Ecological and health risk assessments of rare earth elements in soil from gold mining areas in Sudan

Abstract

The increasing demand for rare earth elements (REE) has led to increased mining activities, which may result in potential ecological and health risks. Our objective was to evaluate the potential ecological and analyze the health risks associated with REE in soil samples obtained from the gold mining region, employing neutron activation analysis (NAA). The pollution load index (PLI) was carried out to evaluate the REE contamination. The findings indicated that the soils in gold mining regions were generally uncontaminated, with the exception of two specific locations. The correlation among of the REE with Au were carried out taking into account the chemical weathering indices (CIA). The potential ecological risk was calculated to conduct an ecological risk assessment of REE in the soil. The outcomes revealed that the RI values for the soil samples gathered from the mining area were within safe limits, signifying a low ecological risk, With the exception of Lutetium in three specific sample sites, suggesting a low to moderate level of ecological risk. Also, non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic health risk assessment was conducted in order to investigate potential adverse health risks. The hazard quotient values for both adults and children remained below 1, indicating that there were no significant non-carcinogenic risks to the inhabitants associated with all REE in the soil through ingestion, dermal contact, and inhalation pathways.