Preponderance of Bisphenol-A in Harvested Rain Water in Enugu Municipality, South East, Nigeria

摘要

Bisphenol-A (BPA), a plasticizer, used in the manufacture of plastics and a well-known endocrine disruptor has been known to lead to various health hazards. The present study is aimed at estimating the BPA content of harvested rainwater in Enugu municipality, Nigeria, hence its preponderance. BPA levels w ere estimated in harvested rainw ater samples stored in plastic storage drums (n=24) and metal tanks (n=48). All the 48 storage devices were in constant use for over 6 months and were used to continually harvest rainwater for domestic uses. 40 drinking tap water samples were also analyzed alongside the rainwater as control. BPA was analyzed using Ecologenia ? Supersensitive BPA ELISA kit, from Japan Envirochemicals Ltd, Japan. The results show a statistically significant increase (P=0.0227) in the BPA level of rainwater compared to the drinking tap water. A comparison of the two storage containers shows a highly significant increase (P= 0.0003) in the rainwater stored in the plastic containers compared to that in metal containers. BPA tends to be highly increased in rainwater in the region, possibly due to increased industrialization, with greater amount in samples stored in plastic containers than that stored in metal containers. This may be attributed to leaching from the plastics. Both drinking of harvested rainwater from the region and water storage in plastic containers should be discouraged.