Influence of Municipal Wastes on the Mineral Contents of Food Crops Found at Selected Dump Sites in Abia State, Nigeria

摘要

The influence of municipal wastes from selected dump sites in Abia State on the mineral contents of some crops found at the dumps was studied. Water leaves at Osisioma dump had the highest chromium value (243.33 mg kg-1) than the chromium values of other crops. The arsenic contents of the dump crops were low (2.63-12.01 mg kg-1) when compared with that of the dump soil (173.51 mg kg-1). Cadmium was only observed in a small quantity (1.85 mg kg-1) at the dump. The cadmium content of the nearby normal farm was 0.11 mg kg-1. None of the crops picked any significant amount as their cadmium contents all tended to zero. The nickel content of the dump soil (22.32 mg kg-1) was almost 100% higher than that of the nearby normal soil (1.25 mg kg-1). Maize at the dump seemed to have the highest affinity for nickel. The lead contents were not picked by any of the plants. Probably, there has not been degeneration of the lead containing components in the soil. All the crops at the Osisioma sample sites had a high affinity for iron. Hence, the consumption of crops from there needs to be watched in order to avoid iron overload.