Impact Of Waste Discharge Research Articles

Impact of abattoir waste on Woji Creek, Port Harcourt, Nigeria, using physicochemistry and macrozoobenthic diversity indices

The impact of waste discharge from Zoo abattoir, Port Harcourt, on the environmental quality of Woji Creek was studied from April 2001 to March 2002 using physicochemistry and diversity of benthic animals as indicators. Priority physicochemical parameters (total suspended solid, dissolved oxygen and biochemical oxygen demand) indicated high organic enrichment, chiefly due to inputs of bloody effluent. The burning of animal skin with discarded car tyres to produce kpomo, a common local soup component, contributes to the creek's quality alterations. Ironically, diversity of zoobenthos was highest at the area receiving the abattoir effluents compared to areas upstream and downstream from that point. Possible explanations are provided for the inverted diversity trend using the Hutcheson Index, which indicated significant diversities in invertebrate species amongst the three sample sites. The inefficiency of ecosystem quality evaluations using isolated single indices is also discussed.

Impact of waste discharges on the water quality and interstitial community structure of two Mediterranean rivers

The hydrochemical and biological status of two Mediterranean rivers, one in Morocco near Marrakech (Rheraya) and the other in Italy near Florence (Mugnone), is compared by means of the evolution of several physico‐chemical and biotic factors at nine sampling stations in the Mugnone and five in the Rheraya streams. There is a general downstream increase of water mineralization and organic matter content. However, this chemical and biological continuum is disturbed in the middle section of the rivers by the discharge of treated wastewater in the case of the Mugnone and raw wastewater in the case of the Rheraya. Chemical analyses show a clear increase in the values of parameters related to organic loading below the discharge sites. In this sector, the abundance and richness of stygobitic species, mainly Crustacea Peracarida, are very low. Thus the impact of these wastewater discharges on the interstitial milieu of these two streams is reflected in modifications of both the chemical quality of the water and the biotic community structure.

Assessment of Asa river: impact of waste discharge from soft drink plant into Asa river, Ilorin, Nigeria

Some physical and chemical analysis was carried out on samples collected at various distances from the effluent discharge from a soft drink plant in Ilorin into Asa River. The pH was found to range between 7.2-7.8 with a mean temperature of 25.25°C. Experimental results obtained on replicate samples showed that the standard deviation was generally below 10%. The total organic matter ranged between 21-22.9% while the nitrate concentration ranged between 5.81- 15.41 mg/l; these were high and could lead to eutrophication of the water body into which it empties. The cation and anion concentrations all fall within safe limits except for zinc and in some cases, NO 3 - concentrations which was higher than the standard set by regulatory bodies. A Pearson\'s correlation study showed correlations between different parameters at both 1% and 5% probability levels. Journal of Applied Sciences and Environmental Management Vol. 9(1) 2005: 187-190

Geochemical characteristics of contaminated surficial sediments in Halifax Harbour: impact of waste discharge

Analyses of 274 surface sediment samples collected from Halifax inlet between 1986 and 1990 permit assessment of the chemical environmental quality of this major east coast Canadian harbour. Contamination of the marine sediments is due to discharge of untreated sewage and industrial waste directly into the harbour, and leaching of solid waste deposits on land. Concentrations of total Cu, Pb, Zn, Hg, and Cd in the uppermost 2 cm of sediments on the sea floor ranks Halifax Harbour among the most contaminated marine areas in the industrialized world. Statistical factor analysis has been used to identify five types of sediments based on sedimentological and geochemical characteristics. The dominant factor type accounts for 41% of the chemical variance and represents sediments that are highly contaminated with metals and organics derived from sewage effluents and waste deposits. More than 50% of the total Cu, Zn, and Pb in the sediments is potentially reactive as reducible or oxidizable metal.A simple two-layer estuarine circulation model has been used to assess the significance of dissolved metal sources and sinks in the harbour. The contribution to sediment contamination from dissolved metal inputs is relatively minor, with more than 88% of the potentially reactive Cu, Zn, Pb, and Hg being directly associated with particulate deposition. However, the model suggests that high proportions of the dissolved annual inputs of Zn (40% of 5.5 t), Pb (100% of 1.3 t), Hg (100% of 0.02 t), and Mn (89% of 19.6 t) are taken up by the bottom sediments.Future environmental quality management of Halifax Harbour should take into consideration the geochemical stability of sediments. New sewage treatment facilities may reduce the loading of contaminants, but some remobilization of metals from sediments may reduce long-term improvements in contaminant levels in the water column.