Contamination and health risk assessment of heavy metals in beach sediments of Red Sea and Gulf of Aqaba, Egypt

Hamdy E Nour; Sobhi A Helal; Mohamed Abdel Wahab

doi:10.1016/j.marpolbul.2022.113517

Contamination and health risk assessment of heavy metals in beach sediments of Red Sea and Gulf of Aqaba, Egypt

Mar Pollut Bull. 2022 Apr:177:113517. doi: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2022.113517. Epub 2022 Mar 14.

Authors

Hamdy E Nour¹, Sobhi A Helal², Mohamed Abdel Wahab³

Affiliations

¹ Geology department, Faculty of Science, Zagazig University, Zagazig, Egypt. Electronic address: nour_geo@yahoo.com.
² Geology department, Faculty of Science, Fayoum University, Fayoum, Egypt.
³ National Institute of Oceanography and Fisheries, Red Sea Branch, Egypt.

PMID: 35299149
DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2022.113517

Abstract

The Egyptian beaches on the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aqaba in Sinai are a destination for international tourism throughout the year. Therefore, assessing the concentration levels of heavy metal pollutants and identifying the extent of their impact on human health is important. Single and integrated pollutants indices have been used to assess the risks of these elements. The results of single indices proved that the study area contain Fe and Zn came mostly from natural source while Cu, Pb, Cd and Hg originated from anthropogenic sources. However, the integrated pollutants indices revealed that this area is not polluted with heavy metals. On the other hand, the hazard index, and the carcinogenic risk over the lifetime coefficients proved that the beach sand of the study area is completely safe and does not have additional health risks to children or adults, where LCR < 10^-6.

Keywords: Assessment; Contamination; Health risk; Heavy metals; Red Sea and Gulf of Aqaba; Sediments.

MeSH terms

Child
Egypt
Environmental Monitoring / methods
Geologic Sediments
Humans
Indian Ocean
Metals, Heavy* / analysis
Risk Assessment
Water Pollutants, Chemical* / analysis

Substances

Metals, Heavy
Water Pollutants, Chemical