THE EFFECT OF GROUNDWATER CONTAMINATION IN NIGERIA
ABSTRACT
In Nigeria, inadequate supply of pipe borne water is a major concern; hence many homes have wells as a source of water for household uses. The groundwater of forty wells in Agbowo community was assessed for Total Aerobic Bacteria Counts (TABC) and Total Coliform Counts (TCC). The location and distances of wells from septic tanks were determine dusing the Global Positioning System (GPS) device and a tape rule respectively. All the wells sampled had high TABC(4.76±1.41 log CFU/mL) and TCC (2.29±0.67 log CFU/mL) counts which exceeded the international standard of 0 per100 mL of potable water.
There were no significant differences in the bacterial counts between covered and uncoveredwells (p >0.05). The mean distance (8.93±3.61m) of wells from the septic tanks was below the limit (15.24 m or 50 ft) setby United State Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA). TABC increased with a decrease in distance between thewells and septic tanks though not significant (p <0.05)A very weak positive correlation (r2=0.021)ensued between thedistance from septic tank and CC, while a weak negative correlation (r2=
‒0.261) was obtained between the TCC andTABC. This study accentuates the need to set standards for the siting of wells from septic tanks while considering allpossible sources of well contamination as well as treatment of ground water before use.
- For Reference Only: Materials are for research, citation, and idea generation purposes and not for submission as your original final year project work.
- Avoid Plagiarism: Do not copy or submit this content as your own project. Doing so may result in academic consequences.
- Use as a Framework: This complete project research material should guide the development of your own final year project work.
- Academic Access: This platform is designed to reduce the stress of visiting school libraries by providing easy access to research materials.
- Institutional Support: Tertiary institutions encourage the review of previous academic works such as journals and theses.
- Open Education: The site is maintained through paid subscriptions to continue offering open access educational resources.
