Deterministic and probabilistic human health risk assessment approach of exposure to heavy metals in drinking water sources: A case study of a semi-arid region in the west of Iran

Reza Shokoohi; Mohammad Khazaei; Manoochehr Karami; Abdolmotaleb Seid-Mohammadi; Hassan Khotanlou; Nima Berijani; Zahra Torkshavand

doi:10.1007/s40201-021-00671-4

Deterministic and probabilistic human health risk assessment approach of exposure to heavy metals in drinking water sources: A case study of a semi-arid region in the west of Iran

J Environ Health Sci Eng. 2021 May 5;19(1):1047-1055. doi: 10.1007/s40201-021-00671-4. eCollection 2021 Jun.

Authors

Reza Shokoohi¹, Mohammad Khazaei¹, Manoochehr Karami², Abdolmotaleb Seid-Mohammadi¹, Hassan Khotanlou³, Nima Berijani⁴, Zahra Torkshavand¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Environmental Health Engineering, School of Public Health and Research Center for Health Sciences, Hamadan University of Medical Sciences, Hamadan, Iran.
² Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, Hamadan University of Medical Sciences, Hamadan, Iran.
³ Department of Computer Engineering, Bu-Ali Sina University, Hamadan, Iran.
⁴ Occupational Medicine Specialist, Sepehr Occupational Medicine Center, Hamadan, Iran.

Abstract

In the current study, the concentration of heavy metals (Ba, Mn, Pb, and Cd) in drinking water resources of 328 villages in Hamadan Province were measured using ICP-OES apparatus during two dry (September 2018) and wet (April 2019) seasons. The assessment of the non-carcinogenic risk of selected heavy metals was conducted based on the recommendations of the USEPA. Also, sensitivity analysis and uncertainty of the effective variables were performed using Monte-Carlo simulations. Based on the results, Mn level in drinking water samples ranged 0.08-25.63 μg/L and 0.08-20.03 μg/L in dry and wet seasons, respectively. Similarly, Ba levels in water samples ranged 0.15-70.13 μg/L and 0.84-65 μg/L. Also, Cd and Pb concentrations in all sampling sites were below the limits of detection (LOD) of the ICP-OES apparatus. The hazard index (HI) values for adult and children were 2.17 × 10^-3 and 3.29 × 10^-3, respectively, which show a lack of non-carcinogenic risk for the examined heavy metals (Mn and Ba) to the local inhabitants. The results of the sensitivity analyses for adults and children revealed that two variables including metal concentration and ingestion rate of drinking water (IR) had the highest positive effects on the non-carcinogenic risk estimates. It was also found that there was no significant non-carcinogenic risk for the local residents in the studied area due to drinking water consumption.

Keywords: Hamadan Province; Heavy metals; Non-carcinogenic risk; Sensitivity analysis.