EVALUATION OF CHROMIUM EXPOSURE IN ADULTS AND CHILDREN AROUND MAROS KARST IN INDONESIA

Abstract

Chromium is a potentially toxic metal due to several acute and chronic effects on human. Chromium can accumulate in the soil and water as the result of weathering processes, industrial emissions, tanneries, and inorganic fertilizers. This study aimed to evaluate the potential threat from Cr exposure in adults and children of the community around Maros karst, Indonesia. The level of Cr was investigated on twenty soils and sixteen well water using Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometry (AAS). The integrated health risk assessment method from the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) and Monte Carlo simulation approach with 10,000 iterations were applied to assess non-cancer and cancer risk through combined pathways, ingestion and skin contact. The non-cancer risk with 95% confidence demonstrated that Cr exposure in adults and children was below the permissible limit (THI<1). The final prediction using human health risk assessment showed that the non-cancer risk for both receptors was considered acceptable. However, the total cancer risk (TCR) values exceeded the acceptable risk value of USEPA in children (2.33 x 10-4 ) and adults (2.18 x 10-4 ), indicating children have a greater risk for developing cancer than adults. Ingestion rate (IR) (26.0%) and Cr concentration in soil (26.4%) were the most important variables in determining cancer risk for adults and children, respectively. The findings could be valuable for managing well water consumption and soil remediation in residential areas.