Ecological Risk Assessment of Heavy Metals in the Soil at reclaimed solid waste landfill

Abstract Environmental pollution with heavy metals is a problem for most developing or emerging countries. The study investigated the concentrations of arsenic (As), nickel (Ni), chromium (Cr), nickel (Ni), zinc (Zn), cobalt (Co), copper (Cu), and lead (Pb) in 10 samples of reclaimed soil for environmental risk assessment and spatial distribution following The Municipal Solid Waste Depot in Central Northern Bulgaria. According to Bulgarian legislation, the measured average concentrations of arsenic are below the maximum permissible concentration. Using the obtained heavy metal data, pollution indices such as geoaccumulation index (Igeo), pollution factor (CF), ecological risk factor (Er), pollution degree (Cdeg), and pollution index (PLI) were calculated and the results obtained categorized the site as uncontaminated. This suggests that the studied area is well-reclaimed and does not pose an ecological risk. The findings presented in this work support data on heavy metal contamination and risk assessment in Bulgaria. This research may have benefits for trace heavy metal pollution prevention and future monitoring studies of the region.