PRELIMINARY HEALTH RISK ASSESSMENT OF HEAVY METALS IN DRINKING WATER FROM AFFILIATED ARMY SERVICE STATIONS ALONG SICHUAN-TIBET HIGHWAY

Objective To explore the potential health hazards of heavy metals contamination in drinking water from 18 different army service stations.Methods The water environmental health risk assessment model recommended by US.EPA was established based on the water monitoring data of heavy metals.Results The median concentration of heavy metals in drinking water was 1.362×10-3mg/L for As,3.654×10-3mg/L for Pb,0.567×10-3mg/L for Hg,and 0.954×10-3 mg/L for Se.The health risk to the individual person per year in terms of As through drinking water ranged from 1.764×10-7/a to 1.241×10-5/a.The health risk of non-carcinogenic heavy metals(Pb,Hg,Se) to the individual person ranged from 1×10-9/a to 1×10-11/a,and the greatest health risk to the individual through drinking was As,followed by Pb,Hg and Se.The total health risk caused by 4 heavy metals was 2.93×10-5/a.Conclusion Although the environmental health risks caused by 4 heavy metals were lower than the maximum tolerable value(5.0×10-5/a) recommended by ICRP,it should be also paid more attention by the military management.