Abstract: One hundred and twenty one dust samples were collected from the rural households in eight provinces of China to measure the lead (Pb) concentration, speciation, and bio-availability. The mean Pb concentration in the household dusts was 207.5 mg·kg^-1. Among the eight provinces, Hunan and Yunnan had higher Pb concentration in their rural household dusts (537.8 and 280.1 mg·kg^-1, respectively), while Shaanxi and Fujian had a relatively lower one (96.0 and 80.1 mg·kg^-1, respectively). In the household dusts, Pb was mainly associated with Fe-Mn oxides (36.8%), followed by in residual form (17.7%), and associated with carbonate (16.7%). The exchangeable form (14.3%) and organic/sulphide form (14.4%) were relatively low. The bio-availability of Pb in the household dusts was 52.8%, and significantly correlated with Fe-Mn oxide Pb, suggesting the important contribution of Fe-Mn oxide Pb to the bio-available Pb.

Key words: Contaminated soil, Phytoremediation, Rhizosphere, Heavy metal, Ecosystem