An Assessment of the Impact of Abattoir Effluents on River Illo, Ota, Nigeria

The aim of this research was to assess the impact of abattoir effluents on River Illo in Ota, Nigeria. In order to achieve this set objective seven sampling locations were chosen along the river course. The choice of locations was to reflect the variations in concentrations of the following important parameters of water quality issue: pH, conductivity, total dissolved solids, total suspended solids, dissolved oxygen, biochemical oxygen demand, chemical oxygen demand, ammonia and nitrate among others. The choice of these parameters was based on their relative importance in abattoir effluents composition. Results of analyses revealed impairment in the quality of River Illo by the wash down from the abattoir activities. Dissolved oxygen concentrations ranged between 0.01 and 4.6 mg L-1 while the highest concentrations of TSS and TS of 1026 and 1071.5 mg L-1, respectively were obtained at the point of abattoir effluents discharge. The BOD mean value of 312.9 mg L-1 obtained for the river water is far above the highest permissible value of 30 mg L-1 allowed by the Federal Environmental Protection Agency for discharge into receiving water bodies in Nigeria. The mean value of 783 mg L-1 obtained for the COD of the river body corroborates the pollution of the water body. The current water quality status of River Illo from the discharge of abattoir effluents therefore poses both environmental and health hazards to users. In order to redress this and ensure public health safety, River Illo needs adequate treatment before use

Passing on the Baton to Future Water Resources Scientists & Engineers in Developing Nations

Education is important for the proper management of water resources in any nation, especially in developing nations that are faced with other equally important competing issues. In West Africa, as a developing region, in addition to other economic problems exists severe groundwater related issues. Working with students in those nations is one way of training qualified water professionals to manage water resources in developing nations. Some of these problems may stem from improper sewage and waste disposal due to lack of adequate structures. Also, in coastal regions, with indiscriminate well drilling, uncontrolled growth, and urbanization, water quality is a serious issue. During a rain event, a low-lying area was turned into a fast flowing river, carrying with it surface contaminants. In areas where water supply is not limited, for example in coastal regions in Nigeria, seawater intrusion is becoming a serious problem. Examples that qualified personal use include mentoring, teaching, and training, are presented below. Qualified personal embody the skills of mentoring, teaching, and training of local nationals

Heamatology and Serum Quality of Red Sokoto Goats Fed Baobab (Adansonia digitata L.) Fruit Meal Supplement

The haematology and serum components of Red Sokoto goats fed baobab fruit meal  was investigated. A total of 16 animals were randomly allotted to four dietary treatments with four animal per replicate in a completely randomized design. Treatment 1 was control with no baobab fruit meal supplement, Treatments 2 , 3 and 4 had 10%, 20% and 30%  respectively. The heamatological and serum characteristics were significantly affected (P<0.05) across the treatments with Treatment 3 (20% inclusion) having the highest PCV (%), Hb (g/dl) and RBC (X 109/l) respectively. The serum quality of T3 and T4 were not significantly different but albumin and iron levels were higher in T3 . However, the cholesterol level fluctuates along the treatment with control having the highest cholesterol level of 67.25 ± 2.0ab while T3 had the least value of 60.95 ± 5.1b. The study showed that all the dietary inclusion are satisfactory as feed for small ruminant without any deleterious effect on performance and blood profile.  Inclusion level of 20% baobab appeared to have better overall performance when fed to red sokoto goat. Keywords: baobab fruit meal, red sokoto goats, haematology, seru

Potentiality of agricultural adsorbent for the sequestering of metal ions from wastewater

The expensive nature of metal ions detoxification from wastewater have restricted the use of conventional treatment technologies. Cheap, alternative measures have been adopted to eliminate metal contamination, and adsorptions using agricultural adsorbents seem to be the way forward. The use of agricultural adsorbents for cadmium (II), copper (II) and lead (II) ion removal has gained more interest in literature due to the level of contamination in water bodies. This review shed lights on the removal proficiency of various low–cost agricultural adsorbent for the elimination of cadmium (II), copper (II) and lead (II) ions, considering performance, surface modification, equilibrium adsorptive studies, kinetic characteristics, coefficient of correlation (R2) and reuse. Furthermore, these agricultural adsorbents have displayed better performance when rivaled with commercial/conventional adsorbent. Observations from different adsorptive capacities presented owe their performance to surface area improvement/modification, pH of the adsorbent, ionic potential of the solution, initial concentration and elemental component of the adsorbent. However, gaps have been identified to improve applicability, sorption performance, economic viability, optimization, and commercialization of suitable agricultural adsorbents

Public Feedback on State of Domestic Water Supply in Lagos: Implications for Public Health

Traditional beliefs and public perceptions have direct impact on water use in any community. Furthermore, public feedback has been recognized as a necessary input for integrated water resources management. Thus, public feedback regarding the state of water supply in Lagos state was harvested using stratified sampling technique, while data was analyzed using descriptive statistics. Lagos is a mega-city with annual growth rate of 5% and 21 million residents. Results show that majority of the residents believe water services should be free, and behave as such. Lagos Water Corporation (LWC) supplies 210 million gallons of water/day to the city but loses 60-83% of its production to vandalism, illegal connections and ageing infrastructure. The resultant effect is that 34% of the residents are reached with water, while 64 % use groundwater as an alternative. In Lagos Island, where water table ranges from 3-7 m, septic tanks are sited indiscriminately and saltwater intrusion is frequently reported. Thus, groundwater pollution is rife and public health is constantly at risk. Using proven examples, the paper demonstrated how repositioning LWC for sustainable production and distribution of water in Lagos could provide the cheapest, cleanest, and quickest alternative for making water available to all residents