Heavy Metal Contamination of Topsoil along National Highways

Increasing population, rapid urbanization & technological invention have made the roads & highways of the most developed & developing countries overcrowded with large number of vehicles. As a result, although social life is improving, but at the same time, negative impacts are also introduced to our ecology & environment. Now-a-days, increasing number of vehicles on roads, especially on the highways generates different types of environmental problems which will become a big challenge for our civilization in near future. Contamination of soil & ground water with heavy metals is one of the man-made problems. An attempt has been made through a study for the characterization of heavy metals in soil along the NH-12 in Kota, India. The samples were collected & analyzed for various characteristics like heavy metals Lead (Pb), Manganese (Mn), Cadmium (Cd), Zinc (Zn) and Iron (Fe). The results show that concentration levels of heavy metals as a result of vehicular emissions has reached to an alarming level at the moment. The heavy metal concentration is higher near the roadside soil & gradually decreases as the distance increases. We hope this book will be a useful asset for all concerned.