Assessing the Bioavailability and Risk from Metal-Contaminated Soils and Dusts

ABSTRACT

Exposure to contaminated soil and dust is an important pathway in human health risk assessment. Physical and chemical characteristics and biological factors determine the bioaccessibility/bioavailability of soil and dust contaminants. Within a single sample, contamination may arise from multiple sources of toxic elements that may exist as different species that impact bioavailability. In turn, the bioaccessibility/bioavailability of soil and dust contaminants directly impacts human health risk. Research efforts focusing on development and application of in vitro and in vivo methods to measure the bioaccessibility/bioavailability of metal-contaminated soils have advanced in recent years. The objective of this workshop was to focus on developments in assessing the bioaccessibility/bioavailability of arsenic-contaminated soils, metals’ contamination in urban Canadian residences and potential children's exposures to toxic elements in house dust, an urban community-based study (i.e., West Oakland Residential Lead Assessment), bioavailability studies of soil cadmium, chromium, nickel, and mercury and human exposures to contaminated Brownfield soils. These presentations covered issues related to human health and bioavailability along with the most recent studies on community participation in assessing metals’ contamination, studies of exposures to residential contamination, and in vitro and in vivo methods development for assessing the bioaccessibility/bioavailability of metals in soils and dusts.

Key Words:

• bioavailability
• bioaccessibility
• metals
• exposure
• soil
• dust

Acknowledgments

This article has been reviewed in accordance with the policy of the National Exposure Research Laboratory, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and approved for publication. Approval does not signify that the contents necessarily reflect the view and policies of the Agency, nor does mention of trade names or commercial products constitute endorsement or recommendation for use. The workshop's report was edited by HERA's editorial staff for compliance with the journal's formatting and style requirements.

Workshop Reports are accepted with only copyediting.