Environ Earth Sci (2011) 63:945–953
DOI 10.1007/s12665-010-0763-4
ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Assessment of heavy metal contamination in soils around
Balanagar industrial area, Hyderabad, India
G. Machender • Ratnakar Dhakate •
L. Prasanna • P. K. Govil
Received: 18 January 2010 / Accepted: 26 September 2010 / Published online: 10 October 2010
Ó Springer-Verlag 2010
Abstract The concentration of heavy metals such as Ba,
Co, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, Rb, Sr, V, Y, Zn, Zr were studied in soils
of Balanagar industrial area, Hyderabad to understand heavy
metal contamination due to industrialization and urbaniza-
tion. This area is affected by the industrial activities like
steel, petrochemicals, automobiles, refineries, and battery
manufacturing generating hazardous wastes. The assessment
of the contamination of the soils was based on the geoac-
cumulation index, enrichment factor (EF), contamination
factor, and degree of contamination. Soil samples were
collected from Balanagar industrial area from top 10–50 cm
layer of soil. The samples were analyzed using X-ray fluo-
rescence spectrometer for heavy metals. The data revealed
that the soils in the study area are significantly contaminated,
showing high level of toxic elements than normal distribution.
The ranges of concentration of Cr (82.2–2,264 mg/kg), Cu
(31.3–1,040 mg/kg), Ni (34.3–289.4 mg/kg), Pb (57.5–
1,274 mg/kg), Zn (67.5–5819.5 mg/kg), Co (8.6–54.8 mg/kg),
and V (66.6–297 mg/kg). The concentration of above-
mentioned other elements was similar to the levels in the
earth’s crust pointed to metal depletion in the soil as the EF
was \1. Some heavy metals showed high EF in the soil
samples indicating that there is a considerable heavy metal
pollution, which could be correlated with the industries in the
area. A contamination site poses significant environmental
hazards for terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. They are
important sources of pollution and may results in ecotoxi-
cological effects on terrestrial, groundwater and aquatic
ecosystems.
G. Machender (&)  R. Dhakate  L. Prasanna  P. K. Govil
National Geophysical Research Institute, Council of Scientific
and Industrial Research, Uppal Road, Hyderabad 500007,
AP, India
e-mail: machender_geo@yahoo.co.in
Keywords Heavy metal  Geoaccumulation index 
Enrichment factor  Degree of contamination
Introduction
Soil contamination has become a serious problem in many
industrialized and developing countries. This is especially
the case in regions with high population density where land
is intensely used and as a consequence, a polluted location
cannot be set aside (Van Straalen 2002; Fent 2004). Soils
are regarded as the ultimate sink for heavy metals dis-
charged into the environment, as many heavy metals are
bound to soils. The main difficulty lies in complex nature
of soil (Chlopecka et al. 1996; Dang et al. 2002; Obiajunwa
et al. 2002).
Soil is considered as contaminated when chemicals are
present or other alterations have been made to its natural
environment. This is often caused by accidental releases of
chemicals or the improper disposal of hazardous wastes.
Increased inputs of metals and synthetic chemicals in the
terrestrial environment due to rapid industrialization cou-
pled with inadequate environmental management in the
developing country like India, has lead to large-scale pol-
lution of the environment. These chemicals in the terres-
trial environment clearly pose a significant risk to the
quality of soils, plants, natural waters, and human health
(Adriano 2001; USEPA 2003; WHO 2004). Heavy metal
content of soil is of major significance in relation to their
fertility and nutrient status. Many metals such as Zn, Cu,
and Sr are essential elements for normal growth of plants
and living organisms. However, high concentrations of
these metals become toxic. Other metals, which are not
included in the group of essential elements, such as Pb or
Cr, may be tolerated by the ecosystem in low
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concentration, but become harmful in higher concentra-
tions (Alloway and Ayres 1997; Nriagu 1988). Soluble
metal compounds and metals held in metal exchange
complexes are considered to be available for vegetation
uptake. The bioavailability of metal compounds is influ-
enced by the pH, temperature, redox potential, cation
exchange capacity of the solid phase, competition with
other metal ions, composition and quality of the soil
solution (Mapanda et al. 2005; Moon et al. 2000; Skordas
and Kelepertsis 2005).
Hyderabad is the largest metropolis of India and is a
center of many multinational industries. The industries
have come up in recent decades around the cities of
Hyderabad. One such industrial area, Balanagar industrial
area with industries like steel manufacturing, battery
manufacturing, petrochemical, pharmaceuticals etc., has
come up in north-western part of the Hyderabad city. Most
of the wastes (solid/liquid) generated during the process
has disposed in open areas due to non-facility of proper
waste disposal sites. This causes serious problems to the
environmental system in terms of pollution and contami-
nation of soil, sediment, groundwater, surface water with
heavy metals.
The main objective of the study was to assess the levels
of soil contamination with respect to average concentra-
tions of toxic metals in the region, to determine the asso-
ciations between the different toxic elements and their
spatial distribution and to identify possible sources of
contamination that can explain the spatial patterns of soil
pollution in the area. Second objective of the present study
is to make a systematic assessment and evaluation of soil
contamination under the influence of a high influx of metal
pollutants from the anthropogenic activities. Hence, the
assessment of metal contamination is of vital importance in
industrial areas (Loska et al. 2004). Contaminants at large
contaminated sites often share critical properties such as
high acute and/or chronic toxicity, high environmental
persistence, often high mobility leading to contamination
of groundwater and high lipophilicity leading to bioaccu-
mulation in food web. In this work, the soil contamination
was assessed using various indices, including index of
geoaccumulation (Igeo), enrichment factor (EF), contami-
nation factor (Cf) and degree of contamination (Cdeg).
Study area
Balanagar industrial area is situated in the north-western part
of the Hyderabad City and rapidly growing for urbanization
and industrialization. Many industries like steel, petro-
chemicals, automobiles, refineries and battery manufactur-
ing have come up within a few decades of time. The
industrial area is surrounded by thickly populated
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Environ Earth Sci (2011) 63:945–953
urbanization and there is no proper facility is available for
solid waste disposal. Figure 1 shows the location of the study
area. Geologically, the area consists of granites and peg-
matite of igneous origin belonging to the Archean age. The
granites are pink and grey in color, hard massive to foliated
and well-jointed. The soil cover is of well-developed residual
soil of weathered granite. The soil is yellowish to brown-
reddish. The soil is fairly permeable and the infiltration rate
can absorb most of the rain except for more intensive rains
which can cause considerable surface flow and erosion.
The groundwater occurs in the soil of weathered granite,
decomposed granite and the fractured solid bedrock under
the ground water table and in semi-confined conditions.
The average depth of groundwater is about 10 m. These
rocks possess negligible primary porosity, but due to sec-
ondary porosity by deep fracturing and weathering they are
rendered with a porosity and permeability which locally
form potential aquifers.
Materials and methods
Sampling method
Sixteen soil samples were collected from Balanagar
industrial area in clean polythene covers avoiding the all
possible contamination. Samples were collected from top
10–50 cm layer of the soil using plastic spatula. The
location of sample collected points is shown in Fig. 1. The
samples were dried for 2 days at 60°C to avoid the mois-
ture content. The dry soil sample was finely powered to
-200 mesh size (US Standard) using a swing grinding mill.
Sample pellets were prepared using a backing of boric acid
and pressing it at 25 tons of pressure for analysis by X-ray
fluoscence spectrometry (XRF). A hydraulic press of
60–70 pp was used to prepare pellets for XRF analysis to
determine trace elements. To monitor the quality of
chemical analysis and accuracy of the data, soil reference
materials, SO-1 and SO-4 issued by Canadian reference
materials were analyzed along with the soil samples during
the course of analysis. The analytical data showing the
metal concentrations are listed in Table 1. It is evident
from the data that analytical values are within the range of
the certified values of the reference material.
Instrumentation and analysis
A Philips PW2440 model MagiX PRO, wavelength dis-
persive fully automatic, microprocessor controlled with
168 position automatic PW 2540 vrc sample changer X-ray
Spectrometer was used along with 4 kW X-ray generator
for the determination of heavy metals like Ba, Co, Cr, Cu,
Ni, Pb, Rb, Sr, V, Y, Zn and Zr in soil samples. The MagiX
Environ Earth Sci (2011) 63:945–953 947

35 19

18
30

Latitute (Degree)
LATITUTE (in degree)
Hyderabad
17
25
INDIA 16

20
15
RA H
DH ES
15 AN AD
PR 14

10 13

70 75 80 85 90 95 78 79 80 81 82 83 84
LONGITUDE (in degree) Longitude (Degree)

0km 2km 4km

B12
B11
17.47
Latitute (in Degrees)

17.468
B14
B13 B15
B16
B10

17.466 B4

B9 B5
B1
17.464 B2 B7
Sample Location B3
B6
B13
B8

78.43 78.432 78.434 78.436 78.438 78.44 78.442 78.444

Longitude (in Degrees)

Fig. 1 Location map of the study area showing the sample location

Table 1 Results of analytical values of the soil standard reference materials SO-1 (regosolic clay soil and SO-4 (chermozemic a horizon soil) in
comparison with the certified reference values
CRM Ba Co Cr Cu Pb Ni Sr V Zn

SO-1 867 (870) 28.6 (29) 167.2 (170) 60.4 (61) 19.5 (20) 91.6 (92) 328 (331) 130.1 (133) 138.6 (140)
SO-4 691.8 (700) 10.1 (10.4) 63.5 (64) 20.8 (21) 12.9 (14) 23.5 (24) 167.9 (168) 84.6 (85) 93.1 (94)

PRO XRF is a sequential instrument with a single goni- and inter-element matrix effects. International soil reference
ometer measuring channel covering the entire elemental materials from US Geological Survey, Canadian Geological
range. A rhodium (Rh) anode X-ray tube was used, which Survey, International working group, France and NGRI,
may be operated at a 60 kV and current up to 125 mA, at a India were used to prepare calibration curves for trace
maximum power level of 4 kW. Philips software metals (Govil 1985). XRF analytical data of heavy metals
‘‘Super Q’’ was used to take care of dead time correction are given in Table 2.

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948 Environ Earth Sci (2011) 63:945–953

Table 2 Heavy metal concentration (mg/kg) in soil samples analyzed by XRF data
Sl no. Ba Co Cr Cu Ni Pb Rb Sr V Y Zn Zr

B1 569 21.1 133.3 133.6 34.3 124.7 178.4 66.5 6.6 34.5 461 545.1
B2 695 13.7 264.4 90.7 127.9 65.4 138.9 103.4 87.1 29.9 400.1 407.4
B3 660.5 15.7 120.4 65.5 38.8 81.2 117.2 111 76.6 25.1 542.4 364.1
B4 739.2 15.2 199.7 100.5 55.6 121.8 101.5 134.8 84.1 16.6 882.8 224.4
B5 700.1 17.5 464.2 96.2 40.2 83.9 139.9 103.7 66.8 26.5 561.6 396.3
B6 884.3 22.3 288.8 87.2 34.6 113.5 151.4 90.1 105.6 30.3 5819.5 484.1
B7 1593.8 14.1 212 176.4 53.4 302 167.1 188.1 99.8 33.1 391.4 437.7
B8 735.3 8.6 992.7 43.3 39.7 59.5 156.1 107.3 77.6 30.3 449.8 471.9
B9 743.1 9.6 148 103.7 52.6 110.4 140 114.7 83.2 28.5 648.1 460.4
B10 656.3 16.3 301.7 1040.4 61.8 164.2 140.3 102.1 80.6 23.6 1108.8 277.4
B11 624.1 9.1 84.2 31.3 36.3 57.4 164.8 87.1 89.1 31.5 67.5 335.4
B12 2732.2 15.7 2264.4 957.8 124.4 12748.2 124.6 242.7 156.1 11.6 342.2 442.8
B13 536.5 54.8 167.9 33.5 64.8 57.5 54 68.8 74.4 10.3 175.2 144.5
B14 645.6 11.7 85.8 152 42.9 154.5 127.2 117.1 88.2 23.4 300.4 243.8
B15 576.1 14.1 90.4 166.2 39.6 69.4 211.5 73.3 79.3 45.7 326 710.2
B16 665.7 22.1 133.8 157.9 46.9 100.7 177.5 81.5 78.2 35.7 511.2 525.2

Index of geoaccumulation (Igeo) Enrichment factor

The index of geoaccumulation enables the assessment of
contamination by comparing the current and pre-industrial
concentrations originally used with bottom sediments
(Muller 1969), it can also be applied to the assessment of
soil contamination. It is computed using the following
equation
Cn
Igeo ¼ log2
1:5Bn
where Cn is the measured concentration of the element
in the pelitic sediment fraction (\2 lm) and Bn is the
geochemical background value in fossil argillaceous
sediment (‘‘average shale’’). The constant 1.5 allow us to
analyze natural fluctuations in the content of a given
substance in the environment and very small anthropo-
genic influences.
Modified calculations based on the equation given by
Krzysztof et al. 2003 was applied in the present studies
where Cn denotes the concentration of a given element
in the soil tested, and Bn denotes the concentration of
element in the earth’s crust (Taylor and Mclennan 1995).
For some elements like As, Hg and Sb the average
concentration in the earth’s crust is much higher than the
average concentration in the shale accepted by Muller
(1969) as a reference value. Here, the focus is between
the concentration obtained and the concentration of ele-
ments in the earth’s crust because soil is a part of the
layer of earth’s crust and its chemical composition is
related to the one of the crust.
The value of EF was calculated using the modified formula
given by Krzysztof et al. (2003) based on the equation
suggested by Buat-Menard and Cherselet (1979). The EF
was based on the standardization of a tested element
against a reference one. A reference element is one char-
acterized by low occurrence variability (Saur and Juste
1994; Sutherland 2000; Reimann and De Caritat 2000).
Assessment of enrichment or depletion of trace elements
in soil sample, the trace element concentration can be
normalized, which is relatively inert with respect to
chemical weathering, and has no significant on anthropo-
genic source. Zircon (Zr) occurs as an oxide or a silicate
and belongs to the lithophile elements, it has a high
chemical stability during weathering. Most of Zr minerals
accumulate in placer deposits, small quantity takes part in
sedimentation circulation and absorbed by clay minerals
(Wang et al. 2008). Zr has been used widely in geochem-
ical studies of mineral weathering as a stable lithogenic
element or for assessment of depletion of more reactive
heavy metals in sediments (Rubio et al. 2000;Zhang et al.
2006; Cobela-Garcia and Prego 2003) and to reduce the
scatter data and allow a precise definition to background
value as normalizer. So, in this study Zr was chosen as the
reference element.
The EF of all studied elements can be calculated by the
following equation
Cn ðsampleÞ
Cref ðsampleÞ
EF ¼ Bn ðbackgroundÞ
Bref ðbackgroundÞ

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Environ Earth Sci (2011) 63:945–953
where Cn(sample) is the content of the examined element
in the examined environment, Cref(sample) is the content of
the reference element in the examined environment,
Bn(background) is the content of examined element in the
reference environment and Bref(background) is the content
of the reference element in the reference environment. The
crystal zircon (Zr) value used is 190 mg/kg (Taylor and
Mclennan 1995).
Contamination factor (Cf) and degree of contamination
(Cdeg)
Assessment of soil contamination was carried out using the
Cf and Cdeg. The Cif is the single element index, the sum of
contamination factors for all elements examined represents
the Cdeg of the environment and all four classes are rec-
ognized. In the version suggested by Hakanson (1980),
they enable an assessment of soil contamination through
the reference of the concentration in the surface layer of
bottom sediments to pre-industrial levels (average shale
value)
i
C01
Cfi ¼
Cni
where Ci0–1 is the mean content of metals from at least five
sampling sites and Cin is the pre-industrial concentration of
individual metal.
Modification factor as applied by Krzysztof et al. (2003)
was used in the present study, which used the concentration
of elements in the earth’s crust as a reference value, similar
to the other factors.
Results and discussion
The analytical results obtained for individual heavy metal
are shown in Table 2. Descriptive statistical data contents of
each metal in the soil are shown in Table 3. High levels of
some heavy metals are observed in some pockets only which
are close to some of the industries like steel manufacturing
and petrochemicals. Barium (2732.2 mg/kg), chromium
(2264.4 mg/kg), copper (1040.4 mg/kg), nickel (127.9 mg/kg),
lead (12748.2 mg/kg), and zinc (5819.5 mg/kg). The data
showed enrichment levels exceeding the normally expected
distribution in soil giving rise to concern over suitability of
soils in the study area.
Barium
Barium is released into the air during the process of manu-
facturing of barium chemicals in the study area. The average
barium content is 859.8 mg/kg and ranges from 536.5 to
949
2732.2 mg/kg showed more than mean content indicating
the polluted soil. The Igeo obtained ranges from -0.62 to
1.72 mg/kg revealed that nearly all the samples examined
fell into class 0 practically uncontaminated with barium
except very few fall in moderately contaminated as per
Mullar’s six classes of the geoaccumulation index (Fig. 2).
The EF was also low and ranged from 0.28 to 2.13, con-
firming a moderate enrichment with barium (Fig. 3).
Cobalt
The average concentration of cobalt is 17.6 mg/kg and
ranges from 8.6 to 54.8 mg/kg. The Igeo calculated ranges
from 5.84 to 8.51 mg/kg (Fig. 2) denoted lack of soil is
contaminated and maximum values classified the soil is
heavily contaminated. Similarly the EF ranges from 0.34 to
7.20, confirming a significant enrichment of cobalt in soil
in industrial area (Fig. 3).
Chromium
Chromium is a low mobility element, especially under
moderately oxidizing and reducing conditions and near-
neutral pH values. Cr?6 adsorption decreases with
increasing pH, and Cr?3 adsorption increases with
increasing pH. On the other hand, Cr?6 is toxic for bio-
logical systems. The average concentration of chromium is
371.98 mg/kg and much higher values were reported in the
study area ranges from 84.2 to 2264.4 mg/kg in the soil
samples collected in the study area. The Igeo revealed that
most of the samples examined fell into classes 2 and 3,
moderately to heavily contaminated ranging from 0.68 to
5.43 (Fig. 2) except very few samples revealed uncon-
taminated. The EF obtained for chromium ranges from
0.69 to 27.76 (Fig. 3) which again falls under the class of
very high enrichment. Chromium and its compound are
primarily used in the manufacture of steel and other alloys,
chrome plating and pigment production in the study area.
Inadequate disposal of waste containing chromium at
industrial area in the past decade has contaminated both
land and groundwater. The source of chromium appears to
be anthropogenic from some industries producing steel,
textiles etc., in the study area.
Copper
The normal threshold value prescribed in soil is 30 mg/kg
and copper normally accumulates in the surface horizons, a
phenomenon explained by the bioaccumulation of the
metal and recent anthropogenic sources (Kabata-Pendias
2004). The average copper content in the soil examined
was 371.98 mg/kg. The Igeo obtained for copper ranges
from -0.26 to 4.79 mg/kg (Fig. 2) points toward
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950 Environ Earth Sci (2011) 63:945–953

Table 3 Statistical analysis of heavy metals contents in soil of Balanagar industrial area
Parameters Ba Co Cr Cu Ni Pb Rb Sr V Y Zn Zr

Minimum 536.5 8.6 84.2 31.3 34.3 57.4 54 66.5 66.6 10.3 67.5 144.5
Maximum 2732.2 54.8 2264.4 1040.4 127.9 12748.2 211.5 242.7 156.1 45.7 5819.5 710.2
Average 859.8 17.6 371.98 214.76 55.86 900.89 143.15 112.01 87.08 27.28 811.75 404.41
Median 680.35 15.45 183.8 102.1 149.55 105.55 140.15 103.55 81.9 29.2 455.4 422.55
Standard deviation 103.79 10.78 551.75 309.91 29.01 3159.86 35.93 45.57 21.08 9.02 1358.92 139.72
Kurtosis 9.47 10.52 10.27 4.65 3.30 15.98 1.79 4.07 7.99 0.51 14.68 0.46
Skewness 3.02 3.00 3.11 2.41 2.02 3.99 -0.62 1.925 2.55 -0.26 3.77 0.11

present in the organically bound form, which under acidic

and neutral conditions increases its mobility and bioavail-
ability (Kabata-Pendias and Pendias 1999). The Igeo values
ranges from 0.19 to 2.09 mg/kg (Fig. 2) fell under classes 2
and 3, uncontaminated to moderately contaminated (Muller
1969). The EF for nickel ranges from 0.52 to 4.26 (Fig. 3),
showing a moderate enrichment of soil.

Lead

The species of Pb vary considerably with soil type; it is

mainly associated with clay minerals, Mn oxides, Fe and
Fig. 2 Indexes of geoaccumulation for metals in soil of Balanagar
Al hydroxides and organic matter. In some soil types, Pb
industrial area
may be highly concentrated in Ca carbonate particles or in
phosphate concentrations and a baseline Pb value for sur-
face soil (Gowd et al. 2010). The average content of Pb is
900.89 mg/kg and ranges from 57.4 to 12748.2 mg/kg
shows all the soil samples were contaminated with Pb, the
Pb value for surface soil on the global scale has been
estimated to be 25 mg/kg levels above this suggest an
anthropogenic influence (Kabata-Pendias 2004). The Igeo
obtained for Pb ranges from 0.93 to 8.73 mg/kg (Fig. 2)
indicate more than 75% of samples are moderately to
heavily contaminated. Similarly, the EF ranges from 0.93
to 273.50 also shows the soils in the study area are mod-
erately to extremely high enrichment (Fig. 3).

Fig. 3 Enrichment Factors (EFs) for metals in soil of Balanagar Rubidium

industrial area
moderately to heavily contaminated. The EF for copper is
also high and ranges from 0.69 to 28.50 (Fig. 3) indicate
significant to very high enrichment of copper in the soil.
The high values of Igeo and EF for copper may be due to
some input through industrial effluents on the surface soil
due to accumulation over a period of time.
The average content of Rb in soil examined was
143.15 mg/kg with minimum and maximum ranges from
54 to 211.5 mg/kg (Fig. 2). The Igeo obtained for Rb ranges
from -1.63 to 0.33 indicating the soil are practically
uncontaminated with Rb. The EF for Rb ranges from 0.47
to 0.88 (Fig. 3), indicating the depletion to minimal
enrichment of Rb in soil.

Nickel Strontium

The nickel content in soils ranges from 34.3 to 127.9 mg/kg Strontium is strongly associated with calcium and is
with an average of 55.86 mg/kg. Nickel in soil is usually indicative of calcareous rocks, especially in association

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Environ Earth Sci (2011) 63:945–953
with Sr, Mg and Ba where Ca and other elements indicate
calcareous rocks, and other elements (e.g., REEs) indicate
felsic intrusive, bedrock geology may be favorable for
skarn mineralization. Strontium is easily mobilized during
weathering, especially in oxidizing acid environments, and
is incorporated in clay minerals and strongly fixed by
organic matter (Gowd et al. 2010). The average strontium
concentration in the study area is 112.01 mg/kg and ranges
from 66.5 to 242.7 mg/kg (Fig. 2). Moreover, the con-
centration of Sr in soil is within permissible levels, which
indicate its normal concentration and reflect the back-
ground value in soil. However, in the study area Sr content
in soil was falling in class 0 showing uncontaminated with
Igeo ranging from -2.98 to -1.11. The EF ranges from
0.05 to 1.63 indicating the depletion to minimal enrichment
of Sr in the soil (Fig. 3).
Zinc
Zinc belongs to a group of trace metals, which are essential
for the growth of humans, animals and plants and are
potentially dangerous for the biosphere when present in
high concentrations. The main sources of pollution are
industries and the use of liquid manure, composted mate-
rials and agrochemicals such as fertilizers and pesticides in
agriculture (Gowd et al. 2010). The average zinc concen-
tration in the study area is 811.75 mg/kg, ranges from 67.5
to 5819.5 mg/kg, which is high. The Igeo indicated that the
soils in the study area fall under classes 0 to 6 ranging from
minimum of -0.65 practically uncontaminated and maxi-
mum of 5.77 showing to heavily contaminated (Fig. 2).
The EF ranging from 0.53 to 32.16 indicate moderate to
very high enrichment (Fig. 3). The normal threshold value
prescribed in soil is 200 mg/kg. In India, 47% of soils are
depleted in zinc however, the high concentration of Zn is
found in the nearby industrial areas which clearly represent
the source to be anthropogenic and not natural.
Contribution of heavy metals to the contamination
of soil in Balanagar industrial area
The assessment of the overall contamination of soil was
based on the Cdeg. On the basis of the contamination factor
(Cif) (Krzysztof et al. 2003; Hakanson 1980) the soil was
classified as low to moderately contaminated with Ba, Co,
Ni, Rb, Sr, V, Y and Zr, and considerably contaminated
with Cr, Cu, Pb and Zn and highly contaminated with Cu
and Pb. The summary of Cf and degree of contamination in
Balanagar industrial area, Hyderabad is given in Table 4.
More than 80% of soil samples are moderately contami-
nated with Ba and Co, about 56% of soil samples are
moderately contaminated and 25% of soil samples are
considerably contaminated with Cr. About 62–12%
951
samples are moderate, considerable and very highly con-
taminated with Cu. 75–13% of soil samples are very highly
contaminated with Pb, Cu and Zn, respectively. The Cdeg
for the metal contents in the soil was 25 and indicate
considerable contamination (Hakanson 1980). The maxi-
mum values of the contamination degree denoted high
contamination. It was found that chromium, copper, lead
and zinc contributed most to the degree of contamination
index of the soil. The remaining metals negligibly influ-
enced the soil contamination.
Correlation of heavy metals
Correlation matrix (Table 5) of the trace metal data indi-
cates strong positive correlations (r2 [ 0.50) between Ba
with Cr–Cu–Ni–Pb–Sr–V, Cr with Cu–Ni–Pb–Sr–V, Cu
with Pb–Sr–V, Ni with Pb–Sr–V, Pb with Sr–V, Rb with
Y–Zr, Sr with V and Y with Zr and weak positive corre-
lations (r2 B 0.5) between Cu and Ni and vice versa. The
significant positive correlations within these metals reveal
their common source viz., industrial contamination, and
sinks in soils of the study area. The presence of Sr in the
soils has a bearing on the accumulation of heavy metals in
the study area, and has influenced the adsorption charac-
teristics of V, Cu, and Pb. The association of Sr and Ba is
well-known, which is reflected in relatively strong positive
correlation coefficient (r2 = 0.68). Thus, it is observed that
Sr plays an important role in the enrichment of heavy
metals, particularly Cu, Pb and V, in the study area. The
geochemical association of Cr–Cu–Zn in the soil shows
that these metals are deposited from anthropogenic sources,
since there is no known geogenic source which can con-
tribute to this type of association in the study area.
Conclusion
Balanagar industrial area is extremely contaminated due to
many years of random dumping of hazardous waste and free
discharge of effluents generated by the industries. Even if the
dumping and discharging of effluents were totally terminated
from the surface soil, the contamination would still persist
for many years in the subsoil. Risk assessment based upon
soil quality guidelines limits proves that the soil is a serious
health risk to humans. The results of the study show the
impact of anthropogenic agents on abundances of heavy
metals in soils of the study area, and it is extremely con-
taminated due to many years of random dumping of haz-
ardous waste and free discharge of effluents by number of
industries. The high content of toxic metals in the environ-
ment induces an increase in their content in ground waters as
a result of leaching. The detected levels of total metal con-
tamination in many of samples were found to exceed
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952 Environ Earth Sci (2011) 63:945–953

Table 4 Summary of degree of

Elements Maximum Minimum Median Standard
contamination factor and
deviation
contamination factor of
Balanagar industrial area soil Ba 1.60 0.31 1.26 0.33
samples
Co 2.04 0.32 1.13 0.45
Cr 4.41 0.16 2.03 1.33
Cu 6.86 0.20 2.10 1.96
Ni 1.62 0.43 1.24 0.37
Pb 15.69 0.07 8.55 4.59
Rb 2.65 0.67 1.02 0.45
Sr 1.68 0.46 1.08 0.33
V 1.30 0.55 1.06 0.18
Y 2.64 0.59 0.93 0.57
Zn 12.02 0.13 1.78 2.73
Zr 2.79 0.56 0.95 0.55
Degree of contamination 55.36 4.51 23.18 13.90

Table 5 Cross correlation matrix of heavy metals of Balanagar industrial area soil samples
Ba Co Cr Cu Ni Pb Rb Sr V Y Zn Zr

Ba 1
Co -0.13 1
Cr 0.83 -0.11 1
Cu 0.57 -0.09 0.58 1
Ni 0.57 0.04 0.56 0.46 1
Pb 0.90 -0.05 0.91 0.64 0.62 1
Rb -0.05 -0.56 -0.12 -0.03 -0.30 -0.13 1
Sr 0.92 -0.29 0.72 0.51 0.53 0.77 -0.15 1
V 0.91 -0.15 0.77 0.54 0.58 0.87 -0.07 0.81 1
Y -0.35 -0.43 -0.43 -0.33 -0.43 -0.46 0.91 -0.42 -0.36 1
Zn -0.01 0.07 -0.05 -0.02 -0.19 -0.09 0.04 -0.11 0.19 0.06 1
Zr 0.10 -0.37 0.09 -0.06 -0.13 0.07 0.85 -0.07 0.05 0.79 0.12 1

international threshold values. High concentration of Cr, Cu,
Pb, and Zn obtained in the soil of the study area indicated that
the pollution of these heavy metals in the area originated
mainly from the industries in the area, either from dumping
of industrial waste or from release of uncontrolled effluents
on to the ground which contaminate the water bodies and
streams present in the study area. This study clearly high-
lights the necessity of immediate control measures for the
exceptionally severe heavy metal pollution in the study area
and the soils in the area require various remediation tech-
nologies like bioremediation, phyto-remediation and bio-
remediation by growing certain plants in the area should be
carried out to minimize the rate of contamination, and extent
of future pollution problems.
Acknowledgments The authors are thankful to Director, National
Geophysical Research Institute, Hyderabad, for his continuous sup-
port and kind permission to publish this paper. The authors are
thankful to honorable reviewer for his valuable comments and
suggestion given for improvement of the manuscript. Thanks are also
due to Shri. A.K. Krishna, Scientist, NGRI, Hyderabad for XRF
Laboratory for helping in XRF analysis of soil samples.
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