List of Contents

Chapter - 1

 Introduction

Chapter – 2
 Review Literature
– Causes
– Pesticides and herbicides
– Agents of war
– Health effects

Chapter – 3
 Research Study
– Case Study
– Ecosystem effects
– Cleanup options
– By country

Chapter – 4
– Summary
– Conclusion
– References
–
Chapter – 1
Introduction
 SOIL CONTAMINATION OR SOIL POLLUTION

Introduction

Soil pollution is defined as the build-up in soils of persistent

toxic compounds, chemicals, salts, radioactive materials, or
disease causing agents, which have adverse effects on plant
growth and animal health.

Soil is the thin layer of organic and inorganic materials that

covers the Earth's rocky surface.

The organic portion, which is derived from the decayed

remains of plants and animals, is concentrated in the dark
uppermost topsoil. The inorganic portion made up of rock
fragments, was formed over thousands of years by physical
and chemical weathering of bedrock. Productive soils are
necessary for agriculture to supply the world with sufficient
food.

“Soil pollution” refers to the presence of a chemical or

substance out of place and/ or present at a higher than
normal concentration that has adverse effects on any non-
targeted organism (FAO and ITPS, 2015). Although the
majority of pollutants have anthropogenic origins, some
contaminants can occur naturally in soils as components of
minerals and can be toxic at high concentrations. Soil
pollution often cannot be directly assessed or visually
perceived, making it a hidden danger. The diversity of
contaminants is constantly evolving due to agrochemical and
industrial developments. This diversity, and the
transformation of organic compounds in soils by biological
activity into diverse metabolites, make soil surveys to identify
the contaminants both difficult and expensive. The effects of
soil contamination also depend on soil properties since these
control the mobility, bioavailability, and residence time of
contaminants (FAO and ITPS, 2015). Industrialization, wars,
mining and intensification in agriculture have left a legacy of
contaminated soils around the world (Bundschuh et al., 2012;
DEA, 2010; EEA, 2014; Luo et al., 2009; SSR, 2010). Since
urban expansion, soil has been used as a sink for dumping
solid and liquid wastes. It was considered that once buried
and out of sight, the contaminants would not pose any risk to
human health or the environment and that they would
somehow disappear (Swartjes, 2011). The main sources of soil
pollution are anthropogenic, resulting in the accumulation of
contaminants in soils that may reach levels of concern
(Cachada, Rocha-Santos and Duarte, 2018). Soil pollution is
an alarming issue. It has been identified as the third most
important threat to soil functions in Europe and Eurasia,
fourth in North Africa, fifth in Asia, seventh in the Northwest
Pacific, eighth in North America, and ninth in sub-Saharan
Africa and Latin America (FAO and ITPS, 2015). The presence
of certain pollutants may also produce nutrient imbalances
and soil acidification, two major issues in many parts of the
world, as identified in the Status of the World’s Soil Resources
Report (FAO and ITPS, 2015). The unique global estimate of
soil pollution was done in the 1990s by the International Soil
Reference and Information Centre (ISRIC) and the United
Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), which estimated
that 22 million hectares had been affected by soil pollution
(Oldeman, 1991). Latest data, however, indicate that this
number may underestimate the nature and extent of the
problem. National attempts to estimate the extent of soil
pollution have been undertaken mainly in developed
countries. According to the Chinese Environmental Protection
Ministry, 16 percent of all Chinese soils and 19 percent of its
agricultural soils are categorized as polluted (CCICED, 2015).
There are also approximately 3 million potentially polluted
sites in the European Economic Area and cooperating
countries in the West Balkans (EEA-39) (EEA, 2014) and more
than 1 300 polluted or contaminated sites in the United States
of America (USA) are included on the Superfund National
Priorities List (US EPA, 2013). The total number of
contaminated sites is estimated at 80 000 across Australia
(DECA, 2010). While these numbers are informative in helping
us understand the effects of certain activities on soils, they do
not reflect the complete extent of soil pollution around the
world, and they highlight the inadequacy of available
information and the differences in registering polluted sites
across geographic regions (Panagiotakis and Dermatas, 2015).
In low- and middle-income countries, the lack of data and
information makes one of the world’s biggest global problems
invisible to the international community. With this overview, it
is evident that there is an urgent need to implement a global
assessment of soil pollution. Fortunately, awareness on the
importance of soil pollution is increasing around the world,
leading to an increase in research conducted on the
assessment and remediation of soil pollution (Figure 1). The
Revised World Soil Charter (FAO, 2015b) recommends that
national governments implement regulations on soil pollution
and limit the accumulation of contaminants beyond
established levels in order to guarantee human health and
well-being. Governments are also urged to facilitate
remediation of contaminated soils that exceed levels
established to protect the health of humans and the
environment. Soil pollution took centre stage at the Fifth
Global Soil Partnership (GSP) Plenary Assembly (GSP, 2017).
Recently, the United Nations Environmental Assembly (UNEA-
3) adopted a resolution calling for accelerated actions and
collaboration to address and manage soil pollution in the
framework of Sustainable Development. This consensus,
achieved by more than 170 countries, is a clear sign of the
global relevance of pollution and of the willingness of these
countries to develop concrete solutions to address pollution
problems (UNEP, 2018). At the national level, many countries
around the world have adopted or are currently adopting
national regulations to protect their soils, to prevent pollution
and to address historic problems of contamination. During the
Estonian presidency of the Council of the European Union in
the second half of 2017, soil became one of the main topics
within European discussions, focusing on the key role soils
play in food production. In China, soil pollution concerns have
grown over the last few years, partly because the problem is
directly related to human health. Other developing countries
have also recently adopted regulations to prevent and control
soil pollution, and to determine soil quality (Conselho
Nacional do Meio Ambiente, 2009; MINAM, 2017; MMA, 2013).
 Chapter – 2
Review Literature
Literature review:
Soil is an important habitat for both producers (green plants)
and decomposers (bacteria and

 fungi). While air and water are both self-purifying

systems with regard to most inorganic
 contaminants, soil is a sink - receiving fall-out from the
atmosphere which it absorbs or filters,
 and could retain materials from infiltrating natural
waters. Soil also serves as nature’s
 recycling system, it provides habitat for a myriad of living
organisms and in human built
 ecosystems, and it serves as engineering medium (Karle
et al., 1997).
 McBride et al., 1997, studied the mobility and solubility
of toxic metals and nutrient in soil
 fifteen years after sludge application. Base on the
elemental deficits calculated using soil
 chromium concentration as an indicator of the original
sludge concentration in the soil, it is
 estimated that most of the sludge –applied Na, S, Ca and
Sr, about 40% of the Zn and Cu and
 less than 305 of the Cd and P have been lost from the top
soil surface by physical –chemical or
 biological processes and there is potential for
groundwater and surface water contamination.
 The paper deals with a survey along two national
highways near Lucknow. The pattern of lead
 deposition as reflected by soil Pb burdens, showed that
decrease in concentration with
 increasing distance and soil depth. Some plants
contained high concentration of Pb with more
 accumulation in the underground portions of the plants.
The cattle grazed near the roadside
 pastures, naturally milk sample contained lead at an
elevated concentration (Singh et al.,
 1997).
 Soil environmental quality and the distribution of trace
metals in surface soils of Hong Kong
 were assessed. The results showed that treatment of
calcium carbonate, steel sludge and
 furnace slag (FS) decreased Cd uptake by wetland rice,
Chinese cabbage and wheat by 23-
 95% compared with the unamended control. Among the
three amendments, FS was the most
 efficient at suppressing Cd uptake by the plants,
probably due to its higher content of available
 silicon (Chen et al., 2000).
 The floating macrophytes Salvinia herzogii, Pistia
stratiotes, Hydromistia stolonifera and
 Eichhornia crassipes were able to keep its capacity for Cd
removal even though some toxicity
 symptoms appeared at 4 and 6 ppm. The greater the
initial concentration, the greater Cd
 bioaccumulation rates. The increase of Cd concentration
in plant tissues occurred especially in
 roots and was linearly related to the quantity of Cd added
(Maria et al. 2001).
 The research results relating to contamination of soils by
heavy metals and its ecological
 consequences in several regions of Russia and Poland,
characteristics of air borne soil
 2 of 28
 contamination, preventive and remediation measures for
pollutes soils were analysed. It is
 shown that the elaboration of maximum permissible
concentrations of heavy metals in soil is
 the most important requirement for the correct
assessment of soil contamination and the
 application of various preventive and remediation
measures (Galiulin et al., 2002).
 For the purpose of agro-ecological regulation and safe
and efficient utilization of Cadmium
 (Cd) - polluted farmlands, a 7 year micro plot experiment
was conducted to evaluate the Cd
 tolerance of several cultivated plants. The study revealed
that cereals had a strong
 physiological tolerance of Cd toxicity; nevertheless their
products (grains) are easily polluted.
 Whereas, the fiber crops are tolerant towards soil Cd
pollution to different degrees (Wang,
 2002).
 Hall and Williams, 2003, reviewed an article -Transition
metal transporters in plants, and the
 findings revealed that membrane transport systems are
played a major role. The application of
 powerful genetic and molecular techniques has now
identified a range of gene families that are
 likely to be involved in transition metal transport. Thus,
for healthy plant growth, a range of
 transition metals must be acquired from the soil,
distributed around the plant, and their
 concentrations carefully regulated within different cells
and organelles.
 9. The health risk arising from environmental
contaminants depends on absorption and toxicity
 of the substance, its level in food, the quality of
contaminated food consumed and duration of
 exposure. Cadmium is taken up by roots of plants and
passes to edible leaves, fruits and seeds.
 It will also accumulate in animal milk and fatty tissues.
Therefore people are exposed to
 cadmium upon the consumption of cadmium containing
plants or animals (Smirjakova et al.,
 2005).
 10. Saper et al., 2004, studied the heavy metal content in
Ayurvedic herbal medicine products
 manufactured in South Asia and sold in Boston area
stores. Out of 70 studied drugs 14
 contained harmful levels of heavy metals: Lead, Mercury,
and Arsenic. The study concluded
 that the users of Ayurvedic medicine may be at risk for
heavy metal toxicity and testing of
 Ayurvedic herbal medicine products for toxic heavy metal
should be mandatory.
 11. Charkhabi and Sakizadeh, 2006, studied spatial
variation of water quality parameters in the
 Anzali Wetland, Northern Iran. The results indicated
higher TDS values in some parts of the
 river due to the agriculture and residential activities. The
addition of ammonia fertilizers in the
 paddy fields is one of the major causes for the higher
NH4+ in the downstream sites. Total
 3 of 28
 phosphorous and total nitrogen levels in the river were
mainly in the organic forms. Factor
 analysis showed that agriculture and urban activities
were the major pollutant sources.
 12. The aim of this study to assess the extent of heavy
metal contamination of vegetation with
 sewage fed water containing variable amounts of heavy
metals leads to increase in
 concentration of metals in the soil and vegetation. Metal
transfer factors from soil to
 vegetation are found significant for Zn, Cu, Pb and Cd
(Lokeshwari and Chandrappa, 2006).
Heavy Metals

The presence of heavy metals in soils can cause it to become

highly toxic to human beings. Some metals that can be
classified as soil pollutants such as arsenic (As), mercury (Hg),
lead (Pb), antimony (Sb), zinc (Zn), nickel (Ni), cadmium (Cd),
selenium (Se), beryllium (Be), thallium (Tl), chromium (Cr) and
copper (Cu).

Polycyclic Aromatic

Hydrocarbons Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are

organic compounds that: 1) Contain only carbon and
hydrogen atoms, and 2) Contain more than one aromatic ring
in their chemical structures. Exposure to polycyclic aromatic
hydrocarbons has been linked to several forms of cancer.
These organic compounds can also cause cardiovascular
diseases in humans. Soil pollution due to PAHs can be
sourced to coke (coal) processing, vehicle emissions, cigarette
smoke, and the extraction of shale oil (e.g., Pope et al., 2000;
Zhang et al., 2006; Xiao et al., 2014; Li et al., 2020)

Industrial Waste

The discharge of industrial waste into soils can result in soil

pollution. Some common soil pollutants that can be sourced
to industrial waste such as: 1) Chlorinated industrial solvents,
2) Dioxins produced from the manufacture of pesticides and
the incineration of waste, 3) Plasticizers/dispersants, and 4)
Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). The petroleum industry
creates many petroleum hydrocarbon waste products such as
benzene and methylbenzene, are known to be carcinogenic in
nature (e.g., Zhang et al., 2020).
Soil contamination or soil pollution as part of land
degradation is caused by the presence of xenobiotics (human-
made) chemicals or other alteration in the natural soil
environment. It is typically caused by industrial activity,
agricultural chemicals or improper disposal of waste. The
most common chemicals involved are petroleum
hydrocarbons, polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (such as
naphthalene and benzo(a)pyrene), solvents, pesticides, lead,
and other heavy metals.

Excavation showing soil contamination at a disused

gasworks in England.

Contamination is correlated with the degree of

industrialization and intensity of chemical substance. The
concern over soil contamination stems primarily from health
risks, from direct contact with the contaminated soil, vapours
from the contaminants, or from secondary contamination of
water supplies within and underlying the soil. Mapping of
contaminated soil sites and the resulting cleanups are time-
consuming and expensive tasks, requiring extensive amounts
of geology, hydrology, chemistry, computer modeling skills,
and GIS in Environmental Contamination, as well as an
appreciation of the history of industrial chemistry.

In North America and Western Europe the extent of

contaminated land is best known, with many of countries in
these areas having a legal framework to identify and deal with
this environmental problem. Developing countries tend to be
less tightly regulated despite some of them having undergone
significant industrialization.
Causes

 Soil pollution can be caused by the following (non-

exhaustive list)
 Microplastics
 Oil spills
 Mining and activities by other heavy industries
 Accidental spills may happen during activities, etc.
 Corrosion of underground storage tanks (including piping
used to transmit the contents)
 Acid rain
 Intensive farming
 Agrochemicals, such as pesticides, herbicides and
fertilizers
 Petrochemicals
 Industrial accidents
 Road debris
 Drainage of contaminated surface water into the soil
 Ammunitions, chemical agents, and other agents of war
 Waste disposal
 Oil and fuel dumping
 Nuclear wastes
 Direct discharge of industrial wastes to the soil
 Discharge of sewage
 Landfill and illegal dumping
  Coal ash
 Electronic waste

The most common chemicals involved are petroleum

hydrocarbons, solvents, pesticides, lead, and other heavy
metals.

Any activity that leads to other forms of soil degradation

(erosion, compaction, etc.) may indirectly worsen the
contamination effects in that soil remediation becomes more
tedious.

Historical deposition of coal ash used for residential,

commercial, and industrial heating, as well as for industrial
processes such as ore smelting, were a common source of
contamination in areas that were industrialized before about
1960. Coal naturally concentrates lead and zinc during its
formation, as well as other heavy metals to a lesser degree.
When the coal is burned, most of these metals become
concentrated in the ash (the principal exception being
mercury). Coal ash and slag may contain sufficient lead to
qualify as a "characteristic hazardous waste", defined in the
US as containing more than 5 mg/l of extractable lead using
the TCLP procedure. In addition to lead, coal ash typically
contains variable but significant concentrations of polynuclear
aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs; e.g., benzo(a)anthracene,
benzo(b)fluoranthene, benzo(k)fluoranthene, benzo(a)pyrene,
indeno(cd)pyrene, phenanthrene, anthracene, and others).
These PAHs are known human carcinogens and the
acceptable concentrations of them in soil are typically around
1 mg/kg. Coal ash and slag can be recognised by the presence
of off-white grains in soil, gray heterogeneous soil, or (coal
slag) bubbly, vesicular pebble-sized grains.

Treated sewage sludge, known in the industry as biosolids,

has become controversial as a "fertilizer". As it is the
byproduct of sewage treatment, it generally contains more
contaminants such as organisms, pesticides, and heavy
metals than other soil.

In the European Union, the Urban Waste Water Treatment

Directive allows sewage sludge to be sprayed onto land. The
volume is expected to double to 185,000 tons of dry solids in
2005. This has good agricultural properties due to the high
nitrogen and phosphate content. In 1990/1991, 13% wet
weight was sprayed onto 0.13% of the land; however, this is
expected to rise 15 fold by 2005. Advocates say there is a need
to control this so that pathogenic microorganisms do not get
into water courses and to ensure that there is no
accumulation of heavy metals in the top soil.
Pesticides and herbicides

A pesticide is a substance used to kill a pest. A pesticide may

be a chemical substance, biological agent (such as a virus or
bacteria), antimicrobial, disinfectant or device used against
any pest. Pests include insects, plant pathogens, weeds,
mollusks, birds, mammals, fish, nematodes (roundworms) and
microbes that compete with humans for food, destroy
property, spread or are a vector for disease or cause a
nuisance. Although there are benefits to the use of pesticides,
there are also drawbacks, such as potential toxicity to
humans and other organisms.

Herbicides are used to kill weeds, especially on pavements

and railways. They are similar to auxins and most are
biodegradable by soil bacteria. However, one group derived
from trinitrotoluene (2:4 D and 2:4:5 T) have the impurity
dioxin, which is very toxic and causes fatality even in low
concentrations. Another herbicide is Paraquat. It is highly
toxic but it rapidly degrades in soil due to the action of
bacteria and does not kill soil fauna.

Insecticides are used to rid farms of pests which damage

crops. The insects damage not only standing crops but also
stored ones and in the tropics it is reckoned that one third of
the total production is lost during food storage. As with
fungicides, the first insecticides used in the nineteenth
century were inorganic e.g. Paris Green and other compounds
of arsenic. Nicotine has also been used since the late
eighteenth century.

There are now two main groups of synthetic insecticides –

1. Organochlorines include DDT, Aldrin, Dieldrin and BHC.

They are cheap to produce, potent and persistent. DDT was
used on a massive scale from the 1930s, with a peak of
72,000 tonnes used 1970. Then usage fell as the harmful
environmental effects were realized. It was found worldwide in
fish and birds and was even discovered in the snow in the
Antarctic. It is only slightly soluble in water but is very soluble
in the bloodstream. It affects the nervous and endocrine
systems and causes the eggshells of birds to lack calcium
causing them to be easily breakable. It is thought to be
responsible for the decline of the numbers of birds of prey like
ospreys and peregrine falcons in the 1950s – they are now
recovering. As well as increased concentration via the food
chain, it is known to enter via permeable membranes, so fish
get it through their gills. As it has low water solubility, it tends
to stay at the water surface, so organisms that live there are
most affected. DDT found in fish that formed part of the
human food chain caused concern, but the levels found in the
liver, kidney and brain tissues was less than 1 ppm and in fat
was 10 ppm, which was below the level likely to cause harm.
However, DDT was banned in the UK and the United States to
stop the further buildup of it in the food chain. U.S.
manufacturers continued to sell DDT to developing countries,
who could not afford the expensive replacement chemicals and
who did not have such stringent regulations governing the use
of pesticides.

2. Organophosphates, e.g. parathion, methyl parathion and

about 40 other insecticides are available nationally. Parathion
is highly toxic, methyl-parathion is less so and Malathion is
generally considered safe as it has low toxicity and is rapidly
broken down in the mammalian liver. This group works by
preventing normal nerve transmission as cholinesterase is
prevented from breaking down the transmitter substance
acetylcholine, resulting in uncontrolled muscle movements.
Agents of war

The disposal of munitions, and a lack of care in manufacture

of munitions caused by the urgency of production, can
contaminate soil for extended periods. There is little published
evidence on this type of contamination largely because of
restrictions placed by governments of many countries on the
publication of material related to war effort. However, mustard
gas stored during World War II has contaminated some sites
for up to 50 years and the testing of Anthrax as a potential
biological weapon contaminated the whole island of Gruinard.
 Chapter – 3
Research Study
Case Study

Characteristics of Heavy Metals in Soil at Al Qawarishah

Village Shaltami (2014) evaluated the concentration of Cu, Zn,
Pb and Cd in soil in the Al Qawarishah village, NE Libya (Fig.
2). He found the following: 1) The concentration of heavy
metals at depth 15cm is more than the concentration at depth
of 30cm (Table 1). 2) The heavy metal content in the soil is
higher than the standards of the elemental composition of
typical uncontaminated soil. 3) There is a light pollution with
Pb and Cd at depth 15cm due to the use of fertilizers (Table
2)Health effects

Contaminated or polluted soil directly affects human health

through direct contact with soil or via inhalation of soil
contaminants which have vaporized; potentially greater
threats are posed by the infiltration of soil contamination into
groundwater aquifers used for human consumption,
sometimes in areas apparently far removed from any apparent
source of above ground contamination. This tends to result in
the development of pollution-related diseases.

Health consequences from exposure to soil contamination

vary greatly depending on pollutant type, pathway of attack
and vulnerability of the exposed population. Chronic exposure
to chromium, lead and other metals, petroleum, solvents, and
many pesticide and herbicide formulations can be
carcinogenic, can cause congenital disorders, or can cause
other chronic health conditions. Industrial or man-made
concentrations of naturally occurring substances, such as
nitrate and ammonia associated with livestock manure from
agricultural operations, have also been identified as health
hazards in soil and groundwater.

Chronic exposure to benzene at sufficient concentrations is

known to be associated with higher incidence of leukemia.
Mercury and cyclodienes are known to induce higher
incidences of kidney damage and some irreversible diseases.
PCBs and cyclodienes are linked to liver toxicity.
Organophosphates and carbonates can induce a chain of
responses leading to neuromuscular blockage. Many
chlorinated solvents induce liver changes, kidney changes and
depression of the central nervous system. There is an entire
spectrum of further health effects such as headache, nausea,
fatigue, eye irritation and skin rash for the above cited and
other chemicals. At sufficient dosages a large number of soil
contaminants can cause death by exposure via direct contact,
inhalation or ingestion of contaminants in groundwater
contaminated through soil.

The Scottish Government has commissioned the Institute of

Occupational Medicine to undertake a review of methods to
assess risk to human health from contaminated land. The
overall aim of the project is to work up guidance that should
be useful to Scottish Local Authorities in assessing whether
sites represent a significant possibility of significant harm
(SPOSH) to human health. It is envisaged that the output of
the project will be a short document providing high level
guidance on health risk assessment with reference to existing
published guidance and methodologies that have been
identified as being particularly relevant and helpful. The
project will examine how policy guidelines have been
developed for determining the acceptability of risks to human
health and propose an approach for assessing what
constitutes unacceptable risk in line with the criteria for
SPOSH as defined in the legislation and the Scottish Statutory
Guidance.

Ecosystem effects

Not unexpectedly, soil contaminants can have significant

deleterious consequences for ecosystems. There are radical
soil chemistry changes which can arise from the presence of
many hazardous chemicals even at low concentration of the
contaminant species. These changes can manifest in the
alteration of metabolism of endemic microorganisms and
arthropods resident in a given soil environment. The result
can be virtual eradication of some of the primary food chain,
which in turn could have major consequences for predator or
consumer species. Even if the chemical effect on lower life
forms is small, the lower pyramid levels of the food chain may
ingest alien chemicals, which normally become more
concentrated for each consuming rung of the food chain.
Many of these effects are now well known, such as the
concentration of persistent DDT materials for avian
consumers, leading to weakening of egg shells, increased
chick mortality and potential extinction of species.
Effects occur to agricultural lands which have certain types of
soil contamination. Contaminants typically alter plant
metabolism, often causing a reduction in crop yields. This has
a secondary effect upon soil conservation, since the
languishing crops cannot shield the Earth's soil from erosion.
Some of these chemical contaminants have long half-lives and
in other cases derivative chemicals are formed from decay of
primary soil contaminants.

Cleanup options

Cleanup or environmental remediation is analyzed by

environmental scientists who utilize field measurement of soil
chemicals and also apply computer models (GIS in
Environmental Contamination) for analyzing transport and
fate of soil chemicals. Various technologies have been
developed for remediation of oil-contaminated soil and
sediments There are several principal strategies for
remediation:

 Excavate soil and take it to a disposal site away from

ready pathways for human or sensitive ecosystem
contact. This technique also applies to dredging of bay
muds containing toxins.

 Aeration of soils at the contaminated site (with attendant

risk of creating air pollution)
 Thermal remediation by introduction of heat to raise
subsurface temperatures sufficiently high to volatize
chemical contaminants out of the soil for vapor
extraction. Technologies include ISTD, electrical
resistance heating (ERH), and ET-DSP.

 Bioremediation, involving microbial digestion of certain

organic chemicals. Techniques used in bioremediation
include landfarming, biostimulation and
bioaugmentating soil biota with commercially available
microflora.

 Extraction of groundwater or soil vapor with an active

electromechanical system, with subsequent stripping of
the contaminants from the extract.

 Containment of the soil contaminants (such as by

capping or paving over in place).
  Phytoremediation, or using plants (such as willow) to
extract heavy metals.

 Mycoremediation, or using fungus to metabolize

contaminants and accumulate heavy metals.

 Remediation of oil contaminated sediments with self-

collapsing air microbubbles.

 Surfactant leaching
By country

Various national standards for concentrations of particular

contaminants include the United States EPA Region 9
Preliminary Remediation Goals (U.S. PRGs), the U.S. EPA
Region 3 Risk Based Concentrations (U.S. EPA RBCs) and
National Environment Protection Council of Australia
Guideline on Investigation Levels in Soil and Groundwater.

People's Republic of China

The immense and sustained growth of the People's Republic of

China since the 1970s has exacted a price from the land in
increased soil pollution. The Ministry of Ecology and
Environment believes it to be a threat to the environment, to
food safety and to sustainable agriculture. According to a
scientific sampling, 150 million mu (100,000 square
kilometres) of China's cultivated land have been polluted, with
contaminated water being used to irrigate a further 32.5
million mu (21,670 square kilometres) and another 2 million
mu (1,300 square kilometres) covered or destroyed by solid
waste. In total, the area accounts for one-tenth of China's
cultivatable land, and is mostly in economically developed
areas. An estimated 12 million tonnes of grain are
contaminated by heavy metals every year, causing direct
losses of 20 billion yuan ($2.57 billion USD)

European Union

According to the received data from Member states, in the

European Union the number of estimated potential
contaminated sites is more than 2.5 million and the identified
contaminated sites around 342 thousand. Municipal and
industrial wastes contribute most to soil contamination (38%),
followed by the industrial/commercial sector (34%). Mineral
oil and heavy metals are the main contaminants contributing
around 60% to soil contamination. In terms of budget, the
management of contaminated sites is estimated to cost
around 6 billion Euros (€) annually.

United Kingdom

Generic guidance commonly used in the United Kingdom are

the Soil Guideline Values published by the Department for
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) and the
Environment Agency. These are screening values that
demonstrate the minimal acceptable level of a substance.
Above this there can be no assurances in terms of significant
risk of harm to human health. These have been derived using
the Contaminated Land Exposure Assessment Model (CLEA
UK). Certain input parameters such as Health Criteria Values,
age and land use are fed into CLEA UK to obtain a
probabilistic output

Guidance by the Inter Departmental Committee for the

Redevelopment of Contaminated Land (ICRCL) has been
formally withdrawn by DEFRA, for use as a prescriptive
document to determine the potential need for remediation or
further assessment.

The CLEA model published by DEFRA and the Environment

Agency (EA) in March 2002 sets a framework for the
appropriate assessment of risks to human health from
contaminated land, as required by Part IIA of the
Environmental Protection Act 1990. As part of this framework,
generic Soil Guideline Values (SGVs) have currently been
derived for ten contaminants to be used as "intervention
values" These values should not be considered as remedial
targets but values above which further detailed assessment
should be considered; see Dutch standards.
Three sets of CLEA SGVs have been produced for three
different land uses, namely

 residential (with and without plant uptake)

 allotments
 commercial/industrial

It is intended that the SGVs replace the former ICRCL values.

The CLEA SGVs relate to assessing chronic (long term) risks
to human health and do not apply to the protection of ground
workers during construction, or other potential receptors such
as groundwater, buildings, plants or other ecosystems. The
CLEA SGVs are not directly applicable to a site completely
covered in hardstanding, as there is no direct exposure route
to contaminated soils.

To date, the first ten of fifty-five contaminant SGVs have been

published, for the following: arsenic, cadmium, chromium,
lead, inorganic mercury, nickel, selenium ethyl benzene,
phenol and toluene. Draft SGVs for benzene, naphthalene and
xylene have been produced but their publication is on hold.
Toxicological data (Tox) has been published for each of these
contaminants as well as for benzo[a]pyrene, benzene, dioxins,
furans and dioxin-like PCBs, naphthalene, vinyl chloride,
1,1,2,2 tetrachloroethane and 1,1,1,2 tetrachloroethane, 1,1,1
trichloroethane, tetrachloroethene, carbon tetrachloride, 1,2-
dichloroethane, trichloroethene and xylene. The SGVs for
ethyl benzene, phenol and toluene are dependent on the soil
organic matter (SOM) content (which can be calculated from
the total organic carbon (TOC) content). As an initial screen
the SGVs for 1% SOM are considered to be appropriate.

India

In March 2009, the issue of Uranium poisoning in Punjab

attracted press coverage. It was alleged to be caused by fly ash
ponds of thermal power stations, which reportedly lead to
severe birth defects in children in the Faridkot and Bhatinda
districts of Punjab. The news reports claimed the uranium
levels were more than 60 times the maximum safe limit. In
2012, the Government of India confirmed that the ground
water in Malwa belt of Punjab has uranium metal that is 50%
above the trace limits set by the United Nations' World Health
Organization (WHO). Scientific studies, based on over 1000
samples from various sampling points, could not trace the
source to fly ash and any sources from thermal power plants
or industry as originally alleged. The study also revealed that
the uranium concentration in ground water of Malwa district
is not 60 times the WHO limits, but only 50% above the WHO
limit in 3 locations. This highest concentration found in
samples was less than those found naturally in ground waters
currently used for human purposes elsewhere, such as
Finland. Research is underway to identify natural or other
sources for the uranium.
 Chapter – 4
Summary, Conclusion, Reference
Summary

Soil pollution refers to the contamination of soil with

anomalous concentrations of toxic substances. It is a serious
environmental concern since it harbours many health
hazards. For example, exposure to soil containing high
concentrations of benzene increases the risk of contracting
leukaemia.

It is important to understand that all soils contain compounds

that are harmful/toxic to human beings and other living
organisms. However, the concentration of such substances in
unpolluted soil is low enough that they do not pose any threat
to the surrounding ecosystem. When the concentration of one
or more such toxic substances is high enough to cause
damage to living organisms, the soil is said to be
contaminated.
Conclusion

To be able to stop soil pollution, we think that farmers should

reduce the usage of pesticides and chemicals on crops. Even
though the chemicals play an important role in the growth of
plants, the overuse of them leads to soil pollution. Instead of
chemicals, maybe farmers could use manures and bio-
fertilization as alternatives. Another way is to control the
growth of weeds. Weeds are the plants that grow along the
side of the main plant and bring various minerals into the soil.
To prevent it we should cover the soil with newspaper or
plastic sheets. Reforestation and recycling are also ways to
prevent soil pollution. A final way to stop soil pollution is to
prevent factories from dumping their wastes in rivers, which
pollutes the soil in the banks.

All the cities have maps on geology, litology and/or pedology,

at least with the FAO classification for agricultural purposes,
but these maps are generally not very detailed (too large a
scale) and show topics of marginal interest for the planning
purposes in urban areas.

But the urban areas’ problems concerning soil have been

taken into consideration and studied from quite different
points of view:
In Athens until now, it has been mainly a problem of flow off
control (see map on equal inclinations, hydrolitology etc.). But
the main problems have been shown to be soil sealing and
also soil pollution due to the industrial presence in the area.

Milan, Moscow and Berlin are cities with industrial

settlements. All have all elaborated detailed soil pollution
maps (Moscow) or even exact catasters of polluted sites
(Berlin, Milan).

Berlin has gathered data on urban soil types to study and

analyse the biotic functions of the soil. But this kind of
analysis was only possible thanks to the large amount of data
derived from research projects of universities and other
institutes.

An interesting exception is Rome with its archeological and

underground cavity maps. Soil pollution from old industrial
activities indeed is a relatively rare problem in Rome, so that
no map of this kind has been produced till now.

The basic map for the topic soil has shown to be the soil
sealing map, as it points out an omni-present problem and is
also needed to derive other environmental information. The
information from this map has been elaborated by the EIS
Berlin to deduct the maps of flow off, ground water
regeneration rate and climatic functions in the urban area.
References

 Risk Assessment Guidance for Superfund, Human Health

Evaluation Manual, Office of Emergency and Remedial
Response, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency,
Washington D.C. 20450
 George, Rebecca; Joy, Varsha; S, Aiswarya; Jacob, Priya
A. "Treatment Methods for Contaminated Soils –
Translating Science into Practice" (PDF). International
Journal of Education and Applied Research. Retrieved
February 19, 2016.
 Snyder C (2005). "The dirty work of promoting "recycling"
of America's sewage sludge". Int J Occup Environ Health.
11 (4): 415–27. doi:10.1179/oeh.2005.11.4.415. PMID
16350476. S2CID 45282896.Free full-text Archived
2011-07-13 at the Wayback Machine
 Olawoyin, Richard; Oyewole, Samuel A.; Grayson, Robert
L. (2012). "Potential risk effect from elevated levels of soil
heavy metals on human health in the Niger delta".
Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety. 85: 120–130.
doi:10.1016/j.ecoenv.2012.08.004. PMID 22921257.
– Six Mustard gas sites uncovered – The Independent
 Britain's Anthrax Island – BBC
 yosemite.epa.gov
 Article on soil contamination in China