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The concentrations of heavy metals were determined from wastewater samples collected from the Gusii wastewater treatment plant, from May to July, 2021. Heavy metal analysis was done using a flame atomic absorption spectrophotometer, model AA 7000 Shimadzu, Japan. The results showed that the concentrations of Zinc and Cadmium were below the detection limit for all the sampling sites. The concentrations of Lead and Copper (Mean ± SE) ranged between 0.34 ± 0.06 mg/L and 0.86 ± 0.08 mg/L and 0.25 ± 0.05 and 0.34 ± 0.01 mg/L respectively. The month of July exhibited a higher mean Cu concentration of 0.35 ± 0.004 mg/L compared to the mean Cu concentration (0.2 ± 0.02 mg/L) of May. Likewise, the mean lead concentration of May (0.60 ± 0.04 mg/L) was higher than the mean (0.53 ± 0.05 mg/L.) of July. The independent sample t-test showed that mean Cu concentration difference was significant between the sampling months (t (34) = 21.58; p < 0.05) while for Pb it was not significant between the sampling months (t (30) = 1.241; p = 0.274). The percentage removals of Copper and Lead were generally low at 12.61 % and 6.27 %, respectively. The continued discharge of effluent into River Riana may lead to accumulation of heavy metals in the environment, which in turn poses health risks to the general public. Therefore, the study recommends that Gusii Water and Sanitation Company continue monitoring and assessing the levels of heavy metals in the treatment plant for its sustainability.
Phytoplanktons are free-floating microscopic plants in water and they are the primary producers providing food to aquatic organisms. However, water quality affects the species production and assemblage in terms of diversity, composition, and abundance. This study assessed the spatial and temporal diversity and abundance of phytoplanktons in the Gusii wastewater treatment plant. A total of 124 phytoplankton species were identified and belonged to six families: Euglenophyceae, Bacillariophyceae, Dinophyceae, Cyanophyceae, Chlorophyceae, and Zygnemophyceae. The phytoplankton biovolume was 385.24mm 3 /L, with the family Euglenophyceae contributing the largest percentage. The species diversity index (H') was generally low (H' = 1.759 and 0.7596) in the effluent and influent respectively, indicating a considerable increase in diversity as the wastewater undergoes treatment. The low diversity was attributed to changes in physical, chemical, and biological environmental conditions. The effluent was richer in species, with a value of 5.829, while the influent was the least with 3.409. The low phytoplankton diversity in the wastewater treatment plant was influenced by the physicochemical parameters. It is therefore recommended that the quality of the wastewater during treatment needs to be monitored continuously for quality as baseline information to guide stakeholders and to ensure sustainability for the Gusii wastewater lagoon ecosystem health.
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