Toxicity comparison of water-accommodated fraction and chemically enhanced fraction of bonny light crude oil and dispersit SPC 1000 to mudskipper (Periophthalmus papilio) fish

This study assessed the physicochemical characteristics and toxicity of water-accommodated fraction (WAF) and chemically enhanced WAF (CEWAF) of Bonny Light Crude oil and Dispersit SPC 1000 (dispersant) to Mudskipper fish (Periophthalmus Papilio). There were variations in the levels of the physicochemical parameters. The coefficient of variation (CV) indicated that the temperature show the least variation of 2.24% and salinity the highest 98.12%.Hypothesis test for significant differences at p < 0.05 significance level however, showed that there were no significant differences in the levels of the measured parameters over the 96 hours. All the mudskippers fish samples exposed to the water accumulated water fraction of 10% bonny oil survived beyond 96 hours. An increase in toxicity of the oil was observed after 72-96 hour exposures of the mudskipper to the oil and dispersant CEWAF. For dispersant concentrations of 540 ml/L and 630 ml/L the survival of mudskippers was 80%. These mortalities might be due to the toxic effect of the dispersant, Dispersit SPC 1000.The Total Petroleum Hydrocarbon (TPH) and the Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon (PAH) in the test media were respectively 7.66-63.18 ppm and 0.82-5.26 ppm.10% Bonny light crude oil WAF had no effects on mudskipper survival. Exposures to 540 ml/L and 630 ml/L Dispersit SPC 1000 dispersed oil WAF (CEWAF) resulted in 20 % mortality. The lethal dose concentration was 885.5 ml/L (88.55%). The lowest observed effect concentration (LOEC) was found to be 540 ml/L.Keywords: Water-accommodated fraction, chemically enhanced fraction, Dispersant, Mudskipper fis

Single and Joint Toxicological Effect of Dispersit SPC 1000 and Bonny Oil on Mudskipper Fish (Periophthalmus Papilio) from the Brackish Waters of Buguma, Rivers State, Nigeria

Marine oil spillage accidents greatly impact major risks to the environment in terms of the acute and chronic adverse effects not only to the offshore, but also the coastal ecosystem. This study assessed single and joint toxicological effect of Dispersit SPC 1000 and Bonny Oil on mudskipper fish (Periophthalmus papilio) from the brackish water research station of African Regional Aquaculture Centre, Buguma, Rivers State, Nigeria. The physicochemical parameters observed throughout the study were the pH, alkalinity and salinity were 6.83 ± 0.1, 40 mg/L± 0.2 and 17,655 mg/L respectively. The temperature and Dissolved oxygen (D.O.) and specific gravity averaged 26.7oC ± 0.1, 5.70 mg/L ± 0.02 and 1.008 ± 0.001, respectively. Dispersit SPC 1000 was found to be toxic to the mudskipper at various % (v/v) concentration, above 60 % (v/v) concentration no fish survived after one hour. The relation between the probit mortality and log concentration showed a strong positive correlation between the dispersant concentration and fish mortality within 3 hours, with r2 = 0.813 p = 0.05;The lethal dose Lc50 was 73.48%. Within 6 hours, the mortality increased as the dispersant exposure concentration was increased (r2 = 0.872, p =0.05). The results of exposure of the mudskippers to the water-oil-dispersant mix (CEWAF) showed lower mortalities. Mortality was observed after 72 hours for dispersant concentration above 54 %. 63% dispersant concentrations, 20% mortalities was observed between 72 and 96 hours. Dispersit SPC 1000 alone was highly toxic, and the toxicity of CEWAF was primarily caused by the presence of dispersant. There was no joint increase in toxicity between bonny oil and the chemical dispersant, as the mixing of the dispersant by the oil resulted in diminished toxicity of CEWAF and lower mortality.Keywords: Joint Toxicity, Dispersit SPC1000, Mudskipper Fis

Assessment of Ni Toxicity to Fungi and Bacteria in Oil Tainted Soils in Greater Port Harcourt Area, Nigeria

Intensified urbanization and industrialization are rapidly triggering the release of pollutants to the environment. This study determined the extent of soil contamination with Nickel (Ni) in oil mining areas and its effect on the levels of Ni tolerance by fungi and bacteria. The total CFUs/g of soil were enumerated after a culture period of 7 days at 28°C and LC50 was determined using probit and regression analysis. The mean values of Ni were 1.38±0.23 in industrial area, 1.41±0.36 ppm in agricultural area and 1.02±0.64 in urban area. The mean values of Total Petroleum Hydrocarbon (TPH) were 4,405.46 ppm in industrial area, 55.65 ppm in agricultural area and 1,304.53 ppm in urban area. Nickel’s peak concentration indicating growth of both fungi and bacteria at 150 ppm. There was significant difference (p ≤ 0.000) in the mean levels of LC50 for fungi among the study sites. There was no significant correlation between the concentration of TPH in soil and LC50 of fungi (r = -0.169) and bacteria (r = 0.042). In conclusion, TPH influenced the levels of fungi and bacteria tolerance to Ni in soils. Moreover, it was observed that LC50 can be a reliable method for monitoring chemically resistant microorganisms directly in the environment to improve the use of microorganisms for the bioremediation of oil contaminated soils and in monitoring of antibiotic resistant microorganisms in natural ecosystems

Fifty years of hemodialysis in Ghana-current status, utilization and cost of dialysis services

BACKGROUND Kidney failure is common in Ghana. Haemodialysis (HD) is the most common treatment modality for survival. Although, HD has been available in Ghana for 50 years, the majority of patients who develop kidney failure cannot access it. We describe the state of HD, dialysis prevalence, its utilization and cost of HD after fifty years of dialysis initiation in Ghana. METHODS A situational assessment of HDs centres in Ghana was conducted by surveying nephrologists, doctors, nurses and other health care professionals in HD centres from August to October 2022. We assessed the density of HD centres, number of HD machines, prevalence of nephrologists, number of patients receiving HD treatment and the cost of dialysis in private and government facilities in Ghana. RESULTS There are 51 HD centres located in 9 of the 16 regions of Ghana. Of these, only 40 centres are functioning, as 11 had shut down or are yet to operate. Of the functioning centres most (n = 26, 65%) are in the Greater Accra region serving 17.7% of the population and 7(17.5%) in the Ashanti region serving 17.5% of the population in Ghana. The rest of the seven regions have one centre each. The private sector has twice as many HD centers (n = 27, 67.5%) as the public sector (n = 13,32.5%). There are 299 HD machines yielding 9.7 HD machines per million population (pmp) with a median of 6 (IQR 4-10) machines per centre. Ghana has 0.44 nephrologists pmp. Currently, 1195 patients receive HD, giving a prevalence of 38.8 patients pmp with 609(50.9%) in the private sector. The mean cost of HD session is US $53.9 ± 8.8 in Ghana. CONCLUSION There are gross inequities in the regional distribution of HD centres in Ghana, with a low HD prevalence and nephrology workforce despite a high burden of CKD. The cost of haemodialysis remains prohibitive and mainly paid out-of-pocket limiting its utilization

Acute kidney injury and in-hospital mortality among patients with COVID-19 in Ghana – a single centre study

Introduction: Acute kidney injury (AKI) occurs in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and is associated with high mortality, but this has not yet been described in Ghana. We therefore record here the proportion of COVID-19 patients with AKI, and determined the corresponding mortality, in a tertiary-level hospital in Ghana. Methods: We conducted a retrospective study of all patients admitted to the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, with a diagnosis of COVID-19 proven by reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), from March 2020 to February 2021. Demographics, clinical findings and laboratory investigations were recorded and summary statistics used to describe the data. Predictors of mortality were established by multiple logistic regression. Results: The study involved 250 patients, of whom 129 (52%) were males, with a mean age of 56.3 ± 17.4 years. AKI occurred in 123 (49%). The most common causes of AKI were pre-renal AKI and ischaemic ATN – 65 (73%) and 37 (30%) cases, respectively. Haemodialysis was required in 6 (5%) cases. The in-hospital mortality of all the COVID-19 patients was 71 (31%). The predictors of in-patient mortality in multivariate analysis were hyperglycaemia (OR = 18.48 [95%CI (2.0 –165.2], P = 0.009), severe COVID-19 (OR = 31.3 [95% CI 1.53–635.5], P = 0.025), elevated white blood cell count (OR = 1.32 [95% CI 1.09–1.59], P = 0.004), lymphopenia (OR = 0.16. [95% CI 0.03–3.26], P = 0.027) and not AKI (OR = 0.79 [95% CI 0.45–1.34], P = 0.380). Stage 3 (severe) AKI, however, occurred in 39 (32%) cases and was significantly associated with mortality [OR = 2.41 (95% CI 1.05–5.49, P = 0.036)] as compared to those with mild–moderate AKI in a sub-analysis. Conclusions: AKI is common in hospitalized patients with COVID-19. Stage 3 AKI was associated with increased in-hospital mortality. Predictors of mortality were severe COVID-19 disease, lymphopenia and hyperglycaemia

Modelling forest loss and other land use change dynamics in Ashanti Region of Ghana

Forest losses amid land use dynamics have become issues of outermost concern in the light of climate change phenomenon which has captivated the world’s attention. It is imperative to monitor land use change and to forecast forms of future land use change on a temporal and spatial basis. The main thrust of this study is to assess land use change in the lower half of the Ashanti Region of Ghana within a 40 year period. The analysis of land use change uses a combination method in Remote Sensing (RS) and Geographic Information System (GIS). Cellular Automata and Markov Chain (Cellular Automata-Markov) are utilized to predict for land use land cover (LULC) change for 2020 and 2030. The processes used include: (i) a data pre-processing (geometric corrections, radiometric corrections, subset creation and image enhancement) of epoch Landsat images acquired in 1990, 2000, and Disaster Monitoring Constellation (DMC) 2010; (ii) classification of multispectral imagery (iii) Change detection mapping (iv) using Cellular Automata-Markov to generate land use change in the next 20 years. The results illustrate that in years 2020 to 2030 in the foreseeable future, there will an upsurge in built up areas, while a decline in agricultural land use is envisaged. Agricultural land use would still be the dominant land use type. Forests would be drastically reduced from close to 50% in 1990 to just fewer than 10% in 2030. Land use decision making must be very circumspect, especially in an era where Ghana has opted to take advantage of REDD+. Studies such as this provide vital pieces of information which may be used to monitor, direct and influence land use change to a more beneficial and sustainable manne

Untersuchung der Temperaturvarabilität mit Mann–Kendall-Trendtest und Sen-Slope Schätzer in den Städten Accra und Kumasi in Ghana

Temperature variability may have direct and indirect impacts on the environments of the Accra and Kumasi Metropolises in Ghana. This study analysed temperature and trends in temperature in both cities using in-situ measurements from one meteorological station in both cities from 1986 to 2015. The temperature indices were computed using the RClimdex package from the Expert Team on Climate Change Detection Monitoring Indices (ETCCDMI). The temperature time series was pre-whitened before the Mann–Kendall trend and Sen’s slope estimator analysis were applied. Initial analysis revealed minimal variation in temperature in both cities. The results from the analysed temperature indices revealed an increase in warm days and a general rise in the minimum temperature compared to maximum temperatures. Mann Kendall and Sen’s slope revealed significant trends in the annual and seasonal (dry and wet seasons) in minimum temperature in both cities. These might lead to an increased rate of heat-stressed diseases and an overall rise in urban warming in both cities. The analysis of temperature, indices and trends provided comprehensive insights into the temperature of Accra and Kumasi. The results highlight the essence of evaluating temperature indices and trends in light of Climate Change concerns. It is recommended that urban green and blue spaces should be incorporated into land use plans as these policy directions can aid regulate the temperature in both cities.Temperaturschwankungen können direkte und indirekte Auswirkungen auf die Umwelt in den Metropolen Accra und Kumasi in Ghana haben. In dieser Studie wurden die Temperatur und die Temperaturtrends in beiden Städten anhand von Messungen jeweils einer meteorologischen Station in beiden Städten von 1986 bis 2015 analysiert. Die Temperaturindizes wurden mit dem RClimdex-Paket des Expert Team on Climate Change Detection Monitoring Indices (ETCCDMI) berechnet. Die gemessenen Temperaturzeitreihen wurde für die Analyse mit Mann-Kendall-Trend und Sen-Slope Schätzer auf- und vorbereitet. Eine erste Analyse ergab minimale Temperaturschwankungen in beiden Städten. Die Ergebnisse der analysierten Temperaturindizes zeigten eine Zunahme der warmen Tage und einen allgemeinen Anstieg der Minimaltemperatur im Vergleich zu den Maximaltemperaturen. Beide Methoden zeigten signifikante Trends im jährlichen und saisonalen (Trocken- und Regenzeit) Verlauf der Mindesttemperatur in beiden Städten. Diese Trends könnten zu einer Erhöhung von hitzebedingten gesundheitlichen Problemen und einer allgemeinen Erwärmung in beiden Städten führen. Die Analyse von Temperaturen, Indizes und Trends führte zu einem erweiterten Verständnis der Temperaturverläufe in Accra und Kumasi. Die Ergebnisse unterstreichen die Bedeutung der Bewertung von Temperaturindizes und -trends im Hinblick auf den Klimawandel. Es wird empfohlen, städtische Grün- und Wasserflächen in die Flächennutzungspläne mit aufzunehmen, damit diese strategischen Planungs- und Regelwerke genutzt werden können, die die Temperatur in beiden Städten positiv beeinflussen zu können

Drivers of land use change and carbon mapping in the savannah area of Ghana

Land-use and land-cover change in both forest reserves and off-reserves is a critical issue in sub Saharan Africa. Deforestation and conversion of forest land to agricultural land continue to be one of the major environmental problems in Africa, and for that matter, Ghana cannot be exceptional; and its resultant effect is the loss in the ecological integrity and the quality of forests, resulting in carbon loss and the resultant climate change effects (FAO 2016). The study area covers the Community Resource Management Areas (CREMA) of the Mole National Park in Ghana, and this study reveals that the area is well endowed with a diverse composition and structure of woodland including dense, open and riverine stretches, which – under the national definition of forest – qualifies as forest. The results reveal that there had been an annual deforestation rate of 0.11% over the period of review. It was concluded from the study that woodland had high carbon stocks with an average carbon of 80 tC/ha, the highest being 194 tC/ha and the lowest being 7 tC/ha, which was recorded in the dense woodland and grassland respectively. The fluxes within the land sector in the study area are moderate and the potential of the area to qualify for as REDD+ is very high. However, the drivers of deforestation, especially bush fires and illegal timber harvesting, are challenges that need to be addressed

Landuse and land cover dynamics in the Volta River Basin surrounding APSD forest plantation, Ghana

Forest plantation is reckoned to accounts for 7% of total global forest cover and has the potential to provide 75% of the global industrial round wood supply. The study analyzed forest resource use trend, mapped out areas of high biodiversity conservation, and made recommendations to promote and sustain large-scale plantation development against the background of anthropogenic pressure on vulnerable ecosystems and biodiversity management

Analyse der Stadterweiterung und ihrer Auswirkungen auf die Temperatur mit Hilfe von Fernerkundung und GIS-Techniken in der Metropole Accra in Ghana (1986-2022)

The Accra Metropolis of Ghana has experienced rapid urban expansion over the past decades. Agricultural and forest-lands have been transformed into urban/built-up areas. This study analysed urban expansion and its relationship with the temperature of Accra from 1986 to 2022. Multi-source datasets such as remote sensing (RS) and other ancillary data were utilised. Land use land cover (LULC) maps were produced employing the random forests classifier. Land surface temperature (LST) and selected d(RS) Indices were extracted. Regression techniques assessed the interplay between LST and remote sensing indices. The LULC maps revealed increasing trends in the urban/built-up areas at the expense of the other LULC types. The analysis from the LST and the RS indices revealed a direct relationship between temperature and urban/built-up areas and an inverse relationship between temperature and vegetation. Thus, spatial urban expansion has modified the urban temperature of Accra. The integrated utilisation of RS and GIS demonstrated to be an efficient approach for analysing and monitoring urban expansion and its relationship with temperature.Die Metropole Accra in Ghana hat in den letzten Jahrzehnten eine rasante Ausdehnung des Stadtgebietes erlebt. Landwirtschaftliche Flächen und Waldgebiete wurden in städtische/bebaute Gebiete umgewandelt. Diese Studie untersuchte die städtische Expansion und ihre Beziehung zur Temperatur in Accra von 1986 bis 2022. Es wurden Daten aus mehreren Quellen wie Fernerkundung (Remote Sensing, RS) und andere Zusatzdaten verwendet. Landnutzungs- und Landbedeckungskarten (Land Use Land Cover, LULC) wurden mit Hilfe des Random-Forest-Klassifikators erstellt. Landoberflächentemperatur (Land Surface Temperature, LST) und ausgewählte d(RS)-Indizes wurden extrahiert. Mit Regressionstechniken wurde das Zusammenspiel zwischen LST und Fernerkundungsindizes untersucht. Die LULC-Karten zeigten zunehmende Trends in den städtischen/bebauten Gebieten auf Kosten der anderen LULC-Typen. Die Analyse der LST- und RS-Indizes ergab eine direkte Beziehung zwischen Temperatur und städtischen/bebauten Gebieten und eine umgekehrte Beziehung zwischen Temperatur und Vegetation. Somit hat die räumliche Ausdehnung der Städte die städtische Temperatur in Accra verändert. Die integrierte Nutzung von RS und GIS erwies sich als effizienter Ansatz für die Analyse und Überwachung der städtischen Expansion und ihrer Beziehung zur Temperatur