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      Contamination of the Conchos River in Mexico: Does It Pose a Health Risk to Local Residents?

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          Abstract

          Presently, water contamination issues are of great concern worldwide. Mexico has not escaped this environmental problem, which negatively affects aquifers, water bodies and biodiversity; but most of all, public health. The objective was to determine the level of water contamination in six tributaries of the Conchos River and to relate their levels to human health risks. Bimonthly samples were obtained from each location during 2005 and 2006. Physical-chemical variables (temperature, pH, electrical conductivity (EC), Total solids and total nitrogen) as well as heavy metals (As, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, V, Zn, and Li) were determined. The statistical analysis considered yearly, monthly, and location effects, and their interactions. Temperatures differed only as a function of the sampling month (P < 0.001) and the pH was different for years (P = 0.006), months (P < 0.001) and the interaction years x months (P = 0.018). The EC was different for each location (P < 0.001), total solids did not change and total nitrogen was different for years (P < 0.001), months (P < 0.001) and the interaction years x months (P < 0.001). The As concentration was different for months (P = 0.008) and the highest concentration was detected in February samples with 0.11 mg L −1. The Cr was different for months (P < 0.001) and the interaction years x months (P < 0.001), noting the highest value of 0.25 mg L −1. The Cu, Fe, Mn, Va and Zn were different for years, months, and their interaction. The highest value of Cu was 2.50 mg L −1; for Fe, it was 16.36 mg L −1; for Mn it was 1.66 mg L −1; V was 0.55 mg L −1; and Zn was 0.53 mg L −1. For Ni, there were differences for years (P = 0.030), months (P < 0.001), and locations (P = 0.050), with the highest Ni value being 0.47 mg L −1. The Li level was the same for sampling month (P < 0.001). This information can help prevent potential health risks in the communities established along the river watershed who use this natural resource for swimming and fishing. Some of the contaminant concentrations found varied from year to year, from month to month and from location to location which necessitated a continued monitoring process to determine under which conditions the concentrations of toxic elements surpass existing norms for natural waters.

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          Drinking water arsenic in Utah: A cohort mortality study.

          The association of drinking water arsenic and mortality outcome was investigated in a cohort of residents from Millard County, Utah. Median drinking water arsenic concentrations for selected study towns ranged from 14 to 166 ppb and were from public and private samples collected and analyzed under the auspices of the State of Utah Department of Environmental Quality, Division of Drinking Water. Cohort members were assembled using historical documents of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Standard mortality ratios (SMRs) were calculated. Using residence history and median drinking water arsenic concentration, a matrix for cumulative arsenic exposure was created. Without regard to specific exposure levels, statistically significant findings include increased mortality from hypertensive heart disease [SMR = 2.20; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.36-3.36], nephritis and nephrosis (SMR = 1.72; CI, 1.13-2.50), and prostate cancer (SMR = 1.45; CI, 1.07-1. 91) among cohort males. Among cohort females, statistically significant increased mortality was found for hypertensive heart disease (SMR = 1.73; CI, 1.11-2.58) and for the category of all other heart disease, which includes pulmonary heart disease, pericarditis, and other diseases of the pericardium (SMR = 1.43; CI, 1.11-1.80). SMR analysis by low, medium, and high arsenic exposure groups hinted at a dose relationship for prostate cancer. Although the SMRs by exposure category were elevated for hypertensive heart disease for both males and females, the increases were not sequential from low to high groups. Because the relationship between health effects and exposure to drinking water arsenic is not well established in U.S. populations, further evaluation of effects in low-exposure populations is warranted.
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            Chromium occurrence in the environment and methods of its speciation.

            This article includes a survey of chromium (Cr) occurrence in different environmental compartments, its pathways in the environment and the cross-sectional presentation of Cr speciation methods against the background of Cr chemistry. The aim of the article is to demonstrate that knowledge of interconversion processes between different Cr forms is necessary to understand its behaviour and role in the environment, in addition to enabling reliable Cr speciation analysis to be performed. The current methods of Cr speciation are presented, characterized and their usefulness discussed. These must rely on superior separation and detection capabilities since Cr in environmental compartments is mostly at trace or ultra-trace level. The need for using unique techniques of sampling, storage, handling and separation for Cr speciation is documented.
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              Source apportionment of trace metals in surface waters of a polluted stream using multivariate statistical analyses.

              Surface water samples were collected from ten previously selected sites of the polluted Dil Deresi stream, during two field surveys, December 2001 and April 2002. All samples were analyzed using ICP-AES, and the concentrations of trace metals (Al, As, Ba, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Pb, Sn and Zn) were determined. The results were compared with national and international water quality guidelines, as well as literature values reported for similar rivers. Factor analysis (FA) and a factor analysis-multiple regression (FA-MR) model were used for source apportionment and estimation of contributions from identified sources to the concentration of each parameter. By a varimax rotated factor analysis, four source types were identified as the paint industry; sewage, crustal and road traffic runoff for trace metals, explaining about 83% of the total variance. FA-MR results showed that predicted concentrations were calculated with uncertainties lower than 15%.
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                Author and article information

                Journal
                Int J Environ Res Public Health
                101238455
                International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
                Molecular Diversity Preservation International (MDPI)
                1661-7827
                1660-4601
                May 2010
                4 May 2010
                : 7
                : 5
                : 2071-2084
                Affiliations
                [1 ] College of Zoo-technology and Ecology, Autonomous University of Chihuahua, Mozart 3109, Chihuahua 21203, Mexico; E-Mails: equintan@ 123456uach.mx (C.Q.); jajimenez@ 123456uach.mx (J.J.-C.); rquintan@ 123456uach.mx (R.Q.)
                [2 ] Department of Geography, Geology and Planning, Missouri State University, 901 S. National, Springfield, MO 65897, USA; E-Mail: mgutierrez@ 123456missouristate.edu
                Author notes
                [* ]Author to whom correspondence should be addressed; E-Mail: rubioa1105@ 123456hotmail.com ; Tel.: +52-614-413-7157; Fax: +52-614-434-0303.
                Article
                ijerph-07-02071
                10.3390/ijerph7052071
                2898037
                20623012
                588909d9-60da-469f-bd81-93c1c0c8baee
                © 2010 by the authors; licensee Molecular Diversity Preservation International, Basel, Switzerland.

                This article is an open-access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution license ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/).

                History
                : 8 January 2010
                : 14 February 2010
                : 3 April 2010
                Categories
                Article

                Public health
                chihuahua,metals,mexico,water contamination
                Public health
                chihuahua, metals, mexico, water contamination

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