Supervisors info:
Ευστράτιος Κελεπερτζής, Επίκουρος Καθηγητής, Τμήμα Γεωλογίας και Γεωπεριβάλλοντος, ΕΚΠΑ
Summary:
The purpose of this study is to assess the potential health risks to residents from the presence of nitrate ions in groundwater of the greater Atalanti area. More specifically, available chemical analysis data were used for 41 groundwater samples, obtained from boreholes. In most of the samples, the concentrations of nitrate ions exceeded the 50 mg/L limit, indicating that there is a serious nitrate groundwater pollution concern in the study area. Furthermore, the results of nitrate pollution index showed that 90% of the samples are polluted by nitrates, proving that the degradation of water quality is due to the human activities.
In this study, the methodology of human health risk assessment is applied to determine the effects expected from long-term exposure to nitrate ions through polluted water. Eight scenarios were investigated in which the hazard quotients and hazard index were calculated. If these variables are higher than 1, non-carcinogenic effects on human health are expected, and if they are less than 1, they consider insignificant. One of the scenarios was based on EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) guidelines, while the others were applied at a local scale. The most adverse to human health was found to be the EPA scenario, due to the higher rate of water intake, but also the longer exposure duration to the pollutant. Finally, in the case mentioned above, the population of the study area was divided into adults and children and two routes of exposure were examined: oral and dermal. The results showed that children are more prone to non-carcinogenic effects due to their low body weight and weaker immune system. It was also found that the health effect due to dermal contact with water is insignificant and therefore the human health effects come from the consumption of polluted water.
Keywords:
Nitrate ions, groundwater pollution, nitrate pollution index, hazard quotient, hazard index, non-carginogenic effects, human health risk assessment
