TITLE:
Health Risks of Potentially Toxic Elements in Soils and Vegetables from Artisanal Gold Mining Communities in Ghana’s Amansie West District
AUTHORS:
Adams Sadick, Samuel Kumi, Sampson Owusu, Prince Martin Gyekye, Benjamin Ason, Amos Edem Agbenyo
KEYWORDS:
Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining (ASM), Potentially Toxic Elements, Health Risk Assessment, Soil Contamination, Food Safety
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Applied Sciences,
Vol.16 No.9,
September
24,
2026
ABSTRACT: Due to the discharge of potentially toxic elements (PTEs) into agricultural soils, artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) operations have intensified environmental degradation and public health risks. This study investigates the concentrations, transfer dynamics, and health effects of PTEs in six ASM-affected communities in Ghana’s Amansie West District. A total of 90 soil samples and 60 vegetable samples (tomato, cabbage, and onion) were assessed for PTEs, and the results were used to estimate bioaccumulation, bioconcentration and health-risk indices. Lead (Pb) levels ranged from 4.94 to 9.42 mg/kg, mercury (Hg) from 0.78 to 2.55 mg/kg, while arsenic (As) in soil samples exceeded the FAO/WHO limits for safe agriculture. The soil’s pH range (4.41 - 5.20) indicated acidic conditions that enhance metal mobility and plant absorption. Bioconcentration coefficients (BAC) for As and Hg exceeding 1.0 indicated that these metals were effectively transferred from soil to edible vegetable parts. Health risk assessments revealed Hazard Indexes (HI) values above 1 for adults in Datanor (1.13) and Tontokrom (1.27), while child HI values exceeded the safe threshold of 1.0 in all six communities, indicating serious non-carcinogenic risks. Carcinogenic risk (CR) for arsenic varied from 1.4 × 10−4 to 2.3 × 10−4, suggesting a potential lifetime risk of cancer above the USEPA recommendation of 1.0 × 10−4. The findings demonstrate the need for sustained environmental monitoring, food-safety management, soil remediation and public-health interventions in ASM-affected communities.