Ecological and health risks assessment of heavy metal in soils and leaves around CIMTOGO cement factory, Lomé, Togo

Abstract

Heavy metals are released into the environment due to anthropogenic activities. Cement industries are classified among the main sources of environmental pollutants. This study aims to evaluate the ecological and human health risks of heavy metals in soils and leaves from the CIMTOGO cement factory area in Lomé, Togo. Samples were dried successively in open air and in oven at 105 oC for 24 hours. Samples ground and sieved were used in the analysis using a ZEEnit 700 atomic absorption spectrometer and Ion chromatograph IC 1500 Dionex. The amount of heavy metals in the samples as well as the pollution indices were investigated. High concentration of and Cadmium in the soil, and of chromium and lead in the leaves were found. High potential ecological risk index of 157.26 and 303.73 and the pollution load index of 1.02 and 1.39 were found for the soil and the leaf, respectively confirming the deterioration of the quality of the soil and leaves. The hazard index (0.86) closer to 1 indicates that the cement production activities could have harmful impacts on the health of the surrounding populations and the decision makers have to think about the decontamination of the area.

Keywords

• cement factory
• heavy metal
• pollution indexes
• environmental monitoring
• togo