Rivers Wouri and Meme feed the Wouri and Rio del Rey mangroves of Cameroon, respectively. This study examined the physicochemical properties of soils that were collected around the vicinity of these rivers. This was to ascertain the former's role in controlling the movement of chemical entities into these rivers and nutrient quality. Twenty-one surface soil samples were collected (0-20 cm depth) within the vicinity of both rivers and analyzed for their physicochemical properties using standard methods. All the soils were slightly acidic, probably dominated by kaolinitic clay minerals and sesquioxides. The mean ECEC (4.31 cmol/kg) of soils around River Wouri was higher than that (2.94 cmol/kg) of soils around River Meme. The average clay content of 11% in soils around River Meme was more than that (4%) in soils around River Wouri, suggesting that the higher ECEC of soils from Wouri could be contributed by organic matter and soil moisture content. The latter had a significant positive correlation (r = 0.82, p<0.05) with organic matter and clay, respectively, in soils from Wouri. There was also a significant difference (p< 0.01) in Mg (with higher levels in D soils) and in Na (with higher levels in M soils). There was yet other significant differences (p< 0.05) in sand (with higher values in M soils) and in clay (with higher contents in M soils). This again could be an indication that the mineralogical content of the soils could be different. The soils around both rivers have low major nutrients though more depleted around River Wouri and are vulnerable to increases in anthropogenic activities, such as farming practices, industrial and municipal waste disposal. A more stringent legislation about environmental management, as well as studies about the mineralogical composition of soils is recommended.
Urban and pri-urban agriculture contributes significantly to food security, however it is often endangered by improperly managed wastes. This study investigated the levels, trace sources, and predicted the retention of heavy metals in urban and peri-urban agricultural wetland soils in the Bamenda municipality, Cameroon. Four heavy metals (chromium, manganese, lead and cadmium) were analyzed in 21 randomly collected top soil samples by Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometry. The average concentrations of heavy metals in soil were (35.73 mg/kg) for chromium, (0.08 mg/kg) for manganese, (30.64 mg/kg) for lead and (0.45 mg/kg) for cadmium. The concentrations were generally lower than the maximum WHO permissible levels. The metals had varied origins with significant negative (P < 0.01) correlation relationships between Cr and Mn (r =-0.889, P<0.01), Pb and Cd (r =-0.455, P<0.05). Two principal component factors explained 84.99 percent of reasons of the existence of metals in the area, while a hierarchical dendrogram yielded three clusters representing a typical rural environment, peri-urban and urban centers, respectively with varying human activities. Multiple linear regression analyses revealed that Pb retention is controlled by pH water, OM and the clay content with an adjusted R value 0.488 which was significant at the 5% probability level. The prediction was markedly increased to 57.2% when CEC was included in the model. Comparatively to Pb, soil properties do not play a major role in controlling the concentration of Cd in the soil.
This study assessed the extent of agrarian households' vulnerability to food insecurity and coping strategies in the Lower River Region of The Gambia and implication for policy. The data was collected principally through questionnaires administered to 230 households and 10 key informants. Data was analysed using descriptive statistics with the aid of Statistical Package for Social Science 20. A modifi ed Consolidated Approach to Reporting Indicators (CARI) was also used to analyse vulnerability to food insecurity in the study area. The study found out that on average, the degree of vulnerability to food insecurity in the study area is about 45%. Vulnerability to food security is partly due to the large sizes of families, low income level of households, limited access to land and limited availability of food due to low food production, droughts and extreme climatic conditions. About 1,309 households were found to be highly vulnerable, and 4,394 households moderately vulnerable. Among the different districts in Lower River Region, the majority of the food insecure households are located in Jarra West District. As a coping strategy, 65.3% to food insecurity households, tend to reduce their expenditures on other needs to have money to buy food, 53.7% turn to the consumption of low quality and cheaper foodstuff with high carbohydrate content like rice, 52.1% borrow food from relatives, friends and neighbours and 51.3% reduce adults' food consumption to secure the need of children for food in times of food defi cit. Weak institutional and governance capacity, as well as unsustainable and inequitable use of natural resources among others were identifi ed as common drivers of protracted crises. The study concluded that the trends in food security and nutrition in The Gambia are intrigued by climate variability and vulnerability to shocks and crises. To reduce food insecurity among vulnerable populations, special subsidy packages should be designed to ease access to farm inputs, to better manage risks and respond to shocks in the short and long term. The government should also provide a regulatory environment which establishes basic conditions within which farmers, input suppliers, and food companies, among others can operate and make investment decisions in order to boost their production. The managerial and technical capacity of these farmers should also be built through the extension services, and the extension services should work with farmers to achieve the national priority of zero hunger. The government should reduce the amount of taxes levied on companies that produce or import quality planting materials and inputs and then negotiate with these companies to step down the cost of inputs to farmers. There is also a need for the introduction of new, appropriate and sustainable technologies to farmers and for intensifi cation purposes.
In urban areas, human activities result in the discharge of a variety of chemical substances into the environment. This affects soil quality, plant species diversity and human security. To suggest appropriate management strategies that ensure soil quality and human security amid urbanization, this study assessed the relationship between macrophyte diversity and some soil characteristics of wetlands that are adjacent to urban, peri-urban and rural areas in Bamenda Municipality, Cameroon. Plant communities were sampled for species composition and relative abundance, using the Braun-banquet method. Species richness was evaluated using Simpson’s diversity index. Twenty-one soil samples (0–25 cm depth) were randomly collected within the wetlands and analyzed for their physicochemical characteristics using standard methods. The hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) was used to group the wetlands under managing units. The dominant species ranked in order of abundance in the rural wetland were Raphia farinifera > Ludwigia hexandra > Coix spp. > Leersia hexandra > Ehchinochloa paramidelis. The Peri-urban wetland dominant species stood at Commelina bengalensis > Leersia hexandra > Cyperus distance > Ehchinochloa pyramidalis. In the Urban segment, Pennisetum purpureum > Echinochloa pyramidalis > Tithonia diversifolia > Leersia hexandra were the abundant species. The Simpson index of diversity was 0.94 for the urban and 0.96 for the peri-urban and rural sites respectively. The soils were slightly acidic with pH KCl ranging from 4.87 to 5.41. From the coefficient of variability classes, Sand, pH-H2O, pH-KCl, and Na consistently varied slightly across the three sites. Two significant clusters (management units) representing a combination of urban, and peri-urban/rural were formed from the hierarchical dendrograms. The Mann–Whitney U test revealed a significant (P < 0.05) lower exchange acidity in the rural than the urban sites indicating contamination of the urban site, reducing its macrophyte diversity. Intensification and extension of urbanisation are gradually reducing the macrophyte diversity and also contaminating the soils of the wetlands of the Bamenda municipality in Cameroon, warranting monitoring. The chemical composition of soils in the urban cluster needs early remediation by encouraging the planting and monitoring of certain plants that can already take up the elements.
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