Missimer, T.M., C.M. Teaf, W.T. Beeson, R.G. Maliva, J. Woolschlager, and D.J. Covert.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 15(10):2278(2018)

Florida geologic units and soils contain a wide range of concentrations of naturally occurring arsenic. The average range of bulk rock concentrations is 1-13.1 mg/kg, with concentrations in accessory minerals >1000 mg/kg. Florida soils contain natural As concentrations that can exceed 10 mg/kg in some circumstances, with organic-rich soils often having the highest concentrations. Anthropogenic sources of As have added about 610,000 metric tons of As into the Florida environment since 1970, thereby increasing background concentrations in soils. Anthropogenic sources of As in soils include pesticides, fertilizers, chromated copper arsenate-treated wood, soil amendments, cattle-dipping vats, chicken litter, sludges from water treatment plants, and others. The default soil cleanup target level in Florida for As in residential soils is 2.1 mg/kg, which is below some naturally occurring background concentrations in soils and anthropogenic concentrations in agricultural soils. A review of risk considerations shows that adverse health impacts associated with As exposure are dependent on many factors and that the Florida cleanup levels are very conservative. This paper is Open Access at https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/15/10/2278/htm.