Assessment of the quality of groundwater from different parts of southeastern Nigeria for potable use

Open cast mining: threat to water quality in rural community of Enyigba in south-eastern Nigeria

“…Assubaie (2015) reported a much lower Cd range of 0.009-0.013 mg/l in an assessment of the levels of some heavy metals in water in Alahsa Oasis farms, Saudi Arabia, with analysis by atomic absorption spectrophotometry compared to Cd levels of the present study. The results of the present study indicate contamination of the water bodies with Cd which is consistent with previous studies in the study location (Ezeh and Anike 2009;Nnabo 2015aNnabo , b, c, 2016 and other parts of southeastern Nigeria (Omaka et al 2017).…”

“…Zinc mean concentration in the studied surface water bodies was all above the WHO drinking water limit of 5.00 mg/l and ranged from 26.15 to 65.38 mg/l ( Table 1) Ashraf et al (2009) in ex-mining area of Bestari Jaya, Peninsular Malaysia, but very much higher than the range of 0.006-0.023 mg/l with mean concentration of 0.01 mg/l reported by Ezeh and Anike (2009) (Nweke et al 2008). Similar to results of this present study, Omaka et al (2017) equally reported significantly higher values of Zn concentration in water samples from different parts of south-eastern Nigeria. The higher concentration of Zn in the present study coupled with its high mobility rate poses a serious health challenge in water bodies of the study area, where mining operations and deposits of sphalerite may contribute to higher concentrations.…”

“…The TDS values recorded in this study were below the WHO permissible limit of 500 mg/l (Table 1), but higher than the value (50.7 mg/l) recorded in polluted stream water in an open cast mining district of Nasarawa State, Nigeria (Ezeaku 2012) and much lower than the elevated values of 653 and 384 mg/l recorded in mechanic village and Chanchanga river, respectively, in Niger State, Nigeria (Tsado et al 2014). The range of TDS values recorded in this present study is similar to the TDS values (< 500 mg/l) reported by Omaka et al (2017) in selected parts of south-eastern Nigeria. High TDS influences virtually all other qualities of water, for example hardness, taste and corrosion properties.…”

“…Elevated levels of As and Mn have been reported in waters nearby the mine wastes generated from mining of Ba-Pb-Zn quartz veins at Segura area, central Portugal (Antunes et al 2008). Higher As values above the WHO permissible limits have also been reported by Omaka et al (2017) in water samples collected from different parts of south-eastern Nigeria. These elevated values of As concentration in all the water sources in the study area make…”

Multivariate statistical approach and water quality assessment of natural springs and other drinking water sources in Southeastern Nigeria

“…plasma membrane) (Worms et al., 2008), thus, our study made use of dissolved concentrations of these elements to estimate their human health impact. Although several water studies have been conducted in Nigeria in recent years (Omaka et al., 2014, 2016, 2017; Adamu et al., 2015; Igwe et al., 2015; Nganje et al., 2015), spring waters, mainly used by majority of the rural populace have never received attention regarding their quality. To our knowledge, no comprehensive data are available on PTEs (especially Hg) levels in springs, streams, boreholes and hand-dug wells in the rural and most urban areas of southeastern region of Nigeria.…”