Heavy metals in sediments from River Ngada, Maiduguri Metropolis, Borno State, Nigeria

摘要

The objective of this research was to determine the degree of heavy metal contamination in River Ngada and the extent to which the sediment quality of the river had deteriorated. In this study, metals such as Cu, Zn, Co, Mn, Mg, Fe, Cr, Cd As, Ni and Pb in the sediments were determined using Perkin-Elmer Analyst 300 Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer. The extent of sediment quality deterioration was observed in all the sampling points to be higher with respect to all the metals studied. The levels of the above metals increased with an increase in distance from point S1to S8. The metals also increased with increasing sediment depth, indicating age-long accumulation of heavy metals from anthropogenic sources. The study revealed that the levels of all the metals studied were higher than the WHO’s standard sediment guideline limits. If this trend is allowed to continue unabated, it is most likely that the food web in this study environment might be at highest risk of induced heavy metal contamination.