Metals in exposed-lawn soils from 18 urban parks and its human health implications in southern China's largest city, Guangzhou

The total concentrations, fractionation of metals and human health risk in surface-exposed lawn soils from 18 urban parks in Guangzhou were investigated. Cd was predominantly associated with the acid-soluble fraction and Pb mainly with the reducible fraction, whereas Cr, Ni, Cu, and Zn were strongly associated with the residual fraction. The hazard indices for the metals were <1, indicating that exposure to the urban park soil does not pose significant risks of non-carcinogenic effects from the metals analyzed. The probabilities of Cd, Cr, and Ni posing carcinogenic risks to children and adults were negligible (probability <1 × 10−6).