Environmental Pollution 245 (2019) 363e370

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Environmental Pollution
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/envpol

Spatial distribution of lead contamination in soil and equipment dust

at children's playgrounds in Beijing, China*
Tianyue Peng a, 1, David O'Connor a, 1, Bin Zhao a, Yuanliang Jin a, Yunhui Zhang b, Li Tian c,
Na Zheng d, Xiaoping Li e, Deyi Hou a, *
a
School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China
b
Department of Engineering, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 1PZ, United Kingdom
c
School of Architecture, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China
d
Northeast Institute of Geography and Agroecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun, 130102, China
e
Department of Environment Science and Engineering, Shaanxi Normal University, Xian, 710062, China

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Lead contamination is widespread across China, posing a serious public health concern. In quantifying
Received 30 June 2018 child lead exposure, established health risk assessment (HRA) approaches often take into account resi-
Received in revised form dential soil lead levels. However, this may not constitute a significant exposure source for children in
3 November 2018
urban mainland China, where the population mainly dwell in high-rise buildings without back or front
Accepted 3 November 2018
yards. In this setting, children's playgrounds may represent a more probable exposure source. The
Available online 12 November 2018
present study analyzed lead levels in settled dust on playground equipment and in surficial soils at 71
playgrounds in Beijing, China. Our results reveal that the average playground dust lead concentration was
Keywords:
Lead
80.5 mg/kg, more than twice the average soil lead concentration of 36.2 mg/kg. It was found that there
Dust are differences in statistical and spatial distributions for lead in playground dust and soils. Lead levels in
Community children's playground equipment dust were largely consistent across Beijing, with elevated levels detected at locations in the
Blood lead levels main city area, the newly developed Tongzhou District, and the rural counties. Whereas average soil lead
concentrations were higher at playgrounds in the main city area than other areas of Beijing. Statistical
analysis suggests that the lead content in dust and soil may derive from different natural and anthro-
pogenic sources. Equipment dust lead may be associated with long-distance atmospheric transportation
and deposition. Whereas lead in soil is more likely to be associated with local traffic. This study also
found that, in certain areas of Beijing, the risk of blood lead levels (BLLs) exceeding safe levels was up to 6
times higher when based on dust exposure than when based on playground soil exposure. The results of
this study suggests that HRA undertaken for children in urban mainland China should pay closer
attention to children's playgrounds as a lead exposure source, and, in particular, playground equipment
dust.
© 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction
The World Health Organization (WHO) has listed lead (Pb) as
one of the 10 chemicals of highest public health concern. Lead
exposure is identified as the cause of hundreds of thousands of
deaths, and millions of disability-adjusted life years (DALYs), each
year (WHO, 2017), being associated with health risks such as kidney
*
This paper has been recommended for acceptance by Joerg Rinklebe
* Corresponding author.
1
E-mail address: houdeyi@tsinghua.edu.cn (D. Hou).
These authors contributed equally to this work.
and skeletal/bone diseases (O'Connor and Hou, 2018; Shen et al.,
2018b). Moreover, childhood exposure to lead can impair neuro-
behavioral development and cause irreversible IQ loss (Gilbert and
Weiss, 2006). Studies have associated increases in child blood lead
level (BLL) of 10 mg/dL with 2e6 IQ point reduction (Canfield et al.,
2003; Committee on Environmental Health, 2005).
Soil lead pollution is serious in China. A national soil quality
survey revealed that 1.5% of China's soil (an area of ~94,500 km2)
exceeded the then environmental quality standards for lead
(Ministry of Environmental Protection, 2014). The soil lead guide-
line values in China were as follows: 1) Class I: 35 mg/kg for natural
background; 2) Class II: 250 mg/kg (for pH < 6.5), 300 mg/kg (for

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2018.11.011
0269-7491/© 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
364 T. Peng et al. / Environmental Pollution 245 (2019) 363e370
pH ¼ 6.5e7.5), and 350 mg/kg (pH > 7.5) for food safety and human
health; and 3) 500 mg/kg for forest and plant growth. It should be
noted that environmental quality standards for soil in China
currently being updated. In general, lead contamination in south-
ern China is more acute than northern regions (Chen et al., 2015).
Duan et al. (2016) used soil pollution data to create ‘cornerstone
maps’ that illustrate the distribution and concentrations of lead and
other heavy metals in surficial soils across the nation. They revealed
that lead levels at 443 out of 2489 sampling sites were 80 mg/kg.
The spatial distribution of heavy metals in soil can be attributed
to either geogenic or anthropogenic sources (Hou et al., 2017a). The
distribution of naturally occurring heavy metals is highly hetero-
geneous and significantly elevated concentrations can exist in
certain types of soil. Although lead is ubiquitous in natural soils, it
has become a greater public health concern due to historic
anthropogenic sources such as gasoline, batteries, urban runoff, and
aerial deposition (Romic and Romic, 2003; Zhang, 2006).
To mitigate the lead exposure risk, governments and interna-
tional organizations have taken many initiatives, including prohi-
bition of leaded gasoline and the ongoing phase-out of lead-based
paint (O'Connor et al., 2018a; United Nations Environment
Programme, 2013). Moreover, in response to social and environ-
mental pressure associated with soil pollution, the Chinese gov-
ernment have released the Soil Pollution Prevention and Control
Action Plan (hereafter the ‘Action Plan’) (Hou and Li, 2017). The
Action Plan is designed to curb soil pollution and clean-up
contaminated sites (People's Daily, 2016). As part of the Action
Plan, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE) and
numerous provincial and local governments, are currently carrying
out a detailed national scale soil pollution survey. Whilst these
ongoing efforts are critical for revealing the level and extent of soil
pollution in China, they have focused on industrial sites and agri-
cultural land, overlooking unique exposure sites such as children's
playgrounds. Moreover, such sites may be relevant for health risk
assessment (HRA) and risk management in urban China, due to the
characteristic of its residential environment.
In the US, where traditional HRA was first developed, the pop-
ulation typically dwell in single family households or townhouses
(Hou et al., 2018b). Such dwellings usually have back and/or front
yards, where exposure to lead in soil is probable due to children's
hand-to-mouth behavior (Lanphear and Roghmann, 1997). As
children are the most vulnerable population, risk based soil
screening levels and remediation targets will often derive from this
exposure scenario (USEPA, 2015). In contrast, the population in
China's urban areas mainly dwell in high rise buildings. Children's
outdoor activities will often occur in community playgrounds,
rather than the backyards or gardens assumed by USEPA's exposure
model or the UK's CLEA model (Environmental Agency, 2009; Hou
et al., 2017b). Given the difference in China's urban design, it is
important to elucidate the factors that may affect lead exposure at
playgrounds in Chinese cities.
Published studies on lead risk at playgrounds are limited,
especially for mainland China. The available literature is listed in
Table 1. Playgrounds represent a potentially hazardous environ-
ment for children because of their potential interaction with lead
contamination (Taylor et al., 2013). In general, lead exposure at
playgrounds is linked to either (1) settled dust on playground
apparatus, or (2) lead in soil. In Hong Kong, Wong and Mak (1997)
measured lead as well as Cd, Cu, and Zn concentrations in soil and
equipment dust at seven playgrounds. They found that lead in soil
and dust was elevated (averages of 195 and 302 mg/kg, respec-
tively), with the lead concentration significantly correlated to traffic
volume. A later study in Hong Kong determined the average ground
dust lead concentration at 89 playgrounds to be much lower at
77.3 mg/kg (Ng et al., 2003), which was likely due to the ban on
leaded gasoline introduced in 1999 (Environmental Protection
Department, 1999). A French study found the leachability of lead
on playground equipment to be higher than in soil (Glorennec et al.,
2012). Studies in Spain discovered that playground soils contained
very low lead concentrations; attributed to the periodic replace-
ment of the playground sand surface (De Miguel et al., 2007).
Studies of lead in playground soil and dust in mining and smelting
cities have also been carried out in Australia (Taylor, 2015). A
greater range of lead in settled dust (176e6000 mg/m2) was found
than in playground soils (128e1443 mg/kg) (Table 1).
The present study aims to assess lead levels in playground soil
and accumulated dust on playground equipment (i.e. the apparatus
used by children for play) across Beijing, China. Instead of evalu-
ating the lead pollution level against a generic soil environmental
quality standard, this study focused on the potential health risk to
children from their playground activities. The city of Beijing was
selected because it is one of China's largest metropolitan areas,
representing a Chinese urban environment and life style. A total of
71 playgrounds were selected to provide a good spatial coverage.
Playgrounds in Beijing tend to be located adjacent to residential
dwellings, and are freely open to the local community or visitors. In
urban/suburban areas, community playgrounds are usually sur-
rounded by high-rise buildings within housing compounds/com-
plexes. In the rural areas of Beijing, dwellings are mainly formed of
apartment buildings of one to three floors, surrounded by farmland.
Community playgrounds tend to be located among dwellings
(Figure S1).
2. Materials and methods
2.1. Study area
Beijing is an area of 164,100 km2 with a population of 21.73
million people (Beijing Municipal Bureau of Statistics, 2017). It is
situated in a continental monsoon climate zone, and consists of two
types of geographical landscape, with ~38% being plane area, and
~62% being mountainous (Beijing Weather, 2013). Residential and
commercial properties are mainly located in the central urban area;
while agricultural and industrial areas are mainly located in the
suburban or rural areas. For the present study, Beijing was divided
into a 25  40 km sampling grid (Fig. 1). The main city of Beijing
(the six central districts) and Tongzhou district (a district which has
been recently developed as a new political and economic zone),
were further divided into a 5  6 km and 8  10 km sampling grids,
respectively. The playground sites chosen for lead sampling were
located as close to the center of each grid as practicably possible.
2.2. Sampling
Soil and dust samples were obtained from 71 playgrounds in
AprileMay 2017. Soil was obtained from the top 10 cm of ground
surfaces at accessible locations without hard standing or vegeta-
tion cover (i.e. bare soil), using a wooden spade rinsed with DI
water before use. Sub-samples were collected from five locations
at each site, which were combined to form a ~1 kg aggregate soil
sample for each playground. Where bare soil was found at play-
ground center, the layout of sample locations was based on an “X-
shape” soil sampling method (also known as a “plum-blossom-
layout”). At sites that were covered in center, the sampling points
were evenly distributed around the boundary of the playground
(Fig. S2).
Dust samples were swept from the surfaces of playground
equipment using a brand new paint brush at each site. Before use,
the brushes were rinsed with DI water and air-dried. From each
playground, 2e5 g of dust was collected. Samples were mostly
 T. Peng et al. / Environmental Pollution 245 (2019) 363e370 365

Table 1
Lead concentration in children's playgrounds.

City Year Sampling location N Average (mg/kg) References

Soil
Hong Kong, China 1997 Top 5 cm soil 7 195 Wong and Mak (1997)
Madrid, Spain 2007 Top 1e2 cm surface 80 30 De Miguel et al. (2007)
Athens, Greece 2010 Top 5 cm soil 70 110 Massas et al. (2010)
New Orleans, USA 2011 Top 2.5 cm soil, before intervention 50 (558)1 Mielke et al. (2011)
New Orleans, USA 2011 Top 2.5 cm soil, after intervention 30 (4.1)1 Mielke et al. (2011)
Port Pirie, Australia 2011 Top 2 cm soil 26 1440 Taylor et al. (2013)
France 2012 Top 2 cm soil 315 271 Glorennec et al. (2012)
Broken Hill, Australia 2013 Top 2 cm soil 14 987 Taylor et al. (2014)
Townsville, Australia 2014 Top 2 cm soil 15 128 Taylor (2015)
Port Harcourt, Nigeria 2017 Top 15 cm soil 10 7.1 Joy and Uchenna (2017)
Beijing, China 2018 Top 10 cm soil 71 36.2 This study

Dust
London, UK 1985 Equipment surface 78 2400 Duggan et al. (1985)
Hong Kong, China 1997 Equipment surface 7 302 Wong and Mak (1997)
Hong Kong, China 2002 Ground surface 89 77.3 Ng et al. (2003)
Port Pirie, Australia 2011 Equipment surface 72 32803 (mg/m2) Taylor et al. (2013)
France 2012 Ground surface 53 321 Glorennec et al. (2012)
Broken Hill, Australia 2013 Equipment surface 30 60003 (mg/m2) Taylor et al. (2014)
Port Pirie, Australia 2013 Equipment surface (4)2 8213 (mg/m2) Taylor et al. (2015)
Townsville, Australia 2014 Equipment surface 30 1763 (mg/m2) Taylor (2015)
Beijing, China 2018 Equipment surface 71 80.5 This study

Note: 1median instead of average is reported; 2

number of playgrounds instead of sample size; 3
average value calculated by authors with original published data.

2.3. Heavy metal measurement

Soil and dust samples were oven-dried at 60  C until constant

mass was achieved, sieved (2 mm), and homogenized. The samples
were then microwave digested in accordance with USPEA Method
3051A (USEPA, 2007). The concentrations of As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Mn, Ni,
Pb, and Sb in the digestion solutions were quantified by Inductively
Coupled Plasma - Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) (XSERIES 2, Ther-
moFisher, USA), and the concentrations calculated by mass balance.
The analysis and quality assurance/quality control (QA/QC) was in
accordance with USEPA Method 6020A: Inductively Coupled
Plasma e Mass Spectrometry (USEPA, 1998).

2.4. Correlation analysis and principal component analysis

Statistical analysis of the data was performed using the software

package ‘SPSS Statistics’ (IBM, USA). This included Pearson product-
moment correlation analysis (Pearson correlation analysis), which
estimates the linear dependence between two variables. The
analysis rendered correlation coefficients ranging from 1 to 1,
where 1 indicates a perfect negative linear relationship, 0 in-
dicates no correlation, and 1 indicates perfect positive linear rela-
tionship. Factor analysis was conducted using the principle
component analysis (PCA) method with varimax rotation to iden-
tify latent factors. The PCA approach identifies latent constructs and
extracts common factors from observed items by assuming these
common factors cause manifest variables to co-vary (Hou et al.,
2014).

Fig. 1. Playground sampling locations.

2.5. Risk assessment

For non-carcinogenic toxic substances, a reference dose (RfD)

collected from equipment joints and corners. The samples
comprised of a composite of at least ten subsamples collected from
different collection points on the playground equipment.
The coordinates of each playground were recorded using a
handheld GPS (Juno SC, Trimble, USA). Other pertinent information,
such as the distance to surrounding factories, highways, or other
potential contamination sources, were also recorded.
value is used to estimate the daily oral exposure that is likely to
result in an appreciable risk of deleterious effects during a human
lifetime. For carcinogenic substances, a chronic oral slope factor
(CSF) is used to estimate the probability of an individual developing
cancer from oral exposure to contaminant levels over a lifetime.
However, there is no consensus among risk assessors whether a RfD
or CSF should be applied for lead (USEPA, 2015). The USEPA have
developed two BLL predictive models: the Integrated Exposure
366 T. Peng et al. / Environmental Pollution 245 (2019) 363e370
Uptake Biokinetic (IEUBK) model that estimates risk for children
aged 1e7 (USEPA, 1994), and the Adult Lead Methodology (ALM)
(USEPA, 2009); the present study used the IEUBK model, which
derives the probability of BLL exceeding an acceptable level. Where
applicable, local parameter values were inputted to the model,
based on established literature (Table S1).
3. Results and discussion
3.1. Lead concentrations in soil and dust
A summary of the lead analysis results for the soil and dust
samples from Beijing playgrounds are presented in Table S2. Lead
levels ranged from 7.80-326 mg/kg for soils, and 9.55e270 mg/kg
for dust samples, for which the distributions are illustrated in Fig. 2.
The average lead concentration in equipment dust was found to be
more than twice that of soil, being 80.5 mg/kg and 36.2 mg/kg,
respectively. The distribution of lead levels in soil was found to be
much narrower than for equipment dust, with a lower standard
deviation and higher kurtosis value (the ‘peakedness’ of the dis-
tribution) (Table S2).
As shown in Table 1, soil lead levels at Beijing's playgrounds are
comparable to those reported in Spain and France (De Miguel et al.,
2007; Glorennec et al., 2012), and much lower than those previ-
ously reported at playgrounds in Hong Kong (1997) and in New
Orleans, USA (2011) (Mielke et al., 2011; Wong and Mak, 1997). The
dust lead concentrations discovered at Beijing playgrounds are
relatively low compared with levels reported for other cities
(Table 1). They are comparable to those reported in a 2003 Hong
Kong survey, but much lower than the levels reported in a 1997
study conducted before Hong Kong's ban on leaded gasoline
(Environmental Protection Department, 1999). Based on studies of
housing surface dust, lead levels in dust may be correlated with the
textures of the surfaces on which they settle, with smooth home
surfaces, such as smooth floors, tending to have lower lead levels
than rougher ones such as rough wooden floors (Farfel and Chisolm
Jr, 1990), and friction/impact surfaces of leaded paint coated win-
dow frames having higher lead levels (Dixon et al., 2007). It is
reasonable to assume that dust on various types of playground
equipment surfaces will have different levels of lead; however, an
assessment of this factor is beyond the scope of the present study.
Fig. 2. Histogram of lead concentrations in (a) soil, and (b) dust.
3.2. Geographical distribution of lead in soil and dust
The spatial distribution of soil and dust lead levels across Beijing
are illustrated in Fig. 3. The study classified Beijing city into three
zones: (1) the main city, which accounts for ~8% of the area, and
~58% of the population; (2) Tongzhou district, a newly developed
district, which accounts for ~6% of the area and ~7% of the popu-
lation; and (3) rural counties, accounting for ~86% of the area and
~36% of the population (Beijing Municipal Bureau of Statistics,
2017). The greatest playground soil lead concentrations were
found in the main city area (Fig. 3a), with an average concentration
of 44.2 mg/kg (Fig. 4), where intensive anthropogenic activities
have occurred for many decades. Lead levels were much lower in
Tongzhou district and rural Beijing, which were 25.5 and 23.6 mg/
kg, respectively. The playground dust lead concentrations displayed
a different spatial pattern to soil (Fig. 3b). Relatively high average
lead concentrations were discovered across Beijing; being not only
observed in the main city area (average ¼ 85.1 mg/kg), but also
Tongzhou district (74.6 mg/kg) and rural counties (73.1 mg/kg). The
study found only a weak correlation between dust and soil con-
centrations at the playgrounds (R2 ¼ -0.15). This finding is in
contrast with the study by Wong and Mak (1997), who found a
strong correlation between dust and soil lead at playgrounds in
Hong Kong.
The differences observed in the spatial distributions and con-
centrations of soil and dust levels, may be due to lead deriving from
different sources. Because elevated dust lead concentrations were
found consistently across both urban and rural areas of Beijing, i.e.
there are no spatial clusters of high or low concentrations (Fig. 3b),
dust lead is likely associated with widespread atmospheric depo-
sition (e.g. deriving from potential sources such as energy pro-
duction and waste incineration (Pacyna et al., 2009)). On the other
hand, elevated soil concentrations at certain locations may suggest
local sources have caused lead contamination e.g. traffic. This
subject is discussed further in the sections below.
3.3. Potential determinants
Six potential determinants were explored: (1) vegetation cover,
(2) distance to the nearest road, (3) distance to the nearest con-
struction site, (4) distance to the nearest factory, (5) distance to the
 T. Peng et al. / Environmental Pollution 245 (2019) 363e370
Fig. 3. Map of lead concentrations (mg/kg) in playground soil (a) and instrument dust (b) in Beijing.
Fig. 4. Playground soil and instrument dust Pb (mg/kg) in main city, Tongzhou district
and rural counties in Beijing.
nearest highway, and (6) distance to the nearest railroad.
Soil lead concentrations tended to be higher at playgrounds
located in regions that have greater vegetation cover (Table S3).
This relationship may be due vegetative cover reducing local wind
speed (Li et al., 2007), and so affecting the amount of surface soil
that is blown away from a site (i.e. allowing lead to accumulate in
surface soils). However, this effect was not established nor quan-
tified by the present study. It was also discovered that playgrounds
in Beijing near roads, construction sites, highways, and railroads
generally had lower soil lead concentrations than those further
away (Table S3). Though it should be noted that due to playground
locations, relatively few sites were sampled near roads, construc-
tion sites, highways, and railroads.
An interesting finding is that a statistically significant negative
correlation between soil lead and the distance to construction sites
was found for the Tongzhou district (p ¼ 0.026) (Table S4). Because
367
Tongzhou district is a newly developed, with many on-going major
demolition and construction activities, it is possible that deterio-
rated lead-based paint or newly used industrial lead-based paint
has spread to soils in playgrounds by accidental release or carry-
over. However, a causal effect cannot be established by the present
study.
For playground equipment dust, the relationship for several
potential determining factors were the opposite to those found for
playground soil, with higher concentrations at areas of lower
vegetation cover and sites closer to roads and construction site
locations. For the other factors, higher dust lead concentrations
were found at sites further away from factories, highways, and
railroads. However, it should be noted that apart from a significant
positive correlation with distance to the nearest highway in the
rural counties (p ¼ 0.022), the Pearson correlation analysis showed
no other statistically significant correlations for lead dust
(Table S4).
3.4. Principal component analysis results
The results of the principal component analysis (PCA) for As, Cd,
Cr, Cu, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Sb are shown in Table 2. Two principal
components were extracted for each set of data. For the soil data,
the two principal components accounted for 60.5% of total variance
for the eight variables examined, with the Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin
(KMO) measurement of sampling adequacy being 0.65. The first
principal factor in soil data was associated with Cr, Ni, Mn, and As.
Based on existing literature, this factor may be attributed to soil
parent materials of lithogenic origin (Ali et al., 2016; Facchinelli
et al., 2001; Zhou et al., 2016). The second principal factor in soil
data was associated with Cu and Pb. This factor may be attributed to
anthropogenic sources such as traffic, because Cu pollution can
originate from brake discs and engine wear, and lead pollution may
derive from gasoline or batteries (Hou et al., 2017a).
For the dust data, the two principal components accounted for
60.9% of the total variation (KMO ¼ 0.84). The first principal
component was associated with Sb, Cu, Mn, As, Cd, and Pb, which
368 T. Peng et al. / Environmental Pollution 245 (2019) 363e370

Table 2 roads) than other areas (i.e. within the 4th and 5th ring roads)
Factor analysis of heavy metal concentrations in soil and dust. (Wang et al., 2007). Several studies published between 2004 and
Heavy Soil Factor 1: Soil Factor Dust Factor 1: Dust Factor 2: lithogenic 2016 have reported street dust lead concentrations in the range of
metal lithogenic 2: traffic atmospheric origin or industrial 50e70 mg/kg (Han et al., 2016; Li et al., 2010; Liu and Cen, 2007;
origin sources deposition activities Tang et al., 2013; Xiang et al., 2010). A recent study reported much
Cr 0.72 0.49 0.10 0.86 higher concentrations (147 mg/kg) (Xiong et al., 2017). To put the
Sb 0.24 0.03 0.78 0.25 playground dust lead levels into context, the average concentration
Ni 0.92 0.20 0.14 0.82
reported in this study is slightly higher than historical averages for
Cu 0.24 0.80 0.52 0.46
Mn 0.89 0.15 0.59 0.39 non-playground dusts in Beijing.
As 0.83 0.20 0.83 0.03
Cd 0.20 0.13 0.80 0.03 3.6. Health risk assessment results and policy implications
Pb 0.04 0.92 0.55 0.38
a
Loadings stronger than ± 0.5 are in bold type. Blood lead is the most widely used biomarker for lead exposure
(Rabinowitz et al., 1976). Average probabilities for exceeding safe
BLLs (5 mg/dL), as estimated by the IEUBK model, were found to be
may be attributed to widespread atmospheric deposition of sus- 0.47% and 1.96% for playground soil and equipment dust ingestion,
pended particles originating from anthropogenic sources, such as respectively (maximum probabilities of 33.6% and 24.4%, respec-
energy production or waste incineration, and thus incorporating a tively) (Fig. 6). As Fig. 6 shows, the highest risk was found for
wide variety of heavy metals (Section 3.2). The second principal children using playgrounds located within the Beijing main city
component was associated with Cr and Ni, which may be attributed area. In general, the risk deriving from exposure to equipment dust
to lithogenic origin (Hou et al., 2017a) or associated with industrial is a greater than from soil, with the dust risk being approximately 3,
activities such as metal plating, which is linked with both Ni and Cr 5, and 6 times greater than the soil risk in the main city, Tongzhou
pollution (Lin et al., 1992). district, and rural counties, respectively. This finding suggests that
A PCA was also conducted for both soil and dust heavy metal the use of playground soil data alone in HRA may significantly
concentrations. Two principal components were extracted which underestimate lead exposure risk.
accounted for 45.9% of the total variance of the 16 variables High levels of lead in soil and dust may require risk mitigation/
(KMO ¼ 0.67). As Fig. 5 shows, the dust heavy metal concentrations remediation measures. Dust Pb levels can be lowered by wiping off
were clustered on the first factor, while the soil heavy metal con- the equipment on a regular basis. There are a number of approaches
centrations were mostly clustered on the second factor. This sug- that may be effective in dealing with soil lead contamination,
gests that the dust and soil lead may have different origins. The including soil washing (Song et al., 2018), solidification/stabiliza-
statistical data for heavy metal concentrations can be found in tion (O'Connor et al., 2018b; Shen et al., 2018a; Shen et al., 2018c;
Table S5. Wang et al., 2018), and phytoremediation (Hou et al., 2018a; Zhao
et al., 2018). Limited excavation and replacement with clean fill
3.5. Comparison with other (street) dusts in Beijing may effectively reduce the risk at playgrounds (Mielke et al., 2011).
Paint chips detached from playground equipment are also a
Table 3 lists lead concentrations reported for non-playground concern. In a study conducted in Tokyo, Japan, paint chips at five
street/road dusts in Beijing. In 2015, 5.6 million vehicles were parks were tested. It was found that lead concentration in surficial
owned by Beijing's residents, with combustion engine vehicles soils ranged from 15.2 to 237 mg/kg, with higher lead concentra-
accounting for ~31.1% of total PM2.5 (Zhang et al., 2018). Moreover, tions found in soil near painted equipment (Takaoka et al., 2006).
traffic levels in Beijing have been reported to be related to lead Further studies are necessary to investigate the spatial distribution
levels in street dust. Dust lead concentrations are generally higher of lead and effective mitigation measures at playgrounds. The risk
in areas with greater traffic activity (i.e. within the 2nd and 3rd ring perception and adaptation behavior of local residents also needs to
be studied (Liu et al., 2018).

4. Conclusion

Surficial soil and equipment surface dust samples were collected

Fig. 5. Principal component analysis results: loading plot for both soil and dust heavy
metal concentrations.
from 71 playgrounds in Beijing, China. It was found that the
equipment dust contained higher lead concentrations than the soil,
suggesting that current HRA methods may underestimate child
lead exposure risk in urban china. It was also found that playground
lead soil concentrations in the main city area were much higher
than those in the newly developed Tongzhou District and rural
counties. The dust concentrations were more consistent across
Beijing, with relatively high lead concentrations observed at some
playgrounds in the main city area, Tongzhou district and rural
counties.
Correlation analysis and multivariate statistical analysis showed
that a strong correlation was not established between the soil/dust
lead concentrations, or the distance to the nearest road, construc-
tion site, factory, or railroad. Although lower soil Pb concentrations
were found at locations further away from roads, constructions
sites, highways and railways, the sample size near these potential
determinants was too small to establish relationships. However,
PCA indicated that soil Pb and Cu are significantly loaded onto the
 T. Peng et al. / Environmental Pollution 245 (2019) 363e370 369

Table 3
Dust lead concentrations (three significant figures) in the main city of Beijing.

Sampling Year Type N Max Min Median Average Source

2002e2004 road dust within the 2nd ring road 36 49.9 Wang et al. (2007)
2002e2004 road dust within the 3rd ring road 34 41.4 Wang et al. (2007)
2002e2004 road dust within the 4th ring road 16 33.5 Wang et al. (2007)
2002e2004 road dust within the 5th ring road 26 29.1 Wang et al. (2007)
<2003 road dust in parks 12 181 28.8 57.4 65.7 Han et al. (2004)
2005 (Spring) road dust 62 54.0 Liu and Cen. (2007)
2007 (Winter) street dust 12 135 27.0 69.6 Xiang et al. (2010)
2008 dust 30 56.5 59.0 Li et al. (2010)
2009 (Autumn) street dust 220 256 11.6 40.1 50.4 Tang et al. (2013)
2010 (Spring) street dust 92 359 16.7 69.7 Han et al. (2016)
2013 (Winter) street dust 49 500 40.3 110 147 Xiong et al. (2017)
2016 (Summer) road dust 36 261 22.4 50.3 60.9 Men et al. (2018)
2017 (Spring) playground dust 42 211 9.55 77.2 85.1 this study

Fig. 6. Probability of children's blood lead level (BLL) > 5 mg/dL.

same principal component, suggesting lead concentrations may be References

attributed to traffic related activities, because Cu pollution can
originate from vehicle wear, and lead pollution may derive from
vehicle emissions or batteries. PCA of dust heavy metal concen-
trations revealed that Sb, Cu, Mn, As, Cd, and Pb are loaded onto the
same principal component, which is attributed to atmospheric
deposition originating from anthropogenic sources. Cr and Ni were
significantly loaded onto a second principal component, which is
attributed to lithogenic origin or metal plating activities.
The present study demonstrates that lead in playground soil and
dust in Beijing displayed different concentration levels, different
statistical attributes, and different spatial distribution patterns.
Given the potential importance of child lead exposure at play-
grounds in urban China, it is important to further study the dis-
tribution patterns and underlying factors.
Acknowledgments
This work was supported by China’s National Water Pollution
Control and Treatment Science and Technology Major Project
(Grant No. 2018ZX07109-003), the Thousand Talents Program of
the Chinese government and Tsinghua University.
Appendix A. Supplementary data
Supplementary data to this article can be found online at
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2018.11.011.
Ali, M.H., Mustafa, A.-R.A., El-Sheikh, A.A., 2016. Geochemistry and spatial distri-
bution of selected heavy metals in surface soil of Sohag, Egypt: a multivariate
statistical and GIS approach. Environ Earth Sci 75, 1257.
Beijing Municipal Bureau of Statistics, 2017. Yearbook of Beijing Statistical Data.
Beijing Municipal Bureau of Statistics, Beijing, PR China.
Beijing Weather, 2013. Beijing's Geography and Flood Season.
Canfield, R.L., Henderson Jr., C.R., Cory-Slechta, D.A., Cox, C., Jusko, T.A.,
Lanphear, B.P., 2003. Intellectual impairment in children with blood lead con-
centrations below 10 mg per deciliter. N. Engl. J. Med. 348, 1517e1526.
Chen, H., Teng, Y., Lu, S., Wang, Y., Wang, J., 2015. Contamination features and health
risk of soil heavy metals in China. Sci. Total Environ. 512, 143e153.
Committee on Environmental Health, 2005. Lead exposure in children: prevention,
detection, and management. Pediatrics 116, 1036e1046.
De Miguel, E., Iribarren, I., Chacon, E., Ordonez, A., Charlesworth, S., 2007. Risk-
based evaluation of the exposure of children to trace elements in playgrounds
in Madrid (Spain). Chemosphere 66, 505e513.
Dixon, S., Wilson, J., Galke, W., 2007. Friction and impact surfaces: are they lead-
based paint hazards? J. Occup. Environ. Hyg. 4, 855e863.
Duan, Q., Lee, J., Liu, Y., Chen, H., Hu, H., 2016. Distribution of heavy metal pollution
in surface soil samples in China: a graphical review. Bull. Environ. Contam.
Toxicol. 97, 303e309.
Duggan, M.J., Inskip, M.J., Rundle, S.A., Moorcroft, J.S., 1985. Lead in playground dust
and on the hands of schoolchildren. Sci. Total Environ. 44, 65e79.
Environmental Agency, 2009. Updated Technical Background Document to the CLEA
Model. Science Report e SC050021/SR3 (UK).
Environmental Protection Department, 1999. Ban on Leaded Petrol Gazetted, Hong
Kong.
Facchinelli, A., Sacchi, E., Mallen, L., 2001. Multivariate statistical and GIS-based
approach to identify heavy metal sources in soils. Environ. Pollut. 114, 313e324.
Farfel, M.R., Chisolm Jr., J.J., 1990. Health and environmental outcomes of traditional
and modified practices for abatement of residential lead-based paint. Am. J.
Pulic. Health 80, 1240e1245.
Gilbert, S.G., Weiss, B., 2006. A rationale for lowering the blood lead action level
from 10 to 2mg/dL. Neurotoxicology 27, 693e701.
Glorennec, P., Lucas, J.-P., Mandin, C., Le Bot, B., 2012. French children's exposure to
370 T. Peng et al. / Environmental Pollution 245 (2019) 363e370
metals via ingestion of indoor dust, outdoor playground dust and soil:
contamination data. Environ. Int. 45, 129e134.
Han, D., Cen, K., Gong, Q., 2004. Cu, Pb, Zn contents in road dusts in parks and their
pollution assessment in Beijing (in Chinese). Research of Environmental Sci-
ences 19, 10e21.
Han, L., Gao, B., Wei, X., Xu, D., Gao, L., 2016. Spatial distribution, health risk
assessment, and isotopic composition of lead contamination of street dusts in
different functional areas of Beijing, China. Environ. Sci. Pollut. Res. Int. 23,
3247e3255.
Hou, D., Al-Tabbaa, A., Chen, H., Mamic, I., 2014. Factor analysis and structural
equation modeling of sustainable behaviour in contaminated land remediation.
J. Clean. Prod. 84, 439e449.
Hou, D., Ding, Z., Li, G., Wu, L., Hu, P., Guo, G., Wang, X., Ma, Y., O'Connor, D.,
Wang, X., 2018a. A sustainability assessment framework for agricultural land
remediation in China. Land Degrad. Dev. 29, 1005e1018.
Hou, D., Li, F., 2017. Complexities surrounding China's soil action plan. Land Degrad.
Dev. 28, 2315e2320.
Hou, D., O'Connor, D., Nathanail, P., Tian, L., Ma, Y., 2017a. Integrated GIS and
multivariate statistical analysis for regional scale assessment of heavy metal soil
contamination: a critical review. Environ. Pollut. 231, 1188e1200.
Hou, D., Qi, S., Zhao, B., Rigby, M., O'Connor, D., 2017b. Incorporating life cycle
assessment with health risk assessment to select the ‘greenest’cleanup level for
Pb contaminated soil. J. Clean. Prod. 162, 1157e1168.
Hou, D., Song, Y., Zhang, J., Hou, M., O'Connor, D., Harclerode, M., 2018b. Climate
change mitigation potential of contaminated land redevelopment: a city-level
assessment method. J. Clean. Prod. 171, 1396e1406.
Joy, O., Uchenna, A., 2017. Accumulation and risk assessment of heavy metal con-
tents in school playgrounds in Port Harcourt Metropolis, Rivers State, Nigeria.
J. Chem. Health Saf. 24, 11e22.
Lanphear, B.P., Roghmann, K.J., 1997. Pathways of lead exposure in urban children.
Environ. Res. 74, 67e73.
Li, J., Okin, G.S., Alvarez, L., Epstein, H., 2007. Quantitative effects of vegetation cover
on wind erosion and soil nutrient loss in a desert grassland of southern New
Mexico, USA. Biogeochemistry 85, 317e332.
Li, X., Chen, T., Lei, M., Xie, Y., Zhou, G., Song, B., 2010. Concentrations and risk of
heavy metals in surface soil and dust in urban squares and school campus in
Beijing (in Chinese). Geogr. Res. 29, 990e996.
Lin, K.-L., Hsu, C.-J., Hsu, I.-M., Chang, J.-T., 1992. Electroplating of Ni-Cr on steel with
pulse plating. J. Mater. Eng. Perform. 1, 359e361.
Liu, C., Cen, K., 2007. Chemical composition and possible sources of elements in
street dusts in Beijing (in Chinese). Acta Sci. Circumstantiae 27, 1181e1188.
Liu, K., Huisingh, D., Zhu, J., Ma, Y., O'Connor, D., Hou, D., 2018. Farmers' perceptions
and adaptation behaviours concerning land degradation: a theoretical frame-
work and a case-study in the QinghaieTibetan Plateau of China. Land Degrad.
Dev. 29, 2460e2471.
Massas, I., Ehaliotis, C., Kalivas, D., Panagopoulou, G., 2010. Concentrations and
availability indicators of soil heavy metals; the case of children's playgrounds in
the city of athens (Greece). Water, Air, Soil Pollut. 212, 51e63.
Men, C., Liu, R., Xu, F., Wang, Q., Guo, L., Shen, Z., 2018. Pollution characteristics, risk
assessment, and source apportionment of heavy metals in road dust in Beijing,
China. Sci. Total Environ. 612, 138e147.
Mielke, H.W., Covington, T.P., Mielke Jr., P.W., Wolman, F.J., Powell, E.T.,
Gonzales, C.R., 2011. Soil intervention as a strategy for lead exposure preven-
tion: the New Orleans lead-safe childcare playground project. Environ. Pollut.
159, 2071e2077.
Ministry of Environmental Protection, 2014. National Soil Contamination Survey
Report. Ministry of Environmental Protection, Beijing, China.
Ng, S.L., Chan, L.S., Lam, K.C., Chan, W.K., 2003. Heavy metal contents and magnetic
properties of playground dust in Hong Kong. Environ. Monit. Assess. 89,
221e232.
O'Connor, D., Hou, D., 2018. Targeting cleanups towards a more sustainable future.
Environ. Sci.-Proc. Imp. 20, 266e269.
O'Connor, D., Hou, D., Ye, J., Zhang, Y., Ok, Y.S., Song, Y., Coulon, F., Peng, T., Tian, L.,
2018a. Lead-based paint remains a major public health concern: a critical re-
view of global production, trade, use, exposure, health risk, and implications.
Environ. Int. 121, 85e101.
O'Connor, D., Peng, T., Zhang, J., Tsang, D.C., Alessi, D.S., Shen, Z., Bolan, N.S., Hou, D.,
2018b. Biochar application for the remediation of heavy metal polluted land: a
review of in situ field trials. Sci. Total Environ. 619, 815e826.
Pacyna, J.M., Pacyna, E.G., Aas, W., 2009. Changes of emissions and atmospheric
deposition of mercury, lead, and cadmium. Atmos. Environ. 43, 117e127.
People's Daily, 2016. "Soil Ten" Propose to Curb Deteriorating Soil Pollution by 2020,
2016) [in Chinese].
Rabinowitz, M.B., Wetherill, G.W., Kopple, J.D., 1976. Kinetic analysis of lead
metabolism in healthy humans. J. Clin. Invest. 58, 260.
Romic, M., Romic, D., 2003. Heavy metals distribution in agricultural topsoils in
urban area. Environ. Geol. 43, 795e805.
Shen, Z., Hou, D., Xu, W., Zhang, J., Jin, F., Zhao, B., Pan, S., Peng, T., Alessi, D.S., 2018a.
Assessing long-term stability of cadmium and lead in a soil washing residue
amended with MgO-based binders using quantitative accelerated ageing. Sci.
Total Environ. 643, 1571e1578.
Shen, Z., Hou, D., Zhang, P., Wang, Y., Zhang, Y., Shi, P., O'Connor, D., 2018b. Lead-
based paint in children's toys sold on China's major online shopping platforms.
Environ. Pollut. 241, 311e318.
Shen, Z., Hou, D., Zhao, B., Xu, W., Ok, Y.S., Bolan, N.S., Alessi, D.S., 2018c. Stability of
heavy metals in soil washing residue with and without biochar addition under
accelerated ageing. Sci. Total Environ. 619, 185e193.
Song, Y., Hou, D., Zhang, J., O'Connor, D., Li, G., Gu, Q., Li, S., Liu, P., 2018. Environ-
mental and socio-economic sustainability appraisal of contaminated land
remediation strategies: a case study at a mega-site in China. Sci. Total Environ.
610, 391e401.
Takaoka, M., Yoshinaga, J., Tanaka, A., 2006. Influence of paint chips on lead con-
centration in the soil of public playgrounds in Tokyo. J. Environ. Monit. 8,
393e398.
Tang, R., Ma, K., Zhang, Y., Mao, Q., 2013. The spatial characteristics and pollution
levels of metals in urban street dust of Beijing, China. Appl. Geochem. 35,
88e98.
Taylor, M.P., 2015. Atmospherically deposited trace metals from bulk mineral
concentrate port operations. Sci. Total Environ. 515e516, 143e152.
Taylor, M.P., Camenzuli, D., Kristensen, L.J., Forbes, M., Zahran, S., 2013. Environ-
mental lead exposure risks associated with children's outdoor playgrounds.
Environ. Pollut. 178, 447e454.
Taylor, M.P., Mould, S.A., Kristensen, L.J., Rouillon, M., 2014. Environmental arsenic,
cadmium and lead dust emissions from metal mine operations: implications for
environmental management, monitoring and human health. Environ. Res. 135,
296e303.
Taylor, M.P., Zahran, S., Kristensen, L., Rouillon, M., 2015. Evaluating the efficacy of
playground washing to reduce environmental metal exposures. Environ. Pollut.
202, 112e119.
United Nations Environment Programme, 2013. Global Alliance to Eliminate Lead
Paint: Business Plan.
USEPA, 1994. Guidance Manual for the Ieubk Model for Lead in Children, Wash-
ington, DC.
USEPA, 1998. Inductively Coupled Plasma - Mass Spectrometry, Washington, DC.
USEPA, 2007. Microwave Assisted Acid Digestion of Sediments, Sludges, Soils and
Oils. Method 3051A, Washington, DC.
USEPA, 2009. Update of the Adult Lead Methodology's Default Baseline Blood Level
Concentration and Geometric Standard Deviation Parameters, Washington, DC.
USEPA, 2015. Regional Screening Table User's Guide.
Wang, J., Zhu, R.-h., Shi, Y.-z., 2007. Distribution of platinum group elements in road
dust in the Beijing metropolitan area, China. J. Environ. Sci. 19, 29e34.
Wang, L., Yu, K., Li, J.-S., Tsang, D.C., Poon, C.S., Yoo, J.-C., Baek, K., Ding, S., Hou, D.,
Dai, J.-G., 2018. Low-carbon and low-alkalinity stabilization/solidification of
high-Pb contaminated soil. Chem. Eng. J. 351, 418e427.
WHO, 2017. Lead Poisoning and Health.
Wong, J.W.C., Mak, N.K., 1997. Heavy metal pollution in children playgrounds in
Hong Kong and its health implications. Environ. Technol. 18, 109e115.
Xiang, L., Li, Y., Shi, H., Liu, J., 2010. Investigation of heavy metal and polycyclic
aromatic hydrocarbons contamination in street dusts in urban Beijing. Environ.
Sci. 31, 159e167.
Xiong, Q., Zhao, W., Zhao, J., Zhao, W., Jiang, L., 2017. Concentration levels, pollution
characteristics and potential ecological risk of dust heavy metals in the
metropolitan area of Beijing, China. Int. J. Environ. Res. Publ. Health 14.
Zhang, C., 2006. Using multivariate analyses and GIS to identify pollutants and their
spatial patterns in urban soils in Galway, Ireland. Environ. Pollut. 142, 501e511.
Zhang, X., Bai, X., Zhong, H., 2018. Electric vehicle adoption in license plate-
controlled big cities: evidence from Beijing. J. Clean. Prod. 202, 191e196.
Zhao, B., O'Connor, D., Zhang, J., Peng, T., Shen, Z., Tsang, D.C.W., Hou, D., 2018. Effect
of pyrolysis temperature, heating rate, and residence time on rapeseed stem
derived biochar. J. Clean. Prod. 174, 977e987.
Zhou, J., Feng, K., Pei, Z., Meng, F., Sun, J., 2016. Multivariate analysis combined with
GIS to source identification of heavy metals in soils around an abandoned in-
dustrial area, Eastern China. Ecotoxicology 25, 380e388.