Abundances of Nitrates and Coliform with Regards to Water Quality. In Some Parts of lbadan, Southwest, Nigeria.

Water pollution has been reported throughout the world and Nigeria is not an exception. A very wide range of pollutants have been recognized, including Nitrogen species and bacteria. Nitrate (NO.) is the main form of Nitrogen which occurs in water and is becoming increasingly widespread because of agriculture activities, the disposal of sewage and wastes. This study thus focused on the assessment of the water samples in Ibadan, .Southwest, Nigeria based on these two pollutants (NO,) and. Colform) and possibility of natural denitrification in the study area. The surface and groundwater in Ibadan h:w e been polluted by municipal, industrial wastewater, agricultural activities among others. 1 he nitrate and coliform concentrations at thirty sampling points with in Tbadan ranged from 5.89 to 250mg/l and 74-IOOOcfu/ lOOmg/1 respectively. The concentration of nitrate and califom1 exceeded the WHO limit of I Omg/1 and Ocfu/ lOOmg!r'in 93% and 1OQ% of the sampled locations respectively. High nitrate and califom1 ·levels were observed in water from wells from the undeveloped part of the smdv area. The decrease in nitrate concentration viz a viz an increase in both HCO,- and pH along the groundwater flow direction confirmed the possibility of nitrate removal or natural denitrification in the study area

Indoor environmental conditions of selected shopping malls in Nigeria: A comparative study of microclimatic conditions, noise levels, and microbial burdens

oai:repository.uel.ac.uk:8x3x4The activities of people and equipment used within shopping malls are major factors that contribute to air pollution and increased sound levels, thereby affecting indoor environmental quality and the well-being of mall operators. This study assessed indoor environmental quality through microbial characterization and measurement of environmental conditions present in selected shopping malls. Investigations were conducted at three shopping malls in Ibadan selected through convenience sampling technique. Environmental parameters such as noise level, relative humidity, temperature, PM₂.₅ levels, total volatile organic compound (TVOC) levels, microbial characterization, and quantity were determined. Microclimatic parameters (temperature and relative humidity) were measured using a 4-in-1 Precision Gold N09AQ multi-tester. Culturable airborne microbes were collected using the settle plate technique. PM₂.₅ and TVOC levels were measured using a Thermo Scientific MIE pDR-1500 PM monitor and sf200-TVOC meter respectively. Two bacteria species and five fungi species were isolated across the malls. The noise levels ranged from 61.27 to 81.20 dB. The mean temperatures (highest mean of 33.44 ± 1.42 °C), PM₂.₅ (highest mean of 114.06 ± 25.64 μg/m³), and TVOC (highest mean of 55.21 ± 8.28 ppm) concentrations were higher than the permissible limits stipulated by the WHO guidelines and NESREA standard limits across all the selected malls. A positive correlation was found to exist between particulate matter and TVOC (r = 0.174, p = 0.004). The total bacteria count was generally high with the highest mean of 1965.33 ± 368.56 CFU/m³, while the total fungi count was generally low with the highest mean of 579.82 ± 51.55 CFU/m³. Bacillus spp. and Candida spp. were found to the consistent from all sample points across the three malls. The bacteria isolated are Gram-positive bacteria associated with human skin which suggests a high rate of indoor pollution from humans. In conclusion, this research has demonstrated the necessity to monitor noise levels and indoor air quality in malls. Also, there is need for government policies to improve indoor air quality which must be enforced and regulated, especially within shopping malls

Physicochemical assessment and bacteriological studies of hand-dug wells of major markets in south western, Nigeria

Rapid population in developing nations has imposed stress on groundwater resources, thus the need to assess physicochemical and bacteriological impact of microbes on hand-dug wells along some major markets in Ibadan Southwestern Nigeria. Water samples from hand-dug wells were measured sequentially, and total dissolved solute (TDS), pH, electrical conductivity (EC), salinity, and temperature were measured in situ. Water samples were analyzed at a Microbiology Laboratory. Most probable techniques used for micro-organism analysis were in three stages: presumptive test used for confirmation of Escherichia coli, confirmed test for total viable bacteria count (TVBC), and complete test to reconfirm the presence of coliform. Presumptive test showed high rate of E. coli in most of the hand-dug wells with (37.5 %). Confirmed test revealed Staphylococcus aureus to be 25 %, followed by Proteus vulgaris (14.6 %), Bacillus species (12.5 %), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (8.3 %), and Klebsiella spp. (2.1 %) respectively. Total viable bacteria counts are 500 to 192,000. Physicochemical results (total dissolved solute (TDS), pH, electrical conductivity (EC), salinity, temperature) when compared with WHO (2006) and SON (2007) revealed all the parameters to be within the permissible limits except pH (5.8 to 9.56), and high values of the parameters were caused by organic matter. High E. coli in the study area revealed influence of human and animal fecal that coul

Charting achievements: a two-year retrospective of the society for environmental geochemistry and health (SEGH) and the evolving strategies

Emerging from the shadow of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is time to ground ourselves and retrospectively assess the recent achievements of SEGH over the past years. This editorial serves as a comprehensive report on the progress made in comparison to the aspirations and goals set by the society's board in 2019 (Watts et al., Environ Geochem Health 42:343–347, 2019) (Fig. 1) and reflects on the state of the SEGH community as it reached its 50th anniversary at the close of 2021 (Watts et al. Environ Geochem Health 45:1165–1171, 2023). The focus lies on how the SEGH community navigated through the extraordinary challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic since early 2020, and to what extent the 2023 targets have been met

Hydrogeochemical Characterization and Vulnerability Assessment of Shallow Groundwater in Basement Complex Area, Southwest Nigeria

Thirty-five (35) groundwater samples from Owo area were analyzed for physicochemical parameters. Results show that the mean value of pH is 6.32, TDS is 208.92 mg/l, temperature is 28.77oC, EC is 545.16 μs/cm; TH is 111.09 mg/l, SO4 is 71.73 mg/l, Cl is 0.07 mg/l, HCO3 is 14.09 mg/l, Na is 25.06 mg/l, Ca is 37.07 mg/l, K is 24.36 mg/l and Mg is 4.41 mg/l. The results were compared to the WHO and NDSQW standards. All parameters were within the permissible limit except EC in well OW6 and K is above the stipulated standards in 69% of the total samples. The high concentration of K is linked to the use of NPK fertilizer in the area for agricultural purposes. The groundwater belongs to Ca-Na-K-SO4 and Na-Ca-SO4 water type respectively. The ionic concentration in the groundwater is due to the dissolution of the rock that makes up the aquifer. Plagioclase and silicate-bearing rocks are the sources of major ions in the water. SAR, PI, RSBC and KR reveals that groundwater in the area is good for irrigation purpose. DRASTIC model further revealed that groundwater in the area is less vulnerable to contamination under the current environmental conditions

Editorial: Charting achievements: a two-year retrospective of the society for environmental geochemistry and health (SEGH) and the evolving strategies

Emerging from the shadow of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is time to ground ourselves and retrospectively assess the recent achievements of SEGH over the past years. This editorial serves as a comprehensive report on the progress made in comparison to the aspirations and goals set by the society's board in 2019 (Watts et al., Environ Geochem Health 42:343-347, 2019) (Fig. 1) and reflects on the state of the SEGH community as it reached its 50th anniversary at the close of 2021 (Watts et al. Environ Geochem Health 45:1165-1171, 2023). The focus lies on how the SEGH community navigated through the extraordinary challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic since early 2020, and to what extent the 2023 targets have been met