Open AccessEvaluation of Lead, Cadmium and Nickel Contamination in Lactuca Sativa Cultivated in Savadkooh Region, Iran
Author(s) -
Azadeh Gharibi,
Nazanin Khakipour
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
asian soil research journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2582-3973
DOI - 10.9734/asrj/2021/v5i230104
Subject(s) - cadmium , lactuca , contamination , environmental chemistry , atomic absorption spectroscopy , nickel , heavy metals , environmental science , soil test , soil contamination , chemistry , soil water , horticulture , biology , soil science , ecology , physics , organic chemistry , quantum mechanics
Aims: To investigate the level of heavy metal contamination in the lettuce cultivated in
Place: Savadkooh County in Mazandaran, Iran.
Methodology: five samples were taken from the lettuce produced in this area and also from the soils in which they were cultivated, and the concentrations of Nickel, Lead, and Cadmium were measured by atomic absorption spectrometry. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyze the measured data. Data analysis was performed by SPSS ver.16 at the 0.05 significance level.
Results: The highest lead concentration, 0.07ppm, was observed in the sample No. 5 (Lettuce 5), the highest cadmium concentration, 0.008ppm, was measured in the sample No. 2 (Lettuce 2), and the highest nickel concentration, 0.07ppm, was observed in the samples No. 1 and 4 (Lettuce 1 and Lettuce 4).
Conclusion: The results of this study show that while all the lettuces cultivated in the Savadkooh region contain some amounts of nickel, cadmium, and lead, these amounts are much lower than the limits specified in Iran’s national standard, and therefore these products are perfectly safe to consume. Also, the concentration of each heavy metal in the lettuces was found to be directly correlated with the corresponding concentration in the soil in which they were grown, indicating that the heavy metal content of the products increases with the increasing heavy metal content of the soil.