Assessment of pollution level in the rivers of Idah town, Kogi state, North Central Nigeria

Abstract

Water from river and spring are vulnerable to different kinds of pollutions. Hence, there is need to intensify research on pollution in rivers. This paper presents the pollution level in four major selected rivers in Idah town: Inchalo, Idu – Okoliko, Ofiayi and Ocheche. These rivers are sources of domestic water supply in Idah town, Kogi State. Water samples taken from these rivers were analyzed for physical, chemical and bacteriological parameters. Parameters assessed included temperature, colour, turbidity, TDS, pH, Nitrate and Sulphate. Others were Iron, Alkalinity, Chloride, TSS, Hardness and Coliform bacteria. The result of the analyses indicates that the water in the rivers have an ambient temperature of 27 C and are slightly acidic. The colour of the water in Idu – Okoliko and Ocheche were above 50PCU.Inchalo and Ofiayi were slightly turbid while Idu – Okoliko was the most turbid. Iron content in each of the rivers was in excess of WHO's limit of 0.3mg/l. The results further revealed that Coliform bacteria are present in all the rivers. Even though other parameters fall within the WHO/NIS standards for potable water, the waters were generally unfit for human consumption without treatment. This possibly has a reflection in the water borne diseases patient records collected from Idah General Hospital. It is therefore recommended that government and other related agencies, sensitize people in Idah town on the treatment of the water before it is used for drinking purpose. Government should also intensify effort on the provision of potable water for the people in this environment.