Seasonal Assessment of some Trace Metals and Physico-chemical Variables from Poultry Farms Surface Soils in Osun State, Southwestern Nigeria (Published)
This study was conducted to assess the seasonal variations of arsenic, cadmium, copper, iron, lead and zinc and some physico-chemical variables of surface soils sampled from some poultry farms. This was with the view to evaluating the ecological impact of these agricultural farms on the farmlands within their vicinity. The physico-chemical variables were determined using standard methods, while metal concentrations were done with Flame Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer following wet acid digestion. Quality control procedures included blank determination, recovery analysis and calibration of standards. Descriptive and inferential statistics were adopted for data interpretations. The concentration of metals (µg/g) gave the ranges: 87.51-1276.75 As, 0.03-2.03 Cd, 12.91-42.97 Cu, 59.07-699.47 Fe, 6.13-82.96 Pb and 23.74-202.27 Zn, with a variation pattern in sequence: As ˃ Fe ˃ Zn ˃ Pb ˃ Cu ˃ Cd in both seasons. Major spatial differences in concentrations were observed for all physico-chemical variables in every part of the sampling locations. With the exception of Arsenic, the degree of pollution varied with, by values that were far below the maximum tolerable limits specified by Food and Agriculture Organisation and World Health Organisation for agricultural soils
Keywords: Osun State, Surface soil, Trace Metals, physico-chemical variables, poultry farms