Human health risk assessment and mitigation of heavy metal pollution in agriculture and environment

Heavy metals contamination in agricultural environment and its deleterious effects on the crops and human health is an issue of serious concern in the present time. Agricultural fields receive various heavy metals such as Zn, Ni, Mn, Cu, Cd, Cr, Pb, As and Hg etc. mainly from natural and anthropogenic sources. The greater concentration of heavy metals in the fields spoils the soil characteristics and has extreme consequences on both crops and human. Their persistence and non-degradable nature increases its accumulation in the agricultural field, crops and human body through various food chains. The present chapter highlights various sources of heavy metals in agricultural environment and its impacts on both crops and human health and gives various strategies to mitigate the heavy metal concentrations in agricultural environment.