Impact of Seasonal Variations and Oil Activities on the Total Concentrations, Geochemical Fractions, And Human Health Problems of Trace Metals in Soils Within the Oil-Bearing Communities of South-South Region of Nigeria (Published)
The impacts of oil activities and seasonal variations on the total concentrations, geochemical fractions, and human health problems of trace metals in soils within oil-bearing communities of Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria were examined. Top soils were obtained from Eket, Onna, Esit Eket, and Ibeno local government areas between January and December, 2017. Samples were also collected from Etinan local government area of the State and used as the Control. The samples and Control were subjected to standard analytical procedures and analysed for their physicochemical properties and total metal concentrations. The modified BCR methods were employed for the speciation of metals. The findings revealed that the pH levels were higher during the dry season while, the electrical conductivity, organic matter, and cation exchange capacity of the studied soils were higher in the rainy season. The total mean concentrations of Pb, As, Cd, Cr, Fe, and V were higher in the dry season whereas, Ni was higher in the wet season. Though, their concentrations were within the acceptable limits. Generally, the concentrations of all the parameters in the studied soils were higher than at the control site. Pb, As, Ni, and V existed predominantly in the reducible fraction, Cd and Cr in acid extractable while, Fe existed mostly in the residual fraction in the studied soils. However, at the control site all the metals except Cd existed mainly in the residual fraction. The study showed that all the studied locations were highly contaminated with these metals and substantial seasonal variations were also recorded for the pollution indices. It was also noted that, seasonal changes and oil activities were the key factors affecting the quality of the studied soils. Daily intake rates for the metals through exposure to soil for both the young and old populations were within their required oral reference doses. The non-carcinogenic risks recorded for both populations were less than one. However, both populations were exposed to high Pb and the younger ones were more susceptible. The study revealed the influence of seasonal change and oil activities on the mobility and toxicity of metals in the studied soils.
Citation: Ebong G.A., Moses E. A., Akpabio O. A., and Inam I (2022) Impact of Seasonal Variations and Oil Activities on the Total Concentrations, Geochemical Fractions, And Human Health Problems of Trace Metals in Soils Within the Oil-Bearing Communities of South-South Region of Nigeria, British Journal of Environmental Sciences, Vol.10, No.6, pp.,29-65
Keywords: Multivariate Analysis, Nigeria, Trace Metals, human health risks, metal speciation, oil-bearing communities, soil pollution
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
Groundwater Quality Mapping In Ikot Abasi Using Geographic Information System (GIS) (Published)
In this work, the GIS Software Quantum 1.7.0 was used to analyse and create groundwater contoured maps for Ikot Abasi. Five groundwater samples were collected and analysed for some physical parameters (pH, temperature, turbidity, conductivity, total dissolved solids) and trace metals (aluminum, zinc, manganese, chlorine, copper). The physical properties were measured directly using HQ40D multi-parameter, while the trace metals were determined using atomic emission spectroscopy. The water parameters of concern were aluminum and manganese because they had marked departure from the WHO standard. The aluminum values in the area ranged from 0.2 mg/l to 0.4 mg/l, with an average value of 0.34 mg/l which is above the WHO limit of 0.2 mg/l. The manganese values in the area ranged from 2.13 mg/l to 2.18 mg/l, with an average value of 2.16 mg/l which is above the WHO limit of 0.1 mg/l. Treatment measures should be considered to reduce the concentration of these metals.
Keywords: Groundwater, Trace Metals, WHO, ikot abasi
Groundwater Quality Mapping in Ikot Abasi Using Geographic Information System (GIS) (Published)
In this work, the GIS Software Quantum 1.7.0 was used to analyse and create groundwater contoured maps for Ikot Abasi. Five groundwater samples were collected and analysed for some physical parameters (pH, temperature, turbidity, conductivity, total dissolved solids) and trace metals (aluminum, zinc, manganese, chlorine, copper). The physical properties were measured directly using HQ40D multi-parameter, while the trace metals were determined using atomic emission spectroscopy. The water parameters of concern were aluminum and manganese because they had marked departure from the WHO standard. The aluminum values in the area ranged from 0.2 mg/l to 0.4 mg/l, with an average value of 0.34 mg/l which is above the WHO limit of 0.2 mg/l. The manganese values in the area ranged from 2.13 mg/l to 2.18 mg/l, with an average value of 2.16 mg/l which is above the WHO limit of 0.1 mg/l. Treatment measures should be considered to reduce the concentration of these metals.
Keywords: Groundwater, Trace Metals, WHO, ikot abasi
Assessment of Heavy Metals in Ground Water Sources in Agona District in the Central Region of Ghana. (Published)
This study was done to determine the concentration of trace metals in groundwaters in the Agona East district of the Central region of Ghana. Ground water samples were collected from 3 hand dug wells and 15 boreholes in the study area. All samples were analyzed for seven trace metals (Zn, Cu, Cr, Mn, Fe, Cd, Al) using Atomic Absorption spectrophotometer (AAS). The concentrations of the trace metals from the various areas range from 0.824 to 0.1.122 mg/L for Cu; 0.116 to 0.312 mg/L for Zn; <0.002 to 0.364 mg/L for Cr; <0.006 to 0.065 mg/L for Mn; 0.156 to 1.236 mg/L for Fe; <0.002 to 0.028 mg/L for Cd and 1.44 to 3.188 mg/L for Al. Four of the trace metals (Cu, Zn, Mn, and Cd) had their concentrations within the WHO standards for drinking water. Aluminium, Iron and chromium had their values above the WHO limits at most of the sampling sites.
Keywords: Atomic Absorption spectrophotometer (AAS), Concentration, Groundwater, Toxicity, Trace Metals
Assessment of Heavy Metals in Ground Water Sources in Agona District in the Central Region of Ghana (Published)
This study was done to determine the concentration of trace metals in groundwaters in the Agona East district of the Central region of Ghana. Ground water samples were collected from 3 hand dug wells and 15 boreholes in the study area. All samples were analyzed for seven trace metals (Zn, Cu, Cr, Mn, Fe, Cd, Al) using Atomic Absorption spectrophotometer (AAS). The concentrations of the trace metals from the various areas range from 0.824 to 0.1.122 mg/L for Cu; 0.116 to 0.312 mg/L for Zn; <0.002 to 0.364 mg/L for Cr; <0.006 to 0.065 mg/L for Mn; 0.156 to 1.236 mg/L for Fe; <0.002 to 0.028 mg/L for Cd and 1.44 to 3.188 mg/L for Al. Four of the trace metals (Cu, Zn, Mn, and Cd) had their concentrations within the WHO standards for drinking water. Aluminium, Iron and chromium had their values above the WHO limits at most of the sampling sites.
Keywords: Atomic Absorption spectrophotometer (AAS), Concentration, Groundwater, Toxicity, Trace Metals
Proximate and Elemental Analysis of Some Nigerian Coal Deposits (Published)
Studies were carried out on the proximate and elemental contents of coal deposits in three Nigerian States (Enugu, Benue and Delta) employing standard laboratory procedures and instrumentation. The fixed carbon and ash contents of Benue and Enugu coal samples deposits were found higher than Delta coal deposits. Heavy metals like arsenic, lead and cadmium were present at higher concentrations in Delta coal sample deposits than in the other coal sample deposits studied. Trace mineral contents of Enugu coal deposits were found to be higher than others implying that it is of higher economic value.
Keywords: Coal Deposits., Heavy Metals, Trace Metals