Environ Monit Assess. 2026 Mar 15;198(4):317. doi: 10.1007/s10661-026-15077-8.
ABSTRACT
This study investigated the accumulation levels, ecological and health risks, and the impact of socio-economic development on potentially toxic elements (PTEs) present in road dust collected from the major roads of low latitude industrialized City, Dongguan, China. The concentrations of PTEs decreased in the order of zinc (Zn) > lead (Pb) > chromium (Cr) > arsenic (As) > cadmium (Cd) > mercury (Hg). Similarly high levels of Cd and Zn accumulation were observed, and other PTEs were generally moderately accumulated or enriched. The ecological risk was relatively high for Cd and Hg and low for other PTEs. Most of sampling sites were moderately to heavily polluted, and the ecological risk was generally moderate to very high. The non-carcinogenic risks to both adults and children were safe at internationally accepted levels. However, higher levels of carcinogenic risk were observed in males and females, mainly due to the contribution of Cr and As. Spatial distribution patterns revealed higher accumulation level, ecological and health risks in districts of Binhai, Central City with higher GDP. In the present study, a positive relationship was observed between PTEs concentrations and GDP of Dongguan’s six districts (R = 0.66, p = 0.15) and a similar significant pattern was revealed for the first time at the global level (R = 0.66, p = 0.0021). It is evident that socio-economic development had a significant impact on PTEs contamination and the resulting ecological and health risks. Therefore, industrial cities such as Dongguan need to adopt broader strategies that decouple the relationship between socio-economic development and the emission of PTEs concentration (e.g. Cd, Cr and As), to mitigate this emission during economic growth and transition towards a more sustainable development model.
PMID:41832927 | DOI:10.1007/s10661-026-15077-8
