TOXICOLOGICAL PROFILE FOR CHROMIUM - Davidborowski.com

CHROMIUM 3125. POTENTIAL FOR HUMAN EXPOSUREis greater from inhalation exposure than from ingestion or dermal exposure. The bioavailability ofchromium from soil depends upon several factors (Witmer et al. 1989). Factors that may increase themobility of chromium in soils include the speculated conversion of chromium(III) to chromium(VI),increases in pH, and the complexation of chromium(III) with organic matter from water-solublecomplexes. Data on the bioavailability of chromium compounds from actual environmental media andthe difference in bioavailability for different media need further development.Food Chain Bioaccumulation. Chromium does not bioconcentrate in fish (EPA 1980, 1984a;Fishbein 1981; Schmidt and Andren 1984). There is no indication of biomagnification of chromiumalong the aquatic food chain (Cary 1982). Some data indicate that chromium has a low mobility fortranslocation from roots to above-ground parts of plants (Cary 1982; WHO 1988). However, more dataregarding the transfer ratio of chromium from soil to plants and biomagnification in terrestrial food chainswould be desirable.Exposure Levels in Environmental Media. The atmospheric total chromium concentration in theUnited States is typically