• Journal of agricultural medicine and community health
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• v.42 no.1
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• pp.13-23
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• 2017

Objectives: This study was conducted to evaluate a relationship between the blood concentrations of toxic metals and the blood pressure in people living near the copper smelter. Methods: The study included 570 adults living within 4km of the smelter. We compared systolic and diastolic blood pressure between tertiary groups for blood cadmium, mercury and lead levels, respectively. Multiple regression analysis was performed to identify risk factors affecting systolic and diastolic blood pressures. Results: In male subjects, there is a significant difference in the mean of systolic and diastolic blood pressure between tertiary groups of blood cadmium and mercury levels, but in women, there was no significant difference in the mean systolic and diastolic blood pressures in all tertiary groups of heavy metals. The results of multiple regression analysis showed that age, BMI, and cadmium concentration in men were risk factors for blood pressure. In women, age and BMI, drinking and smoking, and blood mercury were significantly influenced to blood pressure. Conclusions: Residents living near the Janghang smelter showed high concentrations of blood lead and cadmium, suggesting that they were exposed to high concentrations of heavy metals released from the smelter in the past. Such exposure may have caused some blood pressure increase. Especially, the concentration of cadmium in the case of men and the concentration of mercury in blood in the case of women were found to be significantly related to the increase of blood pressure. The local population should be advised to make efforts to reduce exposure to environmental contaminants, in order to minimize cardiovascular disease, and to pay close attention to any health problems possibly related to toxic metal exposure.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.1-9
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• 1994

To investigate differences in Cu contents in paddy soils and rices, being affected by air pollutants from the Janghang Smelter, soil samples at the different directions and surface (0-15cm) and subsurface (15-30cm) were collected in 1982 and 1990, and rice plants at the soil corresponding sampling sites in 1990 were also at separately collected from the Janghang Smelter area. Soil samples were extracted with $4M-HNO_3$ and plant samples were digested with a mixture of $HNO_3$ and $HClO_4$ for analyzing Cu, Zn, Cd and Pb by atomic absorption spectrophotometry. The Cu contents in soils ranged from 5.1 to 391.0 mg $kg^{-1}$. The average content of Cu in 1990 was higher than that in 1982. The Cu content in soils nearer to the center of the smelter was higher than that farther from the center. The Cu content was highest at the east direction, and was in order of east > north-north east = north east > north. The variation of Cu levels in soil at east sites was more considerable than other directions. The Cu level in surface soils was higher than that in subsurface soils. The Cu contaminated area was within 5 km at east, and 3 km at north-north east and north east. A significant correlation was found between Cu content in surface soils of 1982 and that in surface and subsurface soils of 1990, and between Cu content in soils and soil properties such as organic matter(OM), available phosphate, available silicate, exchangeable $Ca^{++}$ and $Na^+$ in 1982. The Cu content in brown rice ranged from 0.4 to 3.6 mg $kg^{-1}$, and was the lowest in parts of rice plant, and Cu content in a part of plant was 13.75 times higher than that in brown rice. The Cu content of leaf sheath, stem and brown rice was correlated with the levels of Cd, Zn, Cu and Pb in soils. The Cu content in soil regardless of years and soil depths was correlated with Zn and Pb in soil in the area affected by waste gas.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.48 no.4
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• pp.236-243
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• 2022

Background: In the case of multiple exposures to different types of heavy metals, such as the conditions faced by residents living near a smelter, it would be preferable to group hazardous substances with similar characteristics rather than individually related substances and evaluate the effects of each group on the human body. Objectives: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the utility of factor analysis in the assessment of health effects caused by exposure to two or more hazardous substances with similar characteristics, such as in the case of residents living near a smelter. Methods: Heavy metal concentration data for 572 people living in the vicinity of the Janghang smelter area were grouped based on several subfactors according to their characteristics using factor analysis. Using these factor scores as an independent variable, multiple regression analysis was performed on health effect markers. Results: Through factor analysis, three subfactors were extracted. Factor 1 contained copper and zinc in serum and revealed a common characteristic of the enzyme co-factor in the human body. Factor 2 involved urinary cadmium and arsenic, which are harmful metals related to kidney damage. Factor 3 encompassed blood mercury and lead, which are classified as related to cardiovascular disease. As a result of multiple linear regression analysis, it was found that using the factor index derived through factor analysis as an independent variable is more advantageous in assessing the relevance to health effects than when analyzing the two heavy metals by including them in a single regression model. Conclusions: The results of this study suggest that regression analysis linked with factor analysis is a good alternative in that it can simultaneously identify the effects of heavy metals with similar properties while overcoming multicollinearity that may occur in environmental epidemiologic studies on exposure to various types of heavy metals.

• Korean Journal of Plant Resources
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.68-74
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• 2013

This study was conducted to analyse the effectiveness of shading on growth and arsenic absorption of Pteris multifida, known as hyperaccumulator of arsenic, from paddy soils contaminated with heavy metals. Study was carried out in paddy soil polluted by arsenic near the former Janghang smelter. P. multifuda in the same growth stage was planted with $20{\times}20cm$ intervals in each experimental plot ($2{\times}2m$), and cultivated for 24 weeks. The growth of P. multifuda according to shading conditions was evaluated, the accumulated amount of arsenic in plants and arsenic variation in the soil was analyzed using ICP. In the result of this study, the growth of P. multifida cultivated under shading treatment was vigorous than non-shading. Accumulated amount of arsenic in aerial parts of P. multifida cultivated under non-shading ($169.8mg{\cdot}kg^{-1}$) was slightly higher than shading ($140.9mg{\cdot}kg^{-1}$), and those in underground part were almost the same. But the growth was great in 70% shading treatment. Therefore, arsenic contents absorbed from soils was much higher in shading treatment. Arsenic translocation rate (TR) of P. multifida was very high (0.87~0.89) regardless of shading conditions. So arsenic in soil could be efficiently eliminated by removal of aerial parts.

• Journal of the Korean Regional Science Association
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• v.37 no.4
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• pp.61-74
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• 2021

The objective of this study was to evaluate the community's capacity and hindrance factors affecting the community's activities by exploring the process of restoring the community's environmental pollution. This study examined the community activities related to the restoration of pollution that occurred at the former Janghang smelter in Seocheon-gun. The results of this study showed that leaders, cooperative resources, and the media were elements positively influencing the recovery of the community. The starting point that became the driving force for community activities was the presence of a leader who had a small stake in it. Moreover, it required cooperation such as the continuous interest of local active groups and residents to continue this effort. Above all, the media publicized the incident and amplified the activities of members. Meanwhile, there were various conflicts hindering the activities of local communities in the process of restoring the pollution such as the internal conflicts of community groups, conflicts between residents and active groups, and conflicts with the government. The behaviors that appeared in the process of restoring the pollution revealed a form of united governance. Moreover, they changed from an initial "supportive" character to "resistant" and "defensive" activities. Later, it was transformed into "subjective" and "creative" activities.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.45-51
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• 2014

In accordance with the view on remediated soil as a resource, this study assessed the applicability of soil washing with the neutral phosphate for remediation of arsenic (As)-contaminated soil. Three soil samples of different land uses (i.e., rice paddy, upland field and forest land) were collected from the study site, and the aqua regia-extractable As concentrations were 59.2, 30.8 and 53.1 mg/kg, respectively. Among the neutral phosphate reagents, ammonium phosphate showed the highest As washing efficiency. The optimized washing condition was 2-hr washing with 0.5M ammonium phosphate solution (pH 6) and soil to liquid ratio of 1 : 5. The extraction efficiencies of As did not guarantee the residual soil As concentrations to satisfy the Korea soil regulatory level (i.e., Worrisome level) in the three soil samples. To enhance washing efficiency, the As-contaminated soil was submerged in washing solution (1 : 1, w/v) for 24 hr and 1-hr washing with 0.5M ammonium phosphate solution was tested. As extraction efficiencies of 36.1 (rice paddy), 21.4 (upland field) and 26.4% (forest land) were attained, which satisfied the Worrisome level for Region 1 (25 mg/kg of As) in rice paddy, but not in upland field and forest land.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.1-10
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• 1996

The contents of heavy metals in soil near the Janghang smelter area were observed to understand present status and relationship between their fraction and the absorption by rice. The soil samples were taken from the eight sites of the paddy fields in 1982 and 1990, and analysis on heavy metals including Cd, Zn, Cu and Pb was performed. The results were as follows: Total contents of heavy metals in the samples of 1990 were higher than those of 1982. The order of increasing ratio was Cu > Zn > Pb > Cd and the variation of Cd content by sequential differente extracting was residual > exchangeable > dilute acid-extractable fractions and its increasing range was from 38 to 71% during nine years. The ratio of immobile heavy metals bound within an oxide or silicate matrix of Fe-Mn oxide bound and residual in surface soil was that Cd, Pb, Cu and Zn were 31.65, 42.22, 76.57 and 79.49%, respectively, and their mobile ratios of exchangeable, dilute acid-extractable and organically bound were more than 20.28%. Those of mobile Cd, Pb, Cu and Zn were 68.35, 55.78, 23.43 and 20.28%, respectively. Correlation between the heavy metal contents in surface soil and those in tissue of rice plant, such as leaf blade, leaf sheath, stem and panicle axis, were significant, but were not significant in subsurface soil. The dilute acid-extractable and organically bound fractions of Cd, Cu, Pb and Zn in surface soil were more significantly correlated with those in tissues of paddy rice.