Influence of Air Pollution and Soil Contamination on the Contents of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) in Vegetables Grown in Urban Gardens of Sao Paulo, Brazil
Urban community gardens (UCGs) have become prevalent worldwide and play a significant role in strengthening the sustainability of urban food systems. Although UCGs provide multiple benefits to society, the extent to which vegetables grown in them are contaminated by chemical compounds derived from a...
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2017-11-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Environmental Science |
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| Online Access: | http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fenvs.2017.00077/full |
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| author | Luís F. Amato-Lourenco Luís F. Amato-Lourenco Mitiko Saiki Paulo H. N. Saldiva Thais Mauad Thais Mauad |
| author_facet | Luís F. Amato-Lourenco Luís F. Amato-Lourenco Mitiko Saiki Paulo H. N. Saldiva Thais Mauad Thais Mauad |
| author_sort | Luís F. Amato-Lourenco |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Urban community gardens (UCGs) have become prevalent worldwide and play a significant role in strengthening the sustainability of urban food systems. Although UCGs provide multiple benefits to society, the extent to which vegetables grown in them are contaminated by chemical compounds derived from airborne fallout or soil contamination is unclear. We evaluated the influence of both air pollution and the contamination of garden soil beds on the contents of 16 PAHs in the edible tissues of spinach and collard green. The PAH contents were quantified using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS-EI). The concentrations of PAHs in both the vegetables grown in the vessels and in the soil of the UCGs were <0.1 μg kg−1. The total concentrations of the 16 priority PAHs in the soil beds ranged from 132.94 to 410.50 μg kg−1. These levels were lower than those that have been reported from other urban areas. Principal Component Analysis resulted in two components indicating that traffic-derived emissions are the main sources of PAHs in the soil. The first component represented the compounds with higher molecular weights and had a moderate loading for the fine fraction of the soil (clay) (0.63). The second component showed a high loading for silt (0.97), including those PAHs with lower molecular weights. Our data show that spinach and collard greens do not accumulate significant PAH concentrations on their leaves over 45-day periods, whether they are raised in controlled soil or in local beds. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-12T23:04:34Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-c72eb90ee6a14b84bbfc6d0faf537bab |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2296-665X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-12T23:04:34Z |
| publishDate | 2017-11-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Environmental Science |
| spelling | doaj.art-c72eb90ee6a14b84bbfc6d0faf537bab2022-12-22T00:08:44ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Environmental Science2296-665X2017-11-01510.3389/fenvs.2017.00077305012Influence of Air Pollution and Soil Contamination on the Contents of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) in Vegetables Grown in Urban Gardens of Sao Paulo, BrazilLuís F. Amato-Lourenco0Luís F. Amato-Lourenco1Mitiko Saiki2Paulo H. N. Saldiva3Thais Mauad4Thais Mauad5Department of Pathology, School of Medicine, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, BrazilStudy Group on Urban Agriculture of Institute of Advanced Studies (IEA), University of São Paulo, São Paulo, BrazilInstituto de Pesquisas Energéticas e Nucleares (CNEN), São Paulo, BrazilDepartment of Pathology, School of Medicine, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, BrazilDepartment of Pathology, School of Medicine, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, BrazilStudy Group on Urban Agriculture of Institute of Advanced Studies (IEA), University of São Paulo, São Paulo, BrazilUrban community gardens (UCGs) have become prevalent worldwide and play a significant role in strengthening the sustainability of urban food systems. Although UCGs provide multiple benefits to society, the extent to which vegetables grown in them are contaminated by chemical compounds derived from airborne fallout or soil contamination is unclear. We evaluated the influence of both air pollution and the contamination of garden soil beds on the contents of 16 PAHs in the edible tissues of spinach and collard green. The PAH contents were quantified using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS-EI). The concentrations of PAHs in both the vegetables grown in the vessels and in the soil of the UCGs were <0.1 μg kg−1. The total concentrations of the 16 priority PAHs in the soil beds ranged from 132.94 to 410.50 μg kg−1. These levels were lower than those that have been reported from other urban areas. Principal Component Analysis resulted in two components indicating that traffic-derived emissions are the main sources of PAHs in the soil. The first component represented the compounds with higher molecular weights and had a moderate loading for the fine fraction of the soil (clay) (0.63). The second component showed a high loading for silt (0.97), including those PAHs with lower molecular weights. Our data show that spinach and collard greens do not accumulate significant PAH concentrations on their leaves over 45-day periods, whether they are raised in controlled soil or in local beds.http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fenvs.2017.00077/fullurban community gardenspolycyclic aromatic hydrocarbonsurban environmentsvegetablessoil |
| spellingShingle | Luís F. Amato-Lourenco Luís F. Amato-Lourenco Mitiko Saiki Paulo H. N. Saldiva Thais Mauad Thais Mauad Influence of Air Pollution and Soil Contamination on the Contents of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) in Vegetables Grown in Urban Gardens of Sao Paulo, Brazil Frontiers in Environmental Science urban community gardens polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons urban environments vegetables soil |
| title | Influence of Air Pollution and Soil Contamination on the Contents of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) in Vegetables Grown in Urban Gardens of Sao Paulo, Brazil |
| title_full | Influence of Air Pollution and Soil Contamination on the Contents of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) in Vegetables Grown in Urban Gardens of Sao Paulo, Brazil |
| title_fullStr | Influence of Air Pollution and Soil Contamination on the Contents of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) in Vegetables Grown in Urban Gardens of Sao Paulo, Brazil |
| title_full_unstemmed | Influence of Air Pollution and Soil Contamination on the Contents of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) in Vegetables Grown in Urban Gardens of Sao Paulo, Brazil |
| title_short | Influence of Air Pollution and Soil Contamination on the Contents of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) in Vegetables Grown in Urban Gardens of Sao Paulo, Brazil |
| title_sort | influence of air pollution and soil contamination on the contents of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons pahs in vegetables grown in urban gardens of sao paulo brazil |
| topic | urban community gardens polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons urban environments vegetables soil |
| url | http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fenvs.2017.00077/full |
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