Distribution, sources and ecological risk assessment of PAHs in historically contaminated surface sediments at Bhavnagar coast, Gujarat, India

• Published in: Environmental pollution (1987) 2016-06, Vol.213, p.338-346
• Main Authors: Dudhagara, Dushyant R., Rajpara, Rahul K., Bhatt, Jwalant K., Gosai, Haren B., Sachaniya, Bhumi K., Dave, Bharti P.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Carcinogens; Cluster Analysis; Coal - analysis; Ecological risk; Ecology; Ecosystem; Environmental Monitoring; Environmental Pollutants - analysis; Environmental Pollution - analysis; Geologic Sediments - analysis; Hierarchical cluster analysis; Humans; India; Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons; Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons - analysis; Principal Component Analysis; Risk Assessment; Soil - chemistry; Soil Pollutants - analysis; Source identification; Toxic equivalency factors; Water - analysis; Water Pollutants, Chemical - analysis
• ISSN: 0269-7491; 1873-6424
• DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2016.02.030

The concentration, distribution and ecological risk of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) have been investigated in surface sediments near Bhavnagar coast. The concentration of ∑PAHs ranged from 5.02 to 981.18 μg g−1 dry weight, indicating heavy pollution compared to other historically polluted study sites. It was found to be introduced via mixed origins such as burning of gas, oil, coal, production of petrochemicals, cement, and rubber tires. Domestic fuel burning and motor vehicles are also culprits for air pollution. Industrial effluents and accidental oil spillage can also be considered. PAHs can be exposed through air, water, soil and food sources including ingestion, inhalation, and dermal content in both occupational and non-occupational levels by single or sometimes multiple exposures routes concomitantly. Furthermore, diagnostic ratios, statistical principal component analysis (PCA) and hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) models have confirmed that the sources of PAHs were both - petrogenic and pyrogenic. For both the sites, assessment of ecological risk of the elevated levels of these pollutants has been exercised based on toxic equivalency factors (TEFs) and risk quotient (RQ) methods. The composite results indicated accurately that both the sites, bears potentially acute and chronic health hazards such as decreased immune functionality, genotoxicity, malignancy and developmental malfunctions in humans. The sites studied here and the workers have been exposed to hazardous pollutants for a longer period of time. Evidences indicate that mixtures of PAHs are carcinogenic to humans, based on occupational studies on workers, exposed to these pollutants. Hence, the present study and statistical approaches applied herein clearly indicate the historic mix routes of PAHs that resulted in magnified concentrations leading to high ecosystem risk. Thus, the scientific communities are urged to develop strategies to minimize the concentrations of PAHs from the historically impacted coastlines, thereby concerning for the future investigations and restoration of these sites. [Display omitted] •Assessment & source identification of PAHs contaminated sites near Bhavnagar coast.•∑PAHs ranged from 5.02 to 981.18 μg g−1 dry weight.•One of the most polluted sites, on comparison with few previous potential studies.•Diagnostic ratios, HCA, PCA, TEFs and RQ were applied as statistical tools.•The results have revealed petrogenic and pyrogenic sources of PAHs contamin