Journal of Global Ecology and Environment

Evaluation of the Effects of Heavy Metals on Sediments and Rainwater Samples Due to Gas Flaring in the South Eastern Nigeria

Journal of Global Ecology and Environment, Volume 18, Issue 3, Page 1-16
DOI: 10.56557/jogee/2023/v18i38319

Abstract


This study evaluates the concentrations of heavy metals in sediment and rainwater samples of Ibeno, south eastern Nigeria due to gas flaring. Surface sediment samples were collected randomly in six different sites during the dry season in the intertidal zone at extremely low tide from the flare point to a distance of about 250m away from the flare site. Rainwater samples were collected with the use of pre-clean basins at an open space in three selected communities of Ibeno and were transferred into different sterilized plastic rubbers with their labels. These samples were transported to the laboratory for analysis of heavy metals concentrations using a particle induced x-ray emission (PIXE) technique. Heavy metals such as Titanium (Ti), Chromium (Cr), Manganese (Mn), Iron (Fe), Copper (Cu), Zinc (Zn), Rubidium (Rb), Strontium (Sr), Zirconium (Zr) and Lead (Pb) were analyzed in sediments while Vanadium (V), Arsenic (As), Nickel (Ni), Lead (Pb), Iron (Fe), Copper (Cu), Zinc (Zn), Chromium (Cr), Manganese (Mn) and Cadmium (Cd) were obtained in rainwater. The concentrations of Iron (Fe) in sediments are higher at the study area than every other elements but Manganese (Mn) poses more negative effects than others. The four pollution indices such as enrichment factor (EF), geo-accumulation index (Igeo), contamination factor (CF) and pollution load index (PLI) were employed to assess the contamination status of heavy metals in sediment samples of the study area. The results revealed the elemental trend to be in descending order in each area of this study, which followed the sequence Mn> Zn> Pb> Cu> Fe> Sr> Rb> Cr> Ti >Zr, while PLI revealed the extent of pollution in each site which ranged from 1.44 to 1.94. Most of the heavy metals concentrations in sediments such as Mn, Zn, Pb, Cu and Fe were far above the permissible limits, while in rainwater samples Pb, Cd, Ni, Fe and Mn were far above the permissible limits by WHO, 2008 and NSDWQ, 2007. This revealed that the rainwater in the study area were not free from toxicity and are unfit for drinking. Analysis of multi-variant statistics such as Pearson’s correlation coefficient and cluster analysis were also applied to ascertain the relationship and sources of investigated heavy metals. Both positive and negative correlations were observed among some heavy metals at 0.01 and 0.05 levels, while the cluster analysis revealed four main clusters. The study revealed that the ecosystems in the studied areas were vulnerable to bioaccumulation of heavy metals in that soil which could be of hazard effect to the ecosystem.

Keywords:
  • Gas flare
  • bioaccumulation
  • intertidal
  • enrichment factor (Ef)
  • geo-accumulation index (Igeo)
  • contamination factor (Cf)
  • vegetation

How to Cite

Reuben , U. S., Eno , A. U., Joseph , Y. O., Chrysanthus , E. I., & Okon , E. F. (2023). Evaluation of the Effects of Heavy Metals on Sediments and Rainwater Samples Due to Gas Flaring in the South Eastern Nigeria. Journal of Global Ecology and Environment, 18(3), 1–16. https://doi.org/10.56557/jogee/2023/v18i38319

References

Edino MO, Nsofor GN, Bombom SL. Perceptions and attitudes towards gas flaring in the Niger Delta, Nigeria. Environmentalist. 2010;30:67–75.

Odoemene A. Social consequences of environmental change in the Niger Delta of Nigeria. Journal of Sustainable Development. 2011;4(2):123 –135.

Obasohan EE, Eguavoen OI. Seasonal variations of bioaccumulation of heavy metals in a freshwater fish (Erpetoichthys calabaricus) from Ogba river, Benin City, Nigeria. Indian Journal of Animal Research. 2016;42(3):171-179.

Steiner R. Double standard: Shell practices in Nigeria compared with international standards to prevent and control pipeline oil spills and the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Report for Friends of the Earth Netherlands; 2010.

Ugochukwu CNC, Ertel J. Negative impacts of oil exploration on biodiversity management in the Niger Delta area of Nigeria. Impact Assessment and Project Appraisal. 2008;26(2):139–147.

Ho HH, Swennen R, Damme AV. Distribution and contamination status of heavy metals in estuarine sediments near Cua Ong Harbour, Ha long Bay, Vietnam. Geol. Belgicia. 2010;13/1-2:37-47.

Yawo OJ, Akpan IO. Assessment of heavy metals concentration in sediments of Utibete River, Eastern Obolo, Southeastern Nigeria using particle induced X-ray emission (PIXE) technique. Res. Sci. Tech. 2021;1:17-36.

Aghalino SO. Gas flaring, environmental pollution and abatement measures in Nigeria, 1969 – 2001. Journal of Sustainable Development in Africa. 2009; 11(4):219–38.

Akinro AO, Opeyemi DA, Ologunagba IB. Climate change and environmental degradation in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria: Its vulnerability, impacts and possible mitigations. Research Journal of Applied Sciences. 2008;3(3):167–173.

Ekanim MP, Udoessien EI. Air quality studies of Eket Zone of Niger Delta region of Nigeria. Journal of Afr. J. Environ. Pollut. Health. 2013;10:20-25.

Ewa-Oboho I, oladimej o. studies on the short-term effects of the mobil idoh of oil spill on the littoral biota of South eastern Nigeria. West African Journal of Applied Ecology. 2009;11(1).

Hongta BAI, He XU. Application and prospect of geographical information system in strategic environmental assessment. Advances in Natural Science. 2008;1(1):57-67.

Andersen GL. How to detect desert trees using CORONA images: Discovering historical ecological data. Journal of Arid Environments. 2006;65:491–511.

Wogu MD, Okaka CE. Pollution studies on Nigerian rivers: Heavy metals in surface water of warri river, Delta State. Journal of Biodiversity and Environmental Sciences. 2011;1(3):7-12.

Obiajunwa EI, Pelemo DA, Owalabi SA, Fasai MK, Johnson F, Fatokun FO. Characterization of heavy metal pollutants of soils and sediments around a CrudeF Oil Production Terminal using EDXRF, Nucl. Instrum. Meth. B. 2002;194:61-64.

Birch G. A scheme for assessing human impacts on coastal aquatic environments using sediment source; 2003.

Ubulom SR, Ekanim MP, Etim IN, Yawo OJ, Ita Ewa-Oboho. Assessment of contamination status of heavy metals in sediment due to gas flaring at Esit Eket, South Eastern Nigeria. Research Journal of Science and Technology. 2022;2(1):50-63.

Dung JE, Bombom SL, Agusomu DT. The effects of gas flaring on crops in the Niger Delta, Nigeria. GeoJournal. 2008;73:297–305.

Gerner F, Svensson B, Djumena S. Gas flaring and venting: A regulatory framework and incentives for gas utilization. Public Policy for the Private Sector. 2004; 279.

Abubakr MI. Combining multivariate analysis and geo accumulation approaches for assessing heavy metal level in sediments from Sudanese Harbors along the Red Sea Coast. Microchem J. 2008; 90:159-163.

Eugenio F. Automatic satellite image georeferencing using a contour-matching approach. IEEE Transactions On Geoscience And Remote Sensing. 2003;41(12):2869–2880.

Abdulkareem AS. Evaluation of ground level concentration of pollutant due to gas flaring by computer simulation: A case study of Niger - Delta area of Nigeria. Leonardo Electronic Journal of Practices and Technologies. 2005;6:29-42.

Akan JC, Abbagambo MT, Chellube ZM, Abdulrahman FI. Assessment of pollutants in water and sediment samples in Lake Chad, Baga, North Eastern Nigeria, J. Environ. Protection. 2012;3:1428-1441.

Yawo OJ, Inyang EP, Akpan IO. Application of pollution indices in estimating the toxicity of heavy metals in sediments of Okoro river in Eastern Obolo, Southeastern Nigeria. Res. Sci. Tech. 2022;2:1-17.

Gabriel AOI. Women in the Niger Delta: Environmental issues and challenges in the third millennium. Journal of Sustainable Development in Africa; 2004.

Akpan IO, Thompson EA. Assessment of heavy metal contamination geoscience and remote sensing. 2013;41(12):2869–2880.

Eaton AD, Franson AH. Standard methods for the examination of water and waste water, American Public Health Association; 2015.

Chen CW, Dong CD. Distribution and accumulation of zinc in sediments of kaohsiung river mouth, Taiwan. 2012; 1:153-158.

Goossens R, Wulf AD, Bourgeois J, Gheyle W, Willems T. Satellite imagery and archaeology: The example of CORONA in the Altai Mountains Journal of Archaeological Science. 2006;33:745–755.

Bayram B, Bayraktar H, Helvaci C, Acar U. Coast line change detection using CORONA, SPOT and IRS 1D images. Proceedings of the 20th Congress of I.S.P.R.S. Istanbul, Commission. 2004; 7(3):437-441.

Agrawal ML, Dikshit AK. Significance of spatial data and GIS for Environmental impact assessment of highway projects. Indian Cartographer. MUIP 04. 2002;262-266.

Banko G. A review of assessing the accuracy of classifications of remotely sensed data and of methods including remote sensing data in forest inventory. International Institution for Applied Systems Analysis, Laxenburg, Austria. 1998;IR-98-081.

Inoni EO, Omotor GD, Adun NF. The effect of oil spillage on crop yield and farm income in Delta State, Nigeria. Journal of Central European Agriculture. 2006; 7(1):41–48.

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Collection and preparation of bottom sediment samples for analysis of radionuclide and trace elements. Nutritional and health- related environmental studies section, A-1400 Vienna, Australia; 2003.

World Bank. Report on Consultations with Stakeholders.” World Bank–GGFR Report 1. Global Gas Flaring Reduction Public-Private Partnership. Washington, D.C; 2002.

  • 0 times
    PDF Download: 0 times

Download Statistics

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Current Issue

Subscription

Login to access subscriber-only resources.

Information