Determination of lead and cadmium in parley tissues grown in the Riyadh area

Journal Article · Thu May 01 04:00:00 EDT 1997 · Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1007/s001289900393· OSTI ID:530892

Al-Kathiri, M N ^[1]; Al-Attar, A F ^[2]

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1. King Khalid Military Academy, Riyadh (Saudi Arabia)
2. King Abdulaziz Center for Science and Technology, Riyadh (Saudi Arabia)

Riyadh area is located in the center of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. There is a huge increase in vehicle numbers and industrial plants in Riyadh city and surrounding areas as a result of the progressive growth of the city and the rapid increase in its population. By the end of 1994 there were 672,000 vehicles on road, while the population of Riyadh was 2.4 million. It is now projected to exceed 6 million by the year 2006. It is thus necessary to record and evaluate the impact of population growth and increased vehicles traffic on the environment of the area. One of the most common pollutant metal is lead because the lead content in gasoline is high as compared to international level. It was 0.84 g/l and gradually reduced to 0.42 g/l which is still high comparing with international level. Further, at present all the gasoline vehicles in Saudi Arabia are of 2000 cm{sup 3} engine capacity and larger. Up until now, few reports have been published on lead and cadmium pollution in Riyadh city. Early 1980s, El-Shobokshy showed that the lead concentration in the atmosphere is strongly related to the atmospheric stability, and the concentration may be as high as 8 {mu}g/m{sup 3} during the peak traffic hours. In another work, El-Shobokshy carried out a preliminary analysis of inhalable lead particulates in the city. He concluded that the average concentration of lead during the working day is 4.37{mu}g/m{sup 3} to 5.83{mu}g/m{sup 3}, which is about twice the international standards, it decreases during the weekends (Thursday and Friday) due to reduction in traffic loads and it reaches the minimum on Friday when most of industrial activities are stopped. He showed that the industrial site of Riyadh is an effective contributor of the measured lead in the study. This study evaluates the contamination of lead and cadmium in Parley tissues grown in the Riyadh Area. 8 refs., 3 figs., 2 tabs.

• OSTI ID: 530892
• Journal Information: Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology, Journal Name: Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology Journal Issue: 5 Vol. 58; ISSN 0007-4861; ISSN BECTA6
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
56 BIOLOGY AND MEDICINE
APPLIED STUDIES
AIR POLLUTION
BIOLOGICAL ACCUMULATION
CADMIUM
CONTAMINATION
ECOLOGICAL CONCENTRATION
LEAD
PLANTS
SAUDI ARABIA