Arsenic Accumulation in Soil, Forage, and Milk Samples from Rainfed and Groundwater Irrigated Areas in Chakwal,...

Arsenic (As) accumulation is a critical environmental concern in many developing countries due to its high toxicity and wide distribution. In the current investigation, As contents were estimated in soil, forage and cow's milk samples collected from rain-fed and groundwater-irrigated areas of Chakwal, Pakistan. The samples were subjected to wet digestion and examined for As contents using an atomic absorption spectrophotometer. As concentrations ranged from 2.28 to 10.57 mg kg^-1 in soil, 0.663 to 2.40 mg kg^-1 in forages, and 0.012 to 0.017 mg kg^-1 in milk. Among the forages Chenopodium album demonstrated the highest As contents at the groundwater-irrigated site, while Tribulus terresteris had the lowest As contents at the rain-fed site. All samples exhibited As levels below the permissible limits set by WHO. This study also found a significant positive correlation between As levels in soil and forages at both sites, while the correlation between forages and milk was negative and non-significant. All estimated pollution indices were below the threshold limit, indicating insignificant As contamination across study sites. However, Chenopodium album exhibited significantly higher pollution indices than other forage species (p < 0.05), signaling its enhanced bioconcentration potential.