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Comparison of domestic and international soil environmental standards for arsenic
Received:December 22, 2023  
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KeyWord:soil;arsenic contamination;environmental quality standard;risk assessment
Author NameAffiliationE-mail
GE Zixuan College of Environment Science and Engineering, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225127, China
State Key Laboratory of Soil and Sustainable Agriculture, Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China 
 
WU Tongliang State Key Laboratory of Soil and Sustainable Agriculture, Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China tlwu@issas.ac.cn 
WANG Xia State Key Laboratory of Soil and Sustainable Agriculture, Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China  
HUANG Yihang State Key Laboratory of Soil and Sustainable Agriculture, Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China
College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Central South University of Forestry and Technology, Changsha 410004, China 
 
ZHU Linfang State Key Laboratory of Soil and Sustainable Agriculture, Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China
University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China 
 
WANG Xiaozhi College of Environment Science and Engineering, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225127, China xzwang@yzu.edu.cn 
WANG Yujun State Key Laboratory of Soil and Sustainable Agriculture, Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China
University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China 
 
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Abstract:
      In addition to posing a significant risk to human health, elevated arsenic concentrations in soil increase the potential for groundwater contamination and threaten the quality of agricultural products and health of terrestrial ecosystems. This study clarifies the derivation methods and implementation of soil environmental standards for arsenic from four perspectives:terrestrial ecotoxicological effects, risk of accumulation and exposure in animals and plants, human health risks, and risk of soil-groundwater migration. Furthermore, this paper examines and compiles a comprehensive set of 139 arsenic soil environmental criteria values from 19 nations and 2 international organizations across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Africa for various land uses, including agricultural land, residential land, and industrial(including commercial)land, providing a comprehensive global perspective on arsenic standards for different types of soils. The results showed:there were large differences in arsenic soil standard values set across countries and regions. Compared with international standards, China's screening value of 20-40 mg·kg-1 for farmland in the“Soil Environmental Quality Risk Control Standard for Soil Contamination of Agricultural Land”was at the international average level, whereas the screening and control values of 60 mg·kg-1 and 140 mg·kg-1, respectively, for the second type of land in“Soil Environmental Quality Risk Control Standard for Soil Contamination of Development Land”were stricter than in foreign standards. For the three types of land use investigated, arsenic soil standard values set by different countries and regions were stricter for farmland and residential land uses. The main reasons for the differences in arsenic soil environmental standard values set by different countries and regions were the differences in protection targets, toxicity parameter values, exposure scenarios and pathways, and exposure parameters and models. This study is expected to provide a reference for revising and formulating arsenic soil environmental standard values for different land uses in China. Meanwhile, this article also proposes targeted recommendations and directions for development with regard to the current situation and issues associated with arsenic soil environmental standards in China.