Assessment of Heavy Metal Contamination in Soils Adjacent to Fossil Fuel Power Plants in Iraq: A Mini-Review

Abstract

Soil heavy metal pollution is a global environmental issue that has gained significant public attention due to concerns about human health and agricultural safety, making it a critical area of research both nationally and internationally. Heavy metals, including cadmium, mercury, arsenic, lead, and chromium, are toxic to biological systems. These HMs enter the soil agro-ecosystem through natural processes from parent materials and anthropogenic activities, particularly from fossil fuel power plants (FFPP). Although HMs are naturally occurring components in the Earth crust, most environmental pollution and exposure are accumulated in soils which reflects the present and deserves continued attention. The review study examined the distribution and accumulation of HMs in Iraqi soil, the results of previous studies over long periods showed that the soil of Iraq was not contaminated with HMs in the last century, the level of HMs in the soil increased with the progress of time in various cities of Iraq accordingly of the increase in power demand and industrial actions dependent on burning fuel, result in soil pollution in adjacent areas of FFPP project. Pervious study results specify that the average value of chromium (361 µg/g), nickel (284 µg/g), cobalt (16.62 µg/g) for Al-Ramadi PP, and cadmium (12.27 µg/g) for Al Nasiriyah area. Furthermore zinc (191 µg/g), lead (131 µg/g), Copper (37 µg/g), for Al Haidariy FFPP. Likewise, research conducted on fly ash release from FFPP in central and southern Iraq indicated high levels of cadmium, zinc, iron, magnesium and copper that exceed international limits due to fuel combustion. These studies confirm the extent of HMs pollution in Iraq and impact on environmental quality and human health. Effective management of HMs pollution from fossil fuel power plants necessitates systematic identification of pollution hotspots and assessment of control measures.