Abstract
Assessment of water quality was conducted from June to December, 2011 in five stations along the stretch of the Benin River between Ajimele and Koko town in attempt to assess and determine the source of anthropogenic activities affecting the river. Twentyfour parameters have been monitored on 5 sampling stations on a monthly-day-trip. Inter station comparisons and locations of significant differences were carried out using parametric ANOVA and Duncan multiple range tests. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Water Quality Index (WQI) were used to establish relationship among water quality parameters and determine the water quality status. First six components of PCA accounted for 90.96% of observed variations and showed similarity between the sampling stations indicating different anthropogenic activities and pollution levels of sampled sites. Factors identified as responsible for variability in the sampling stations are organic pollution, industrial effluent, soil erosion, nutrient loading and human activities, especially in station 4 and 5. WQI for sampling stations 1 and 3 was very poor for drinking (201 - 300) and stations 2, 4 and 5 was unsuitable (> 301) for human consumptions. In the final analysis, this investigation presents the usefulness of PCA and WQI in assessing complex datasets of surface water quality and as well as a call to action for the state and federal ministry of environment to take this issue of water quality degradation in Benin River into consideration, by reducing organic pollution and effluent discharge into the river. An intense and continuous water quality monitoring is highly recommended. © JASEM Keywords : Organic pollution, Industrial effluent, Water Quality Index (WQI), Principal Component Analysis (PCA).
Highlights
Rivers are the most important freshwater resource for man
In the case of TSS and chemical oxygen demand (COD), A posterior DMR test revealed that the level of these individual parameters observed at station 4 was significantly higher than the levels observed at stations 1, 2, 3 and 5 which were not significantly different from one another
This study presents the usefulness of Principal Component Analysis (PCA) techniques in water quality assessment and pollution source fingerprinting
Summary
Apart from its function as a source of freshwater for drinking, domestic and industrial uses; freshwater resources serve multiple functions most of them being critical to human settlement and survival. Adequate supply of safe and sanitised freshwater is an inevitable factor for human and economic development. Reports by Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) revealed that in African countries, Nigeria, water related diseases had been interfering with basic human development (FAO, 2007). The common sources of water that are available to local communities in Nigeria are fast being severed by a number of anthropogenic factors, of which pollution remain the most dominant problem. Water abstraction for domestic use, agricultural production, mining, industrial production, power generation, and forestry practices can lead to deterioration in water quality and quantity that impact the aquatic ecosystem, and the availability of safe water for human consumption (UNEP, 2006)
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