Environmental health survey for children residing near mining areas in South Gobi, Mongolia

Background We evaluated the level and factors of heavy metal exposure to children residing in the Togttsetsii, Khanbogd, and Bayandalai soums of South Gobi province, Mongolia. Methods A total of 118 children aged 9–12 years were surveyed, and the level of heavy metal exposure in their bodies was investigated. Exposure was investigated by measuring concentrations of heavy metals such as cadmium, lead, and mercury in the blood; mercury concentration in the hair; and total arsenic in the urine. Results Blood cadmium concentration had geometric averages of 0.16 µg/L in the children from Bayandalai, 0.15 µg/L Tsogttsetsii, and 0.16 µg/L Khanbogd. Blood lead concentration showed a relatively higher geometric average of 7.42 µg/dL in the children from Bayandalai compared to 4.78 µg/dL and 5.15 µg/dL in those from Tsogttsetsii and Khanbogd, respectively. While blood mercury concentration was the highest in the children from Bayandalai, with a value of 0.38 µg/L, those from Tsogttsetsii and Khanbogd had similar concentrations of 0.29 µg/L and 0.29 µg/L, respectively. Hair mercury concentration was the highest in the children from Bayandalai, with a value of 78 µg/g, a particularly significant difference, with a concentration of 0.50 µg/g in those from Khanbogd. Urine arsenic concentration was the highest in the children from Khanbogd, with a value of 36.93 µg/L; it was 26.11 µg/L in those from Bayandalai and 23.89 µg/L in those from Tsogttsetsii. Conclusions The high blood lead concentration of children in Bayandalai was judged to be due to other factors in addition to mine exposure; the reason why blood and hair mercury concentration was higher in children from Bayandalai may have been due to exposure to many small-scale gold mines in the area. In the case of Khanbogd, it was estimated that the high arsenic level in urine was caused by the effect of mines.