Journal of Natural Sciences Research www.iiste.

org
ISSN 2224-3186 (Paper) ISSN 2225-0921 (Online)
Vol.6, No.8, 2016

Assessment of Heavy Metal Contamination of River Gora

Kaduna, Nigeria

*N.E.L Egbe and K.C Ahunanya

Department of Biological Sciences, Nigerian Defence Academy, P.M.B. 2109, Kaduna, Nigeria

Abstract
The concentration of four heavy metals viz. Lead (Pb), Manganese (Mn), Copper (Cu) and Zinc (Zn) in water
and sediment samples obtained from the banks of River Gora where industrial and domestic effluents are
discharged were determined. The study was performed during wet season (August) at two different sampling
points. The result of this investigation shows that the sediments accumulated higher elements than the water.
Lead concentration of water and sediment samples taken from point A were 0.84 mg/l and 320 mg/l respectively
compared to point B of 0.00 mg/l and 47.62 mg/l. Levels of lead in the water samples from point A exceeded the
acceptable limits by the World Health Organisation (WHO). The results point to the need for rational planning
of pollution control strategies, so as to keep check on release of toxic heavy metals.
Keywords Heavy metals, Water pollution, Toxicity, River Gora, Kaduna, Nigeria

1. Introduction
Monitoring and assessment of water pollution has become a very critical area of study because of direct
implications of water pollution on aquatic life, animals and human beings. The contamination of surface water
by heavy metals is a serious ecological problem as some of the heavy metals like Cadmium (Cd) and Pb are
toxic even at low concentrations, are non-degradable and bio-accumulate through food chain. Though some
heavy metals such as (Iron) Fe, Cu, and Zn are essential micronutrients, they can be toxic to living organisms at
higher concentrations (Kar et al., 2009; Nair et al., 2010). In aquatic environments, some heavy metal such as
lead, mercury and cadmium are concentrated through the trophic system especially in the kidney and liver of
various mammals (Dempster and Manning, 1994). Inputs of these toxic heavy metals to the environment can
result from natural inputs from the erosion of rocks, volcanic activity and forest fires. Heavy metals are also
frequent waste products of anthropogenic activities and their emission often results in the contamination of the
surrounding environment (Lee and Stuebing, 1990). Mining, manufacturing industries and agricultural activities
are main sources of heavy metals that pollute the soil, water and air in Nigeria. The excessive increase in the
level of heavy metals in water bodies is due to wrong and misappropriate disposal of heavy metals in
contaminated sludge water.
Acid rain resulting from dissolved hydrogen sulphide, sulphur dioxide and oxides of nitrogen has contributed to
alterations of soil and freshwater acidity. As a consequence there is an increase in the bioavailability of many
heavy metals to fresh water species (Sprenger and McIntosh, 1989). Under certain environmental conditions,
metals may accumulate to toxic proportions and can cause ecological damage (Freedman, 1989). Prevalence of
chronic ailments such as heart and kidney diseases, skin cancer and anaemia has been reported in people living
for more than five years in areas polluted by heavy metals. Inhalation of arsenic has been directly associated with
lung and skin cancer. Phytotoxic effects of elevated levels of heavy metals in soils cause poor vegetation
establishment that makes the soils prone to erosion. The 2004 World congress on Environmental Health
highlighted that environmental metal poisoning is becoming a major public health burden in African countries
due to rapid globalization and industrialization (Carnie, 2004). The concentration of life threatening metals such
as Lead (Pb), Arsenic (As), Mercury (Hg) and Zinc (Zn) has been found to be increasing in water, soil, and air in
several African countries (Carnie, 2004). Neurotoxic effects of exposure to low levels found in the environment
includes reduced or poor educational attainment, poor classroom behaviour, anaemia, high blood pressure and
some cellular changes whose significance are yet to be fully understood.
Heavy metal pollution of riverine and other aquatic systems may affect man directly or through his supplies of
water, agricultural and other biological products; his physical objects or possessions or his opportunities for
recreation and appreciation of nature. The preservation of aquatic resources for ecosystem and human health and
well-being is a paramount concern worldwide and it has become evident that approaches to managing aquatic
resources must be undertaken within the ecosystem dynamics in order that their exploitation for human uses

138
Journal of Natural Sciences Research www.iiste.org
ISSN 2224-3186 (Paper) ISSN 2225-0921 (Online)
Vol.6, No.8, 2016

remains sustainable (Nakamura et al ., 2006).

Water bodies especially rivers are frequently used for monitoring heavy metal pollution in urban areas. This is so
because the industrial activities in and around an area may influence the level of heavy metal, hence the
analytical data obtained from such analysis can serve as measures of pollution in the area under study. In this
study, we report heavy metal (Pb, Mn, Cu and Zn) concentrations in the water and sediment samples in River
Gora during the wet season month of the year.

2. Materials and method

2.1 Study area
The study was conducted in River Gora, which is a tributary of River Kaduna in Kaduna town during the wet
season in August, 2010. Kaduna is a capital city in Northern Nigeria and the town with the second largest
concentration of industries in the region. River Gora receives effluents predominantly from International Beer
and Beverages Industries (IBBI), sun glasses industry, flour mill and glass industry. The River serves as drainage
for urban surface runoff, as a source of irrigation water for farmlands along its banks and for domestic uses by
locals that live along the course of the River. In the farmland area, high nutrient runoff from the various
agricultural practices washes into the river as well as livestock manure, pesticides and human waste.
2.2 Sample collection and pre-treatment
Two sampling stations were established along the profile in the course of the research, site A and site B. Water
sample was collected in 1l water bottle, previously rinsed with distilled water, and preserved at 4oC in the
refrigerator. Sediment samples were scooped from a depth of about 20 cm into plastic containers using a spatula.
They were air-dried for three days until totally dry and then passed through a 2 mm sieve. Drying the materials
protects the sediment sample from decomposition and also ensures a constant reference value.
2,3 Laboratory analysis
Analysis of water sample was done with 1-2% HNO3 using a DR/400U atomic absorption spectrophotometer
(AAS) (HACH, USA). This gives the total accumulation of various metals in the water sample.
Heavy metals readily form complexes with organic constituents; therefore it is necessary to destroy the organic
matter by digestion with strong acids.
5 g each of the sediment sample was digested with 100 ml of 20% HNO3 in a conical flask, boiled gently for 10-
15 min and filtered while still warm to avoid precipitation of the metals. The filtrate was made up to 100 ml
using distilled water. Allowed to cool and analysed using 1-2% HNO3. The analysis was carried out using AAS
according to the method of AOAC (2005).
The hydrogen ion concentration (PH) of each sample was also determined.

3. Results
The average PH of the water samples from sites A and B was 7.05 and 6.4 respectively, while that of the sediment
was 7.30 and 7.10 from sites A and B respectively.
The heavy metal concentration in water and sediment samples obtained from the two sampling points is shown
in Table 1 and Table 2 respectively.
Heavy metal concentrations (mgl-1) showed variations. The concentration of heavy metal was observed to be
higher in water and sediment samples collected from site A (the point of effluent discharge) than the samples
from site B (a distance of about 1 Km downstream). The mean levels of Zn, Cu, Pb and Mn for site A for water
samples were 0.3 mgl-1, 0.02 mgl-1, 0.82 mgl-1 and 0.27 mgl-1 respectively, and for site B, 0.19 mgl-1, 0.01 mgl-1,
0.0 mgl-1 and 0.25 mgl-1. For the sediment samples, mean concentrations of Zn, Cu, Pb and Mn from site A were
49.6 mgl-1, 17.25 mgl-1, 320 mgl-1, and 26.52 mgl-1 respectively, and for site B 26.5 mgl-1, 4.28 mgl-1, 30.08 mgl-1
and 6.5 mgl-1.
Sediment accumulated much more levels of heavy metals than the water samples as shown in Table 2 and Figure
2 relative to Table 1 and Figure 1.

4. Discussion
The levels of lead observed in the stream have drawn our attention, mainly due to the toxic effects of lead on

139
Journal of Natural Sciences Research www.iiste.org
ISSN 2224-3186 (Paper) ISSN 2225-0921 (Online)
Vol.6, No.8, 2016

plants and animals, including humans. Ecological and toxicological effects of lead and its compounds in the
environment have been reviewed extensively (Demayo et al., 1982; Mudge G.P, 1983; De Michele S.J, 1984 and
Lansdow and Yule, 1986). Lead is ubiquitous and is a characteristic trace constituent in rocks, soils water, plants,
animals and air. Pb is an accumulative metabolic poison. Most of the chemical forms of lead can be incorporated
into the body by inhalation, ingestion, dermal absorption and placental transfer to the foetus. High levels of
exposure may cause problems in the synthesis of haemoglobin, effects on the kidneys, gastrointestinal tract,
joints and reproductive system and acute or chronic damage to the nervous system. The mean concentration of
lead in site A for the sampling month was 0.82 mg/ml. Comparing these figures with the International guideline
for drinking water by WHO shows that lead in the water sample is above the acceptable condition and this could
pose a threat to humans that utilize this water for drinking and for other domestic purposes. Livestock and plants
watered with the polluted water could also accumulate these toxic metals in their tissues and these could
ultimately affect humans that feed on them. As was previously shown by Emere et al., 2015, plants grown near
Ungwan Dosa Stream in Kaduna accumulated Zn in their leaves. Lead concentration in the sediment sample was
found to be 320 mgl-1 in site A, much less concentration of lead was obtained from site B. This recorded high
levels of lead in both the water and sediment samples calls for stricter regulation of effluent discharged from the
industries.
Sediment samples accumulated higher concentration of all the metals sampled compared to water samples. This
could be because both the plant and animal remains finally end up decomposing in the sediments and particulate
materials settle in the sediment thereby adding to the load of accumulated heavy metals in sediments. This is in
accordance with the findings of Bubiez et al., (1982).
The levels of the Zn, Cu and Mn in both the water and sediment samples for both sampling sites were observed
to be within the International guidelines for heavy metals in water and sediments.
The observed higher levels of the heavy metal in site A relative to site B indicate improper treatment of effluents
by the industries that discharge their effluents into River Gora.

Table 1. Concentration of heavy metals in water samples obtained from site A and site B for the sampling month.

Metal Site A Site B

(mg-1) 1 2
1 2 Ẍ Ẍ
Zinc 0.308 0.32 0.31 0.10 0.28 0.19
Copper 0.00 0.045 0.02 0.00 0.02 0.01
Lead 0.80 0.84 0.82 0.00 0.00 0.00
Manganese 0.25 0.3 0.27 0.00 0.50 0.25

Table 2. Concentration of heavy metals in sediment samples obtained from site A and site B for the sampling
month

Metal Site A Site B

(mg-1) 1 2 Ẍ 1 2 Ẍ
Zinc 46.20 53.00 49.6 21.02 31.99 26.5
Copper 17.50 17.00 17.25 4.00 4.560 4.28
Lead 320 320 320 12.55 47.62 30.08
Manganese 25 28.05 26.52 5.34 7.67 6.50

140
Journal of Natural Sciences Research www.iiste.org
ISSN 2224-3186 (Paper) ISSN 2225-0921 (Online)
Vol.6, No.8, 2016

Figure 1. Mean Concentration of heavy metals in water samples obtained from site A and site B.

Figure 2. Mean concentration of heavy metals in sediment samples obtained from site A and site B.

References
AOAC (2005). Official method of analysis. Association of analytical Chemist. Wash. Dc, 15 th ed. 11-14.
Bubiez, M., Kozak, L., Milkos, M. and Wards, Z. (1982). Heavy metals in the aquatic environment of some
water bodies of the Lublin coal basin. Acta Hydrobiol 24: 125-138
Carnie, T., 2004. Toxic tide is taking its toll on Africa. The Mercury Newspaper (South Africa), 24 February
2004, pp: 2.
Demayo, A., Taylor, M. C., Taylor, K. W. & Hodson, P. V., 1982, Toxic effects of lead and lead compounds on

141
Journal of Natural Sciences Research www.iiste.org
ISSN 2224-3186 (Paper) ISSN 2225-0921 (Online)
Vol.6, No.8, 2016

human health, aquatic life, wildlife plants and livestock. pp. 257-305. In: Guidelines for surface water quality.
Vol. I, Inorganic Chemical Substances.
DeMichele SJ (1984) Nutrition of lead. Comp Biochem Physiol A 78:401- 408.
Dempster, J.P., Manning, W.J., Havens, K.E., Jones, K.C., Krupa, S.V., Tanabe, S., 1994. Special Issue - Global
Climate-Change. Environmental Pollution 83 (1-2). 1-1.
Emere M.C., Onusiriuka B.C. and Egbe N.E.L. (2015). Metallic (Zinc) load of plants found along Ungwan Dosa
Stream, Kaduna, Nigeria. Journal of Natural Sciences Research 5:14
Freedman B (1989). Environmental Ecology: The impacts of pollutants and other stress on Ecosystem structure
and functions. Academic press Inc. Harcourt Brace Jovanorich Publishers. p. 424
Kar, D., Sur, P., Mandal, S.K., Saha, T and Kole, R.K. Assessment of Heavy Metal Pollution in Surface Water,
International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology Vol. 5, No. 4, 2008, pp. 119-124.
Lansdown R, Yule W (eds) (1986). The lead debate: The environmental toxicology and child health. Croom
Helm, London
Lee, Y.H. and Stuebing, R.B. (1990) Heavy metal contamination in the River Toad, Bufo juxtasper (Inger), near a
copper mine in East Malaysia. Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology, 45 (1990), pp. 272–279
Mudge, G. P. (1983). The incidence and significance of ingested lead pellet poisoning in British waterfowl
Biological Conservation 27:333–372.
Nair, I.V., Singh, K., Arumugam, M., Gangadhar, K. & Clarson, D. (2010). Trace metal quality of Meenachil
River at Kottayam, Kerala (India) by principal component analysis. World Appl. Sci. J., 9(10):1100-1107.
Nakamura, K., Tockner, K., and Amano, K. (2006) River and wetland restoration: lessons from Japan,
Bioscience, 56(5), 419-429.
Sprenger M, McIntosh A. Relationship between concentrations of aluminium, cadmium, lead and zinc in water,
sediments and aquatic macrophytes in six acidic lakes. Arch Environ Contam Toxicol 18:225-232, 1989.

142