Concentration and Health Implication of Heavy Metals in Drinking Water from Urban Areas of Tigray Region, Northern Ethiopia

Mebrahtu, Gebreslassie; Zerabruk, S

doi:10.4314/mejs.v3i1.63689

Cited by 86 publications

(49 citation statements)

References 13 publications

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“…In this regard, the concentrations of Fe, Cu, and Mn in the tap water during the study were 270, 420, and 320 μgL −1 , respectively. Similarly, previous investigations on heavy metal contents of the water supply in the study area such as Mebrahtu and Zerabruk [32] , respectively. Household appliances such as washing machines that use dishwashers solution and fabric dye are commonly used at Mekelle University and may be the main contributors of Cr in domestic wastewater [33].…”

Section: Salinity and Heavy Metal Contents Of The Wastewatersupporting

confidence: 67%

Wastewater Confronting Realities for Sustainable Livelihood in Developing Countries: Case Study Mekelle University, Ethiopia

Amare

Kebede

Kloos

et al. 2017

Water Conserv Sci Eng

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Water is becoming a scarce resource in terms of quantity and quality. Water supply enhancement measures are being taken with less attention given to wastewater management, leading to increased discharge of untreated wastewaters. Wastewater is emerging as an affordable and reliable alternative water supply for urban agriculture, supporting thousands of farmers. Extensive use of untreated wastewater for irrigation will without a doubt lead to accumulation of heavy metals in soils and crops, resulting in overwhelming risks to both public health and the environment. This paper deals with determination of the strength and compositions of the wastewater from a public university in the tropical semiarid region for rainy and dry seasons, based on a number of key parameters including heavy metals. Furthermore, it identified the real advantages of treated water use and issues pertaining to untreated wastewaters use for irrigation purposes. An independent t test showed significant differences in concentrations of all the tested metals, excluding lead, copper, and cadmium during dry and wet seasons. Similarly, differences were significant for electrical conductivity, biological oxygen demand, total nitrogen and total phosphorus. Salinity and concentrations of organics, nutrients, copper, cadmium, iron, manganese and to some extent copper exceeded the allowable thresholds for irrigation water. Lead, zinc, nickel and chromium, on the other hand, were lower than their respective limits. Wastewater used for irrigation purposes is unsafe, and urgent policy interventions on the use of untreated wastewater are required.

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Section: Salinity and Heavy Metal Contents Of The Wastewatersupporting

confidence: 67%

Wastewater Confronting Realities for Sustainable Livelihood in Developing Countries: Case Study Mekelle University, Ethiopia

Amare

Kebede

Kloos

et al. 2017

Water Conserv Sci Eng

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“…This might be due to improper disposal of sewage, surface runoff and wastewater from different domestic activities. Similar higher turbidity values are also recorded by many workers as compared to the limit set by WHO (Akan et al, 2008;Joshi et al, 2009;Mebrahtu and Zerabruk, 2011;Pal et al, 2013).…”

Section: Turbiditysupporting

confidence: 64%

Investigations of Physico-Chemical Parameters and its Pollution Implications of Elala River, Mekelle, Tigray, Ethiopia

Gebreyohannes¹,

Gebrekidan²,

Hedera³

et al. 2015

mejs

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The purpose of the study was to assess the water quality parameters of Elala River found in Mekelle, Tigray, Ethiopia. Four sampling sites were chosen spatially along the water course to reflect a consideration of all possible activities that are capable of affecting the quality of the river water. The water samples were collected monthly for three consecutive months (March to May, 2014) at the four sampling sites. In order to understand the characteristics of Elala River, principal component analysis (PCA) was utilized using 22 water quality parameters: water temperature, electrical conductivity, turbidity, pH, total solids, total suspended solids, total dissolved solids, total alkalinity, total hardness, calcium, magnesium, chloride, sulfate, nitratenitrogen, nitrite-nitrogen, ammonium-nitrogen, total nitrogen, dissolved oxygen, biological oxygen demand, chemical oxygen demand, orthophosphate and total phosphorus. Among the 22 studied water quality parameters: electrical conductivity (904.11 to 2156.11 μS/cm), turbidity (21.07 to 34.99 NTU), total dissolved solids (700.22 to 1328.22 mg/L), total alkalinity (131.85 to 267.26 mg/L), total hardness (198.67 to 478.67 mg/L), chloride (47.32 to 259.43 mg/L), calcium (65.13 to 146.99 mg/L), chemical oxygen demand (16.02 to 32.53 mg/L), sulphate (271.82 to 384.07 mg/L), nitrate-nitrogen (6.82 to 62.38 mg/L), orthophosphate (0.03 to 0.14 mg/L) and total phosphorus (0.04 to 0.19 mg/L) were above the prescribed limit of WHO guidelines for drinking purposes, while all analyzed water quality parameters fall within the FAO standard limit for irrigation purposes. The water is thus not potable for domestic purposes without some forms of physical and chemical treatment while it is useful for agricultural purposes.

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“…Tap water contamination by Hg could be linked to gold mining reported along Lake Victoria shores (Van Straaten, 2000). On the other hand, drinking water naturally contains very low amounts (0.01 to 0.05 g/L) of Cr except for regions with substantial deposits (Mebrahtu & Zerabruk, 2011). Drinking water seldom contains Zn at concentrations > 0.1 mg/litre, but high levels in tap water can be due to leaching from older galvanized plumbing materials.…”

Section: Tap Watermentioning

confidence: 99%

Human Health Risk Assessment of Heavy Metals in Kampala (Uganda) Drinking Water

Bamuwamye¹,

Ogwok²,

Tumuhairwe³

et al. 2017

JFR

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Levels of aluminium, arsenic, cadmium, chromium, copper, iron, mercury, manganese, nickel, lead and zinc in tap water, groundwater-fed protected spring and bottled water were determined. The cancer and non-cancer risks associated with ingestion of heavy metals (HM) were also assessed for both children and adults. Forty seven water samples obtained from five divisions of Kampala city were analyzed using atomic absorption spectrophotometry. Cancer and non-cancer risks were determined using incremental lifetime cancer risk (ILCR) and non-carcinogenic hazard quotient (HQ), respectively. Lead content was higher than permissible limits (PL) according to East African Standard, World Health Organization, European Union and United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA). Arsenic showed minor exceedances above guideline values in tap water and groundwater-fed protected spring, whereas mercury, manganese and nickel were higher than PL. Levels of aluminium, cadmium, chromium, copper, iron, and zinc were below the PL. The lifetime risk of developing cancer through the oral route was greater than the USEPA acceptable level for both children and adults, revealing that exposure to HM in drinking water posed an unacceptable potential cancer risk. Arsenic contributed ca. 90% of the ILCR in tap water and groundwater-fed protected spring. The combined non-cancer risk of the HM expressed as hazard index (HI) was greater than one, with values for children being higher than those for adults. Lead contribution towards HI was in all cases above 90%. These results demonstrate the presence of alarming non-cancer risks for children.

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Concentration and Health Implication of Heavy Metals in Drinking Water from Urban Areas of Tigray Region, Northern Ethiopia

Cited by 86 publications

References 13 publications

Wastewater Confronting Realities for Sustainable Livelihood in Developing Countries: Case Study Mekelle University, Ethiopia

Wastewater Confronting Realities for Sustainable Livelihood in Developing Countries: Case Study Mekelle University, Ethiopia

Investigations of Physico-Chemical Parameters and its Pollution Implications of Elala River, Mekelle, Tigray, Ethiopia

Human Health Risk Assessment of Heavy Metals in Kampala (Uganda) Drinking Water

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