Assessment of heavy metals (Pb, Cd, Zn and Cu) concentrations in soils along a major highway in Wukari, North-Eastern Nigeria
Paper Details
Assessment of heavy metals (Pb, Cd, Zn and Cu) concentrations in soils along a major highway in Wukari, North-Eastern Nigeria
Abstract
Heavy metal pollution is a major environmental problem, especially around highways with high traffic density. This study investigates the levels of Pb, Cd, Zn and Cu in roadside soils of Wukari section of the Wukari-Jalingo highway, Taraba state, Nigeria. Samples were randomly collected and analyzed using standard methods. The mean concentrations (µg/g) of Pb, Cd, Zn and Cu from all sample sites ranged: 89.6-247.0, 0.15-5.3, 26.8-163.0 and 7.1-61.2 respectively. The extent of the heavy metals contamination was assessed, as analytical data were subjected to pollution calculation methods. The contamination factors (CF) reveal extreme contamination of the sites and an increasing trend in the heavy metals concentrations was observed in sites with more human activities. The pollution load index (PLI) showed that the sites are severely polluted as the PLI of the metals from each sample site exceeded the PLI of the background (control) sample (0.7). Spearman’s rank correlation analysis showed clear correlations (p<0.001) amongst the metals suggesting a common source. It can be concluded that the study sites pollution is mostly due to automobile emissions. This study provides awareness for residents to avoid activities such as farming, trading etc very close to the highway due to exposures to these toxic metals.
Abechi ES, Okunola OJ, Zubairu SMJ, Usman AA. Apene, E. 2010. Evaluation of heavy metals in roadside soils of major streets in Jos metropolis, Nigeria. Journal of environmental chemistry and ecotoxicology 2(6), 98-102.
Akbar KF, Hale WHG, Headley AD, Athar M. 2006. Heavy Metal Contamination of Roadside Soils of Northern England. Soil and Water Resources 1(4), 158-163.
Atayese MO, Eigbadon AI, Oluwa KA, Adesoduni JK. 2008. Heavy Metal Contamination of Amaratus grown along major highways in Lagos, Nigeria. African Crop Science Journal 16(4), 225-235.
Culbard EB, Thornton I, Watt J, Weatley M, Moorcraft S, Thompson M. 1988. Metal conta-mination in British suburban dusts and soils. Journal of Environmental Quality 17, 226–234.
El-Gamal IM. 2000. Distribution pattern of some heavy metals in soil and plants along EL-Moukattam highway, Egypt. ICEHM, 518-524.
Garcia R, Millan E. 1998. Assessment of Cd, Pb and Zn contamination in roadside soils and grasses from Gipuzkoa (Spain). Chemosphere 37, 1615-1625.
Harrison RM, Laxen DPH, Wilson SJ. 1981. Chemical Association of Lead, Cadmium, Copper, and Zinc in Street Dusts and roadside soils. Environmental Science Technology 15, 1378-1383.
Hjortenkrans D. 2003. Diffuse metal emissions to air from road traffic. A case study of Kalmar, Sweden. Environmental Science Sect. Bullet, 1-55.
Ho IB, Tai KM. 1988. Elevated levels of Lead and other Metals in Roadside Soil and Grass and their use to monitor Aerial metal Depositions in Hong Kong. Environmental Pollution 49, 37-51.
Ikeda M, Zhang ZW, Shimbo S, Watanabe T, Nakatsuka H, Moon CS, Matsuda-Inoguchi N, Higashikawa K. 2000. Urban population exposure to lead and cadmium in east and south-east Asia. Science of the Total Environment 249, 373-384.
Kakulu SE. 2003. Trace metals concentration in roadside surface soils and tree bark: A measurement of local atmosphere pollution in Abuja, Nigeria Journal environmental monitoring and assessment 89, 233-242.
Lagerwerff JV, Specht AW. 1970. Contamination of roadside soil and vegetation with Cd, Ni, Pb and Zn. Environmental Science Technology 4, 583-586.
Luilo GB, Othman OC. 2006. Lead Pollution in urban roadside environments of Dares Salaam city. Tanzania Journal of Science 32(2), 61-67.
Ma HW, Hung ML, Chen PC. 2006. A systemic health risk assessment for the chromium cycle in Taiwan. Environment International 10, 1016-1023.
Manno E, Varrica D, Dongarra G. 2006. Metal distribution in road dust samples collected in an urban area close to a petrochemical plant at Gela, Sicily. Atmosphere and Environment 40, 5929-5941.
Ndiokwere CL. 1984. A study of heavy metal pollution from motor Vehicle emission and its effect on vegetation and crops in Nigeria. Environmental Pollution Journal 7, 35-42.
Othman I, Al-Oudat M, Al-Masri MS. 1997. Lead levels in roadside soils and vegetation of Damascus city. Science and Total Environment 207(1), 43-48.
Pei XU, Chaolin L. 2004. Lead Contamination of soil along road and its remediation. Chinese Journal of Geochemistry 23(4), 329-332.
Sharma S, Prasade FM. 2010. Accumulation of Lead and Cadmium in Soil and Vegetable Crops along Major Highways in Agra (India). Journal of Chemistry 7(4), 1174-1183.
Sutherland RA, Tolosa CA, Tack FMG, Verloo MG. 2000. Characterization of selected element concentration and enrichment ratios in background and anthropogenically impacted roadside areas. Archives of Environmental Toxicology 38, 428–438.
Thomilson DC, Wilson DJ, Harris CR, Jeffrey DW. 1980. Problems of heavy metals in estuaries and the formation of pollution index. Helgol. Wiss. Meeresunlter 33(4), 566–575.
Voegborlo RB, Chirgawi MB. 2007. Heavy metals accumulation in roadside soil and vegetation along major highway in Libiya. Journal of Science and Technology 27(3), 1-12.
Ward NI, Reeves, RD, Brooks RR. 1975. Lead in soil and vegetation along a New Zealand State highway with low traffic volume. Environmental Pollution 9, 243-251.
Word NI, Brooks RR, Roberts E. 1977. Heavy-metal pollution from automotive emissions and its effect on roadside soils and pasture species in New Zealand. Environmental Science Technology 11, 917-920.
Zhang F, Yan X, Zeng C, Zhang M, Shrestha S, Devkota LP, Yao T. 2012. Influence of Traffic Activity on Heavy Metal Concentrations of Roadside Farmland Soil in Mountainous Areas. International Journal of Environmental Resources and Public Health 9(5), 1715-1731.
Achadu, O.J Goler, E.E, Ayejuyo, O.O Olaoye O.O, Ochimana, O.I, 2015. Assessment of heavy metals (Pb, Cd, Zn and Cu) concentrations in soils along a major highway in Wukari, North-Eastern Nigeria. J. Biodiv. Environ. Sci., 6(2), 1-7.
Copyright © 2015 by the Authors. This article is an open access article and distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0) license.