Assessing Soil Pollution Potential through Spatial Heavy Metal Bioaccessibility for Health Risk Evaluation
Yen-Tzu Fan1,2, Ying-Lin Wang1,2, Ming-Chien Tsou3
1Graduate Institute of Environmental Engineering, National Taiwan University, Taipei City, 106319Taiwan.
Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management
|September 9, 2025
Summary
This study maps heavy metal bioaccessibility in Taiwan
Area of Science:
- Environmental Science
- Public Health
- Geochemistry
Background:
- Heavy metal (HM) pollution poses risks, but bioaccessibility, not just concentration, dictates exposure.
- Current risk assessments often lack bioaccessibility data, limiting accuracy and targeted remediation.
- Spatial data integration with bioaccessibility can identify pollution hotspots and protect vulnerable groups.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop a novel approach for spatially integrating heavy metal bioaccessibility into health risk assessments.
- To establish predictive equations for HM bioaccessibility based on soil properties.
- To generate spatial bioaccessibility maps for Taiwan's agricultural regions and assess associated health risks.
Main Methods:
- Utilized the simple bioaccessibility extraction test (SBET) on 98 farmland soil samples across Taiwan.
- Developed predictive equations for six common HMs (Cd, Pb, Cr, Ni, Cu, Zn) based on SBET results and soil properties.
- Integrated SBET equations with soil survey data to create spatial bioaccessibility maps and applied them to Changhua County for risk assessment.
Main Results:
- Identified geographic variations in HM bioaccessibility, with high Cd SBET in northern acidic soils and elevated Cu/Zn SBET in southern soils with low clay content.
- Spatial maps revealed distinct HM bioaccessibility patterns across Taiwan's agricultural lands.
- Risk assessment in Changhua County indicated higher non-carcinogenic risks for infants and children in western villages and carcinogenic risks for seniors.
Conclusions:
- The study presents a practical framework for integrating soil bioaccessibility into spatial risk assessments.
- This approach aids policymakers in identifying high-risk areas, prioritizing remediation efforts, and allocating healthcare resources effectively.
- Supports Sustainable Development Goals for good health and life on land by improving environmental health risk management.
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