HEAVY METAL CONTAMINATION IN VEGETABLE PARTS AND SOIL OF CULTIVATED CAPSICUM ANNUM AND ABELMOSCHUS ESCULENTUSFRANCIS KWAKU NKANSAH, NANA AGYEIWAA AMPOFO, GODFRED SAFO-ADU AND STEPHEN TWUMASI ANNANAbstract
Vegetables are highly recommended in human diets due to the fiber and health benefits they present. Thus, contamination from any source particularly from tailing dams impounded with heavy metals raises public health concerns. The levels of heavy metals (As, Cd, Pb, Cu, and Fe) in Abelmoschus esculentus (okra) and Capsicum annuum (pepper) grown in the Asutifi District around a mining concession were investigated to determine their levels in soil samples, the fruits, stem, and roots cultivated in four farms using AAS. The mean differences in the level of metals in the fruits, roots, stems, and the sampled soils were separated using Tukeyâs B multiple comparison test (p<0.05). The levels of Cd, Pb, Cu, and Fe in the fruits of vegetables from the farms were within the recommended FAO/WHO standards (mg/kg) except for As. The order of increase in levels of the heavy metals in the fruits of vegetables from all farms was: F4Ca |