Determination of Elemental Composition of Soils Collected near Waste Incineration Plants in Moscow Using Neutron Activation Analysis

The incineration of municipal solid waste is an important source of environmental pollution with heavy metals. In present study the elemental composition of soil samples collected near two main waste incinerators in Moscow was determined. The content of 38 elements (Mg, Al, Si, Ca, Ti, V, Mn, Dy, Fe, K, Na, Sc, Cr, Co, Ni, Zn, As, Br, Rb, Sr, Zr, Mo, Sb, Cs, Ba, La, Ce, Nd, Sm, Eu, Tb, Yb, Hf, Ta, W, Au, Th, and U) was determined using neutron activation analysis. To assess the level of soil pollution, the values of the geoaccumulation index, contamination factor and pollution load index were calculated. The contaminated factor values indicate slight soil contamination with Zn, As, Br, Sb, Hf, Hg, and W and moderate soil contamination with Sb. Pollution load index values above 1.0 indicate moderate pollution of the studied soils.