Hernández-Mendiola, Francisco Martín-Romero & L. Gerardo Martínez-Jardines

  2. Laboratorio Nacional de Geoquímica y Mineralogía, LANGEM, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Ciudad Universitaria, 04510, Mexico, Mexico

    Ernesto Hernández-Mendiola, Francisco Martín-Romero & Diana Meza-Figueroa

  3. Departamento de Geología, Universidad de Sonora, Rosales y Encinas, 83000, Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico

    Diana Meza-Figueroa

  4. División de Ingenierías Civil y Geomática, Facultad de Ingeniería, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Ciudad Universitaria, Mexico, Mexico

    Berenice Hernández-Cruz

  5. Ingeniería Geológica, Facultad de Ingeniería, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Ciudad Universitaria, Mexico, Mexico

    Violeta Espino-Ortega

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  1. Ernesto Hernández-Mendiola
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  2. Francisco Martín-Romero
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Correspondence to Ernesto Hernández-Mendiola or Francisco Martín-Romero.

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Hernández-Mendiola, E., Martín-Romero, F., Meza-Figueroa, D. et al. Arsenic and lead in the soils of San Antonio–El Triunfo mining district, B.C.S., México: a human health risk assessment. Environ Earth Sci 81, 42 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-021-10137-3

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