Evaluation of water resources of some satellite towns in the central part of Anambra State, SE, Nigeria
- PDF / 1,199,235 Bytes
- 8 Pages / 595.276 x 790.866 pts Page_size
- 21 Downloads / 137 Views
(2020) 6:102
ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Evaluation of water resources of some satellite towns in the central part of Anambra State, SE, Nigeria C. M. Okolo1 · B. E. B. Akudinobi1 · I. I. Obiadi1 Received: 23 June 2020 / Accepted: 12 October 2020 © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
Abstract Water, an integral part of human life should regularly be assessed to ensure the desired quantity and quality. No aspect of the living organism and industrialisation can be sustained without water. The satellite towns of Ebenebe, Ugbene, Urum, Isuaniocha and Mgbakwu are located very close to Awka the capital of Anambra State, SE, Nigeria. This study is geared toward assessing the suitability of the water sources in these towns for domestic, agricultural and industrial uses. Fifteen water samples were collected from both surface water and groundwater sources. The samples were subjected to chemical and microbial analyses. The result of chemical analysis indicates that the water sources are slightly acidic. The major ions are within the WHO desirable limit. There is, however, enrichment of heavy metals such as mercury, chromium, cadmium, and iron. These heavy metals have serious negative health implications. The biological analysis result indicates the presence of the coliform group of bacteria and the presence of fecal coliform. These denote the presence of biological pollution. The WQI values depict water that ranged from unsuitable to excellent. Also, the Heavy Metal Pollution Index indicates water that range from very poor to very good. The results obtained show that some of the water sources are polluted. Also, the %Na status is from good to excellent and SAR suggests water that is excellent for agriculture. Calcium and sulphate are the dominant ions. The major water types are C a2+–Mg2+–Cl−–SO42− and Ca2+–Mg2+–HCO3− suggesting water that has undergone mixing. In 93.3% of the samples, the alkaline earths exceed the alkalis while strong acids exceed weak acids in 73.3% of the samples. The chloro-alkaline indices were positive indicating reverseion exchange. Hence, the dominant hydrochemical process is reverse ion exchange. Keywords Surface water · Groundwater · Water quality · Pollution · Nigeria
Introduction One of the problems facing new settlements is inadequate water supply to sustain both life and industrial developments in such areas. Anambra State, SE Nigeria has no presence of municipal public water system. Hence, domestic and industrial water supply depends on private boreholes and surface water. The study area was until recently rural and majorly surviving on agriculture and with the absence of industries. The congestion in Awka the capital of Anambra State resulted in a shift and expansion of the urban area into the satellite areas. Expansion usually results in migration which in turn leads to population growth, commercialisation,
industrialization and other infrastructural developments. All these affect the quantity and quality of water required for sustenance. In view of all these, there is need for evaluation of b
Data Loading...
