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Spatial assessment of heavy metals contamination in household garden soils in rural Limpopo Province, South Africa

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Abstract

Heavy metal pollution in soil poses a serious health threat to humans living in close proximity and in contact with contaminated soil. Exposure to heavy metals can result in a range of adverse health effects, including skin lesions, cardiovascular effects, lowering of IQ scores and cancers. The main objectives of this study were to (1) use a portable XRF spectrophotometer to measure concentrations of lead (Pb), arsenic (As), mercury (Hg) and cadmium (Cd) in residential soils in rural Giyani in the Limpopo province of South Africa; (2) to assess the spatial distribution of soil metal concentrations; and (3) to assess pollution levels in residential soils. There were elevated levels of As at one of the sites where 54% of soil samples exceeded the Canadian reference levels for As of 20 mg/kg. Using the geoaccumulation index (Igeo) to determine contamination levels of As, 57% of soil samples from the most polluted site were found to be moderately to heavily and extremely contaminated with As (Igeo class 2–5). The site is located near the Giyani Greenstone Belt, which is characterized by abandoned mines and artisanal mining activities. Gold ores are closely associated with sulphide minerals such as arsenopyrite, and these have been found to contain high amounts of As. This study highlighted the potential for soil contamination and the importance of site-specific risk assessment in the context of environment and health impact assessments prior to major developments, including human settlement developments.

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Acknowledgements

We thank all the fieldworkers for carrying out the fieldwork.

Funding

This research was carried out for the iDEWS (infectious Diseases Early-Warning System) project supported by SATREPS (Science and Technology Research Partnership for Sustainable Development), Program of JICA (JAPAN International Cooperation Agency)/AMED (Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development) in Japan and the ACCESS (Applied Centre for Climate and Earth Systems Science) program of NRF (National Research Foundation) and DST (Department of Science and Technology in South Africa). C.Y. Wright, A. Mathee and T. Kapwata received research funding from the South African Medical Research Council. CY Wright and A Mathee received research funding from the National Research Foundation of South Africa.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Environment and Health Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Johannesburg, 2028, South Africa

    Thandi Kapwata, Angela Mathee, Mirriam Mogotsi & Zamantimande Kunene

  2. Department of Environmental Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Johannesburg, PO Box 524, Auckland Park, 2006, South Africa

    Thandi Kapwata & Angela Mathee

  3. School of Public Health, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2028, South Africa

    Angela Mathee

  4. Applied Centre for Climate and Earth Systems Science, National Research Foundation, Cape Town, South Africa

    Neville Sweijd

  5. Institute of Tropical Medicine, Nagasaki University, Nagasaki, Japan

    Noboru Minakawa

  6. Environment and Health Research Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Pretoria, 0084, South Africa

    Caradee Y. Wright

  7. Department of Geography, Geoinformatics and Meteorology, Private Bag X20, Hatfield, Pretoria, 0028, South Africa

    Caradee Y. Wright

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  1. Thandi Kapwata
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  2. Angela Mathee
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Contributions

AM and CYW conceptualized the study; ZK and MM performed the data collection and sample testing; TK performed the data analysis and presentation; all authors contributed to the writing of the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Thandi Kapwata.

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Kapwata, T., Mathee, A., Sweijd, N. et al. Spatial assessment of heavy metals contamination in household garden soils in rural Limpopo Province, South Africa. Environ Geochem Health 42, 4181–4191 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10653-020-00535-0

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