Abstract
The Sokoto-Rima basin defines the natural and socioeconomic lifeblood of northwestern Nigeria. Its agrarian nature is an indication of significant dependence on the supply of ecosystem services from its various rivers, streams, and wetlands. However, nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) constitute a great portion of chemical fertilizers used to enhance crop yields and poor management of these portend great threats for water quality. The overarching objective of this study was to examine the extent of spatial variation of nutrient dynamics in the Sokoto-Rima basin between 1992 and 2015 using the nutrient delivery ratio (NDR) model of InVEST (Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Service and Tradeoffs) software. Land use/landcover, precipitation, digital elevation, and biophysical variables were the principal datasets employed as model input. The result of the study showed that the surficial N load is almost 15-fold of P in the Sokoto-Rima basin. Over the period of study, cultivated areas and rivers were spatially detected as nutrient sources and sinks respectively. The subsurface nutrient load is dominated by P while the amount of N load is insignificant. The trend of nutrient export is linearly defined: with 0.87% and 1.7% increase in N and P export respectively during 1992-2015. N and P exports vary spatially with a north-south increase-decrease index. Critical length and threshold are highly sensitive to changes in the parameterization of the NDR model. Thus, synergistic cultivation practices such as agroforestry should be extended to existing crop cultivation complexes to curtail nutrient enrichment in the Sokoto-Rima basin and ensure environmental sustainability.
Highlights
One of the numerous ways in which anthropogenic activities alter the natural nutrient cycling of any ecosystem is through land use/landcover changes agricultural expansion [1,2]
Abubakar and Ipinjolu [21] investigated the level of certain anions of the Argungu River using direct analysis method, and the results showed that the river low pollution status of the nutrient loads were detected in areas of less human disturbance
The study was conducted in the Nigerian section of the West African transnational hydrological basin known as Sokoto-Rima basin
Summary
One of the numerous ways in which anthropogenic activities alter the natural nutrient cycling of any ecosystem is through land use/landcover changes agricultural expansion [1,2]. In semi-arid areas of the world where agriculture determines the lifeblood of the local economy, this scenario persists In such agrarian systems, rainwater flows over the landscape washing away natural soil minerals, animal manure, chemical fertilizers and wastes from domestic sources into abutting streams and rivers [8]. Rainwater flows over the landscape washing away natural soil minerals, animal manure, chemical fertilizers and wastes from domestic sources into abutting streams and rivers [8] This causes great threat to both human health and welfare [9] as well as aquatic life in the water bodies. It triggers eutrophication of the bodies and general aquatic pollution [10, 11]
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