Application of Carbon-Nitrogen Supplementation from Plant and Animal Sources in In-situ Soil Bioremediation of Diesel Oil: Experimental Analysis and Kinetic Modelling

In this study, the potential effects of sawdust, yam peel and mixture of cow dung, goat dung and poultry dung used alone or in combination as amendment/nutrient supplements to biostimulate autochthonous micro?ora for hydrocarbon biodegradation were investigated in microcosms containing soil spiked with diesel oil (10 % w/w). The rates of biodegradation of the diesel oil were studied for 42 days remediation period under laboratory conditions. The results showed that there was a positive relationship between the microbial growth, biodegradation rate and presence of the sawdust, yam peel and the mixture of cow dung, goat dung and poultry dung (alone or in combination) in microcosms simulated diesel oil contaminated soil.  The biodegradation data fitted well to first-order kinetic model. The model revealed that the combination of sawdust, yam peel, cow dung, goat dung and poultry dung elicited higher diesel oil biodegradation with biodegradation rate constant of 0.089 day-1 and half-life of 7.79 days. The system proposed here takes advantage of the organic wastes bulking properties as well as the autochthonous microorganism metabolic activity to efficiently degrade petroleum hydrocarbons. This system is inexpensive, efficient, and environmentally friendly and may thus offer a viable choice for petroleum hydrocarbons-contaminated soil remediation. Keywords: Biodegradation; Biostimulation; Diesel oil; Organic wastes; First-order kinetics; Half-life

Assessment of Vehicular-Induced Emissions in some Selected Areas in Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria

Vehicular emission is a major environmental health problem in the world today especially in developing countries including Nigeria. This study was centered on assessing the vehicular emissions pollutants such as Carbon monoxide (CO), Hydrogen Sulphide (H2S), Formaldehyde (HCHO) and Total Volatile Organic Compound (TVOC) in Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria. The sampling of the CO and H2S gaseous pollutants was done using H-4S gas analyzer while JCG60 gas detector was used to measure TVOC and HCHO. The meteorological parameters were measured with HTC-1 hygrometer thermometer. AQI was calculated to determine the status of the ambient air quality of the study areas. Carbon monoxide concentration obtained from the result ranges from 3.12-16.1 ppm with location C having the highest amount of 16.1 ppm which exceeds the Federal Environmental Protection Agency (FEPA) standard of 10 ppm. The calculated AQI shows that the study areas are all polluted. Continuous measurement and inventory of air pollutants should be encouraged, as this will enable the policymakers to effectively implement control measures on air pollution

Effect of air pollution on the foliar morphology of some species in the family Euphorbiaceae in southwestern Nigeria

Morphological studies of the leaves of ten species in the family Euphorbiaceae collected from three different locations with different pollution levels in Southwestern Nigeria were carried out in order to establish the effect of air pollution on these species. The study was carried out in both dry and wet seasons. Climatic data and pollutants concentration levels of the study sites were determined. Leaf area of all the species was measured using an established nondestructive method while petiole length was determined using metric ruler. The result showed that most species showed significant reductions (p<0.05) in the leaf area and petiole length across the three locations and this reduction is from rural to sub-urban to urban areas. Among all the species that showed reductions in leaf area, Alchornea cordifolia showed the highest response while Euphorbia hyssopifolia, E. hirta and Croton lobatus do not show clear reductions. Similar significant reductions were recorded for petiole length with the highest impact recorded in Manihot esculenta while species like E. hyssopifolia, E. hirta, C. lobatus and Flueggea virosa were not significantly reduced. This study showed that plants generally respond to air pollution with reduction in foliar morphology and the response is species specific.Keywords: Pollution, leaf morphology, Euphorbiaceae, leaf area, petiole lengt

Investigation of No2/No, So2, Co and Volatile Organic Compounds Emission from Solid Waste in Ogbomoso

Emissions from burning of solid waste have been a major source of air pollutions in Ogbomoso Township in the last few years. This research work estimate the emissions of nitrogen oxides (NO2/NO), carbon(II)oxide, sulphur (iv) oxide and volatile organic compounds from solid waste in Ogbomoso as a measure of control using the emission factors approach. Determination of the solid waste generation potential using per capita approach was combined with the appropriate emission factors for the estimation. On the average, nylon has the least generation potential with 8.85% while solid (glass, metal, tin and sand) has the highest with 44.825%. These generation potentials increased from 44,073 tonnes/annum in the year 2002 to 63,822.88 tonnes/annum in the year 2011 with the population of 242,167 to 350,627 per capita respectively. However, results obtained from nitrogen oxides (NO2/NO), carbon (II) oxide, sulphur (iv) oxide and volatile organic compounds emissions rate shows an increased trend of 132.22 to 191.47, 1851.3 to 2680.6, 19.3 to 27.1 and 947.58 to 1372.19 tonnes/annum respectively in the year 2002 to 2011. The emission rate of NO/NO2, SO2, CO and volatile organic compounds must be controlled because of their adverse effect on the environment. The controlled could be by converting them for energy production owing to the high calorific value of the solid waste in Ogbomoso. Another controlled technique that can be employed in addition to conversion for energy production is by burning the waste in an incinerator since the solid waste consist of high percentage of combustible materials. Keywords: Emission factor, Solid wast

Biodegradation of Dichlorovos (Organophosphate Pesticide) in Soil by Bacterial Isolates

Excessive and continuous dispersion of pesticides which are toxic heterogeneous compound in the environment results in environmental pollution with ecological effects that require remediation. This study investigated the potential of microbial isolates to biodegrade or cleans up agricultural soil artificially contaminated with Dichlorvos (2, 2-dichlorovinyldimethylphosphate) pesticide.  A bacterial consortium which degraded Dichlorvos pesticide was isolated from agricultural soil using pour plate method.  This consortium was composed of four pure strains which were characterized based on their morphological and biochemical characteristics.  The strains were presumptively identifies as Proteus vulgaris, Vibrio sp., Serratia sp. and Acinetobacter sp. The consortium and the four bacteria were evaluated in order to discover their ability to biodegrade Dichlorvos pesticide in medium supplied with different nutrients (NH4NO3, KH2PO4 and NPK (20:10:10) fertilizer). The results showed that the bacterial consortium and the four bacteria isolates were able to grow in nutrient medium containing Dichlorvos as the only carbon source.  Moreover, the bacterial consortium was able to remove greater amount of DDP in soil amended with inorganic fertilizer (NPK) than those amended with NH4NO3 and KH2PO4, respectively.  These results indicate that the isolated strains can be used for waste biodegradation or bioremediation of organophosphate pesticide- contaminated soil or water. Keywords: bacteria; biodegradation; dichlorvos; nutrient; organophosphate pesticide

Challenges and Possible Panacea to the Municipal Solid Wastes Management in Nigeria

This paper provides overview of the state of municipal solid waste management (MSWM) by local authorities in Nigeria. Different areas through which the challenges can be tackled in order to improve municipal solid waste (MSW) services are discussed. With increasing global change pressures (population explosion, haphazard rapid urbanization, climate change etc.), coupled with existing un-sustainability factors, cities in developing countries are most likely to experience difficulties in efficiently managing MSW. The unplanned urbanization growth will definitely lead to huge problems on governments especially for meeting the increasing demand for proper and healthy municipal services. The growth results in increasing quantity and complexity of the generated wastes and overburdens. The rural economy needs to be improved if rural"“urban migration is to be managed. Communal efforts of local, state and federal government, the stakeholders, Non-Governmental Organizations and the private sector are paramount to attaining high level of development and sustainable MSWM

Modelling of Pollutants Dispersion from Open Burning of Solid Waste Using AERMOD

This study evaluates the air quality impact of open burning of solid waste activities in Ilorin, Nigeria. An emission inventory was carried out to quantify the emitted CO, NOx and SOx from 2016- 2020 into the study area. Their ground level concentrations were computed with the Industrial Source Complex – American Meteorological Society (AMS) and United State Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Regulatory Model (AERMOD) dispersion model and compared with standards to determine their impacts on ambient air quality. The average hourly, daily and annual concentrations were 25,267 µg/m3, 4,609 µg/m3, 447 µg/m3 for carbon monoxide (CO); 4,700 µg/m3, 730 µg/m3, 130 µg/m3 for oxides of nitrogen (NOx) and 954 µg/m3, 144 µg/m3, 24 µg/m3 for oxides of sulphur (SOx) respectively. The hourly air quality for CO were within the World Bank standard for all the receptor communities except at Abe-Emi with 2.17 folds, while the daily air quality was within the Federal Ministry of Environment (FMEnV) limit. However, the 1-h, 24-h and annual air quality for NOx exceeded the FMEnV and World Bank standard for all the receptor communities. Similarly, the hourly and daily air quality for SOx exceeded the FMEnV and World Bank standard for all the receptor communities

Challenges and Possible Panacea to the Municipal Solid Wastes Management in Nigeria

This paper provides overview of the state of municipal solid waste management (MSWM) by local authorities in Nigeria. Different areas through which the challenges can be tackled in order to improve municipal solid waste (MSW) services are discussed. With increasing global change pressures (population explosion, haphazard rapid urbanization, climate change etc.), coupled with existing un-sustainability factors, cities in developing countries are most likely to experience difficulties in efficiently managing MSW. The unplanned urbanization growth will definitely lead to huge problems on governments especially for meeting the increasing demand for proper and healthy municipal services. The growth results in increasing quantity and complexity of the generated wastes and overburdens. The rural economy needs to be improved if rural"“urban migration is to be managed. Communal efforts of local, state and federal government, the stakeholders, Non-Governmental Organizations and the private sector are paramount to attaining high level of development and sustainable MSWM

Using Enrichment Factor Approach for Source Identification of Potentially Toxic Heavy Metals along Benin-Ore-Sagamu Expressway in Nigeria

The variation in heavy metal concentration in different environment is dependent on the emission source. Source identification of heavy metal plays an important role in providing solution to its contamination in the atmosphere. Hence, the objective of this paper is to engage enrichment factor (EF) approach to evaluate the source identification of potentially toxic heavy metals along the Benin-Ore-Sagamu Expressway in Nigeria in four sampling locations (A, B, C and D) that are denoted with high traffic congestion. The source identification of Cu, Zn, Mn, Ni, Pd, Cd, Cr and Pb contamination in the study area were determined using appropriate standard methods. The EF values indicated for Cu ranged from (2.3-5.9), Zn (0.48-0.86), Mn (0.29-0.49), Ni (1.27-4.03), Pd (37012.18-59922.57), Cd (1909.11-2844.81), Cr (4.56-7.76) and Pb (0.77-4.64). The results suggest crustal source enrichment for Zn and Mn while Cu, Ni, Cr and Pb were enriched moderately. However, the EF values for Pd and Cd were found to be greater than 50, indicating extremely severe enrichment. The findings of this study provide evidence of anthropogenic impact on heavy metals pollution in the study area that is attributed to the intense vehicular traffic