Asma Ashfaq

Sargodha is popularly known as California of Pakistan because of its renowned production of superior quality citrus cultivars. However, the increasing reliance on domestic wastewater for irrigation in this region has raised serious concerns regarding the accumulation of hazardous metals in soil and edible fruit tissues. This may pose a significant risk to food safety and human health. In this study, a field-based comparative sampling strategy was adopted, where irrigation water, soil, and citrus fruit samples were obtained from orchards with canal water irrigation (CW-I) and domestic wastewater irrigation (DWW-II). Samples of water, soil, and fruits were analysed through atomic absorption spectrophotometry to evaluate the accumulation of selected heavy metals in irrigation water, soil, and edible parts of three citrus species grown under CW-I and DWW-II irrigation systems. Zn concentrations ranged from 13.31-51.67 mg L^-1 in water, 44-71 mg kg^-1 in soil, and 1.08-1.58 mg kg^-1 in fruits. Cr levels varied between 1.86-11.66 mg L^-1 in water, 9.67-22.70 mg kg^-1 in soil, and 0.011-0.10 mg kg^-1 in fruits. Ecological risk assessment indicated higher metal accumulation in citrus fruits irrigated with DWW-II compared to CW-I, as indicated by elevated contamination factor (CF) and enrichment factor (EF), with Zn consistently showing the lowest contribution. The pollution load index (PLI) values exceeded 1 under domestic wastewater irrigation (1.53-1.65), suggesting moderate pollution. The estimated daily intake (EDI) values were higher for all metals under domestic wastewater irrigation, particularly for Fe (0.122 mg kg^-1day^-1) and Zn (0.0604 mg kg^-1day^-1), yet remained below permissible limits. Health risk assessment revealed that THQ values for all studied metals remained within permissible limits, indicating no significant non-carcinogenic risk associated with the consumption of these citrus fruits. The findings demonstrate that domestic wastewater irrigation significantly increased metal concentrations in soil and fruits. These results highlight the importance of continuous monitoring and the implementation of sustainable irrigation practices to minimize long-term health risks associated with wastewater use in agriculture.

This study investigated the potential risks of cadmium (Cd) toxicity in buffaloes grazing on forages that were cultivated in soils irrigated by various sources of wastewater. The absorption of trace metals (TM) by plants and their subsequent entry into the food chain pose a significant danger to grazing animals through the accumulation of contaminated fodder. The mean concentration of Cd in the water ranged from 0.18-1.78 mg/L, in the soil 0.63 to 1.87 mg/kg, in the forage 0.20 to 1.32 mg/kg, and in the blood 0.26 to 1.98 mg/L. Among all three sites, canal water (CW Site I), groundwater (GW Site II), and sewage water (SW Site III), the concentration factor (CF) values were below the threshold of 1 (CF < 1), indicating the nominal environmental concern regarding Cd contents in the soil-plant interface. In addition, a prominent variation was noticed in the transfer factor (TF) of Cd across different sites, with the highest TF observed in Avena sativa L. at SW Site III (0.8) and the lowest in Pennisetum glaucum L. at CW Site I (0.27). Furthermore, the hazard quotient (HQ) exhibited a substantial fluctuation, ranging from 0.39 to 2.6, reflecting varying levels of potential health risks associated with Cd exposure. The outcomes of the current investigation suggested that the prominent increase in Cd levels was recorded at sampling site SW Site III due to continuous wastewater irrigation. Prolonged exposure and increased Cd absorption in buffaloes grazing at these sites could have harmful long-term effects on their health. The correlation analysis between Cd concentrations in water, soil, forage, and blood showed a positive but non-significant relationship for water-soil, soil-forage, and forage-blood interactions. This highlights the need for further research to assess the long-term implications of wastewater irrigation on heavy metal accumulation in livestock.

This study examines the effects of municipal solid waste (MSW) amendments on molybdenum (Mo) concentrations in both soil and vegetables in two growing years. Three MSW treatments were tested, i.e., 25% MSW + 75% garden soil (T1), 50% MSW + 50% garden soil (T2), and 75% MSW + 25% garden soil (T3), with a control treatment of 100% garden soil (T0). Fifteen vegetable species were cultivated to evaluate Mo uptake and bioaccumulation. The Pollution Load Index (PLI) and Bioaccumulation Factor (BCF) values confirmed the impact of MSW on Mo accumulation in both soil and vegetables, with Allium cepa and Mentha arvensis showing greater sensitivity to Mo contamination. Health risk assessments revealed that vegetables grown in MSW-amended soils, especially Allium cepa at T3 Year-1, had higher Daily Intake of Metal (DIM) and Health Risk Index (HRI) values compared to those grown in the control soil. The analysis of molybdenum concentrations in blood samples taken from people of various localities added a human health aspect to the study. This study highlights the potential of MSW compost in increasing Mo bioavailability and the implications for human health through vegetable consumption, emphasizing the need to carefully monitor Mo levels in MSW-amended soils.

The recent over production of municipal solid waste (MSW) poses a significant threat to both the ecosystem and human health. Utilizing MSW for agricultural purposes has emerged as a promising strategy to reduce solid waste disposal while simultaneously increasing soil fertility. To explore this potential solution further, an experiment was designed to assess the impact of varying concentrations of MSW (25%, 50%, and 75%) on the proximate composition of 15 different vegetable species. The experiment, conducted between 2018 and 2019, involved treating soil with different levels of solid waste and analyzing the proximate components, such as crude protein, dry matter, crude fiber, crude fat, and moisture content, in the 15 selected crops. The results indicate that the application of 25% MSW significantly increased the levels of crude protein, crude fiber, dry matter, and fat in Spinacia oleracea, Solanum tuberosum, Solanum melongena, and Abelmoschus esculentus. Conversely, the addition of 75% MSW notably elevated the moisture and ash content in Cucumis sativus. Correlation and scatter matrix analyses were conducted to elucidate the relationships between the protein, fiber, dry matter, ash, and fat contents. Principal component analysis and clustering confirmed the substantial impact of Treatment_1 (25% MSW) and Treatment_3 (75% MSW) on the proximate composition of the aforementioned vegetables, leading to their categorization into distinct groups. Our study highlights the efficacy of using 25% MSW to enhance the proximate composition and nutritional value of vegetables. Nonetheless, further research is warranted to investigate the mineral, antioxidant, vitamin, and heavy metal contents in the soil over an extended period of MSW application.

Heavy metals pollution is a major concern on a global scale. The present work evaluated the cadmium (Cd) and copper (Cu) concentrations in water, soil, forages (Avena sativa, Brassica campestris, Medicago sativa, Pennisetum glaucum and Trifolium alexandrinum), milk and hair samples of cows. The samples taken according to trophic levels of the food chain were collected from selected arid regions of Khushab, Punjab, Pakistan and analyzed by an atomic absorption spectrophotometer. The concentrations of Cd and Cu were found in the range of 0.041-0.065 mg/L, 0.585-1.341 mg/L in water; 0.223-2.600 mg/kg, 11.550-15.853 mg/kg in soil; 0.0037-0.682 mg/kg, 3.0917-8.208 mg/kg in fodder; 0.0457-0.137 mg/kg, 0.0167-0.690 mg/L in milk and 0.043-0.112 mg/kg, 0.0427-0.497 mg/kg in hair, respectively. The Cd and Cu concentrations in water, soil, forage, milk and hair were safer compared to standard limits. Bioconcentration factor (BCF), Enrichment factor (EF), Daily Intake of Metal (DIM), and Health Risk Index (HRI) were found less than 1 in Cd and Cu whereas PLI1 in Cu that indicates copper pollution in soil. So, regular monitoring of heavy metals was required to appraise contamination levels in the environment.

In South Asia, the high costs of synthetic fertilizers have imposed research on alternative nutrient inputs. We aimed to identify potential trace elements (PTE) present in some organic manure that might be a source of environmental pollutions and risk to public health following consumption. The study aims to evaluate how different organic waste (poultry waste, PW; press mud, PM; and farmyard manure, FYM) influences the heavy metal migration in soil, the accumulation in garlic, and their potential health risks. Organic waste caused a higher accumulation of certain metals (Zn, Cu, Fe, and Co), whereas Mn, Cd, Cr, and Pb were in lower concentrations in soil. Amendments of soil with PM revealed a higher accumulation of Cd, Cr, Fe, and Pb, whereas PW resulted in Cu and Zn accumulation in garlic. Treatment of soil with FYM exhibited higher metal concentration of Co and Mn. An environmental hazard indices study revealed that pollution load index (PLI) was highest for Cu following treatment with PM. The health risk index (HRI) was greater for Cd following amendment with PM. Maximum daily intake of metals (DIM) was observed for Zn after treatment with PW. The Pb exhibited maximum bioconcentration factor (BCF) in PM-amended plants. Based on these findings, we concluded that garlic grown on contaminated soil with organic waste may pose serious health hazards following consumption.