Urban soil contaminants

Laidlaw Filippelli (2008), Laidlaw et al. (2005), and Filippelli et al. (2005) have demonstrated that seasonal variations in children s blood lead levels In Syracuse, Indianapolis and New Orleans could be predicted using soil moisture and atmospheric variables suggesting that resuspension of urban soils contaminated by past use of leaded gasoline and paint were causally related to seasonal variations in blood lead. These papers concluded that urban lead contaminated soil was being re-suspended when soils were dry in the summer and autumn when... 

Tiller, K. G. (1992). Urban soil contamination in Australia. Aust. J. Soil Res. 30, 937-957. Tokunaga, S., and Hakuta, T. (2002). Acid washing and stabilization of an artificial... 

Antil, R.S., Gupta, A.P., and Narwal, R.P., Nitrogen transformation and microbial biomass content in soil contaminated with nickel and cadmium from industrial wastewater irrigation, Urban Water, 3 (4), 299-302, 2001. 

Correlation of Atmospheric Soil and Atmospheric Lead in Three North American Cities Can Re-suspension of Urban Lead Contaminated Soil be a Major Source of Urban Atmospheric Lead and Cause Seasonal Variations in Children s Blood Lead Levels ... 

In order to decrease urban atmospheric lead concentrations, lead deposition, and subsequent children s exposure via hand to mouth activity, urban lead contaminated soils should be remediated or isolated. 

Campanella, R. Mielke, H.W. 2008. Human geography of New Orleans urban soil lead contaminated geochemical setting. Environmental Geochemistry and Health, 30, 531-540. 

Correlation of atmospheric soil and atmospheric lead in three North American cities can re-suspension of urban lead contaminated soil be a major source of urban atmospheric lead and cause seasonal variations... 

One particular type of source that should be studied carefully Is entrained soil. As shown above, this Is often the greatest contributor of TSP In urban areas. As there Is so much of It present, we need to know concentrations of all measured elements quite well to make an accurate determination of the residual amounts left to be accounted for by other sources. The composition of selved soil Is often used for the soil component, but there may be considerable fractionation Imposed by entrainment, e.g., preferential selection of very fine clay mineral particles. Such fractionation has been demonstrated In the very limited studies of entrainment of particles from soil of known composition (e.g.. Refs. 21, 49). These studies can probably best be done In controlled environments such as wind tunnels. One cannot simply collect ambient particles In the countryside and consider it to be soil, as there are anthropogenic contributions even at great distances from cities ( ). There Is further confusion betwen clean, "continental" dust and "urban" dust. The latter, which Is usually collected near city streets (21, 50), typically has a composition of soil contaminated by anthropogenic emissions, especially from motor vehicles. 

Yang, J., Mosby, D. E., Casteel, S. W. Blan-char, R. W. 2001. Lead immobilization using phosphoric acid in a smelter-contaminated urban soil. Environmental Science Technology, 35, 3553-3559. 

Because anthropogenic activities are the main sources of PAHs, the levels of PAHs in soils in urban areas are approximately 2-10 times higher than those in rural areas. An extensive and systematic survey has been undertaken by Tang et al. (2005) to evaluate the PAH contamination of urban soils in Beijing, China. Soil samples were collected from campuses of universities, schools and kindergartens, public squares, fallow land, and roadsides, and were analyzed for 16 PAHs by GC-MS. There was a high variability in the total PAHs (EPAHs) concentrations, ranging from less... 

Tang, L., Tang, X.Y., Zhu, Y.G., Zheng, M.H., Miao, Q.L., 2005. Contamination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in urban soils in Beijing, China. Environ. Int. 

Despite the low average consumption of pesticides, in the sporadic reports available, it could be seen that even the roadside dusts, rural and urban soils and the underwater sediments are contaminated. Many pesticides are degrading the Indian environment, even though faster dissipation and possible degradation of POPs chemicals like HCHs and DDTs were observed in Indian soils by the tropical climate of India (Pillai, 1986). Such a phenomenon of dissipation in the dry season was substantiated by Ramesh et al. (1991) in the river sediments (Fig. 9.2). Further, the relative flux of residues into the aquatic environment is smaller than the amount volatilized to the atmosphere in tropical countries like India (Tanabe et al., 1991). 

Part 5 Guidance on the Procedure for the Investigation of Soil Contamination of Urban and Industrial Sites... 

Heavy metals concentration generally decreases in urban soils away from the main road network and with increasing depth of sampling. This can be explained by the strong dependence of these contaminants on the use of motor vehicles—leaded fuels for Pb, tire wear for Zn and Cd, brake pads for Sb, converters and exhaust systems for platinum group elements (PGEs). 

Li, X., Poon, C., and Liu, P. S. (2001). Heavy metal contamination of urban soils and street dusts in Hong Kong. Appl. Geochem. 16, 1361—1368. 

Contamination of urban soils by POPs such as PCBs is of concern for human and ecological health. Soil contamination by metals and persistent organics disrupts nutrient cycling and is associated with declines in density of sod microfauna and lower rates of decomposition of organic compounds (Carreiro et al., 1999 Pouyat et al., 1994), an important process for the removal of organic contaminants from the environment. Ironically, urban warming may counteract this effect in some locations (McDonnell et al., 1997). 

Heavy metal contamination in soils have been discovered in urban areas [ 17 ], urban sediments, street sweepings [ 18 ], and along roadsides [ 19, 20 ]. Miller and Me Fee [21 ], working on the urban soils of industrial Northwe.stem Indiana found that metal contents in soil decreases with soil depth. They also found the total Ph concentrations at 5 different loeations ranges from 64 Jig g to 401 fig g. The Pb values in Table 2 for Kuala Lumpur soils clearly indicates much higher concentrations overall. Among the metals studied, Pb was the most... 

J. Roed, K.G. Andersson, C.L. Fogh et al.. Triple Digging—A Simple Method for Restoration of Radioactively Contaminated Urban Soil Areas, J. Environ. Radioactivity, 45(2), 173-183 (1999). 

High levels of air, soil and plant pollution is the result of various economic activities, of which industry is a very important contributor. The spectra of pollutants which affected urban soils depended mainly upon the kind of industry. The negative impact of industry has led to changes in the chemical composition of the biosphere, and the accumulation of pollutants in soils, plants, etc. Consequently, the food chain has been contaminated as well, which has had a negative impact on human health. 

Part 4 Guidance on the procedure for investigation of soil contamination of urban and industrial sites. 

---