ASSESSMENT OF BOREHOLES WATER QUALITY FOR DOMESTIC USE IN THREE SELECTED WARDS IN GAJIRAM, NGANZAI LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA OF BORNO STATE, NIGERIA

Muhammad M. G. B. et al., Assessment Of Boreholes Water Quality….. 109 Nigerian Journal of Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Research Vol. 8 Issue.2 August, 2024. p-ISSN: 2579-1419 e-ISSN: 2814-1423 ASSESSMENT OF BOREHOLES WATER QUALITY FOR DOMESTIC USE IN THREE SELECTED WARDS IN GAJIRAM, NGANZAI LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA OF BORNO STATE, NIGERIA. Muhammad M Gana Badu1*, Abdullateef Baba2, Abdullahi Idi Mohammed2, Babagana Kolo2 Zaynab Mohammed Chellube2and Chiroma Mustapha3 1Ministry of Reconstruction, Rehabilitation and Resettlement, Maiduguri, Borno State, Nigeria 2Department of Pure and Applied Chemistry, Faculty of Physical Sciences, University of Maiduguri, Borno State, Nigeria 3Ministry of Water Resources, Damaturu, Yobe State, Nigeria *Corresponding author: [email protected] DOI No.: http://doi.org.10.55639/607.phar.101201.0014 Abstract In the current study, the quality of water used for domestic purposes from three boreholes in Gajiram (Ajari, Kumburi and Gajiram 2 Primary School boreholes), Nganzai local government area of Borno state, Nigeria, was assessed for a period of six months (January, February, March, June, July and August 2019) using standard methods of sampling and analysis. Temperature, pH, Turbidity, Conductivity, Sulphate (SO42-), Phosphate (PO43-), Nitrate (NO3-), Chloride (Cl- ), Ca2+, Na+, Mg2+ and some heavy metals (As, Cr, Fe, Mn, Pb, Zn, Cd, and Co) were determined. The results showed that the highest and lowest mean of pH, turbidity (NTU), conductivity (µ/CM) and temperature (°C) are 6.90±0.03 and 5.74±1.09; 41.36±20.37 and 0.40±0.17; 63.42±12.38 and 7.72±4.86; 42.77±0.46 and 40.2±0.00 respectively. For anions, sulphate has the highest value (26.66±1.276 mg/l) while phosphate was not detected in Ajari. The highest and lowest mean of cations were 26.57 + 8.804 mg/l (sodium) and 0.02 +0.01(magnesium) respectively. For heavy metals, Iron has the highest value (0.470±0.041 mg/l) in Ajari while some heavy metals were not detected in some locations. The results obtained from the study showed that temperature and turbidity are above the permissible limit of WHO and NESREA while pH, Electrical Conductivity, heavy metals (with the exception of manganese during the dry season) and major anions and cations were found below the permissible limit of drinking water standard by WHO and NESREA. Hence the study shows that the quality of groundwater in the study area were not statistical significant difference between seasons. Introduction According to WHO (2006), about 1.1 billion people lack access to improve drinking water supply. In most cities, towns and villages in Nigeria, valuable man-hours are spent on seeking and fetching water, often of doubt quality from distant sources (Efe, 2005). Groundwater quality has become an important water resources issue due to rapid increase of population, rapid industrialization, unplanned urbanization and too much use of fertilizers and pesticides in agriculture (Joarder et al., 2008). In many developing countries, agricultural chemical use has been low in comparison to levels in industrialized countries. Concerns over groundwater Muhammad M. G. B. et al., Assessment Of Boreholes Water Quality….. 110 pollution from agricultural chemicals were raised as a major issue in the study area more than five years ago (Yenika et al., 2003) but few data were available. At that time, the level of agricultural chemical use was still relatively lower. However how much of this pollution is related to agricultural pollution and how much too domestic or other sources is unknown. Apart from non-point-source considerations, it is important to recognize that nitrate and other nutrient pollution in groundwater is often related to agricultural practices other than the use of chemical fertilizers. Any location where animal wastes are concentrated such as feed lots or poultry farms, can release high levels of nutrients, pesticides and herbicides as well as other major sources of groundwater pollution related to agriculture. In some circumstances, soils can absorb or immobilize a large fraction of such agricultural chemicals. It follows that many pesticides and herbicides break down slowly under aquifer conditions or transform into more toxic compounds. As a result, they persist over long time periods. Thus since groundwater pollution data are generally scarce, chemical analysis of water samples need to be specific to detect their presence. This is because the environment, economic growth and development of Nigeria are all highly influenced by water including its regional and seasonal availability as well as its antecedent quality. Groundwater quality is thus analyzed for its physical, chemical and biological parameters which are closely interlinked. All the research work so far carried out on groundwater quality in different parts of Nigeria is largely based on physicochemical parameters. No attempt has as yet been made to predict the groundwater quality of the study area with precision using any econometric analysis except depicting the correlation coefficient of different water quality parameters (Yenika et al., 2003). Prakash and Somashekar (2006) assessed the groundwater quality of Anekal Taluk, Bangalore, India and the results were interpreted by statistical analysis. Out of 1026 bore well and hand pump water samples, 836 samples were not suitable for domestic purpose. About 42% samples showed iron concentration beyond permissible limits which may be due to processes involved during rock formation. About 31% of water samples showed E.Coli exceeding beyond acceptable limits of BIS, indicating faecal contamination of water. Jameel et al.,(2006) analysed groundwater samples from Pettavaithalai area of Tamilnadu and showed high values of pH, EC, cations, anions, BOD, COD above the acceptable limits indicating groundwater contamination. Major sources of these contaminants are effluent added from the sugar mill, agricultural wastes and domestic sewage. The groundwater quality of Sirsa city, India was assessed by Mor et al., (2009) and showed high fluoride content for most of the samples which exceed beyond the permissible limits indicating a risk of dental caries. Water quality in Eshtehard district, of Iran was examined by Khodapanah et al., (2009) to check the change in water quality due to weathering processes and anthropogenic activities using SAR, percent sodium using Wilcox diagram, and salinity diagram. The study area showed high salinity values which may be attributed to precipitation and dissolution processes, deposits of Gypsum and rock salt, overexploitation and high evaporation rate in the study area. A statistical approach (principal component Muhammad M. G. B. et al., Assessment Of Boreholes Water Quality….. 111 analysis) was used by Carreira et al., (2010) to assess groundwater quality of the study area in Santiago Island. Gajiram is a densely populated city of Nganzai Local government of Borno state, in north-eastern area of’ Nigeria. The high population density, Poor sanitation habits and lack of enforcement of environmental Sanitation laws have contributed immensely to the pollution of water sources. Pollutant’s in groundwater can be from various sources mainly municipal (i.e. leakages from liquid waste and solid waste from land fill), industrial (i.e. liquid waste tanks and pipeline leakages, oil field and brines) and agricultural sources (i.e. irrigation return flow which are sometimes saline). These problems of acute water supply have resulted in the rapid increase or hand dug wells and boreholes with some located within the proximity of soak away and pit latrines (Ukpong, et al., 2015). Material and Methods The Study Area Nganzai is a local government area in Borno State, Nigeria. Nganzai is located in the northern senatorial district of Borno State. It lies on the coordinates of Latitude 12.2910N and Longitude 13.1233E. It has an area of about 2467km and a population of 99799 census 2006. The raining season’s starts from April to November. Rainfall is between 1500mm – 2000mm with July – September as the wettest months and December as the driest. Nganzai has temperature of moderately high throughout the year with a low range. The mean annual maximum and minimum temperature are 47ºC and 25ºC respectively. Map 1: Map of Borno state showing the study sites Muhammad M. G. B. et al., Assessment Of Boreholes Water Quality….. 112 Map 2: Map the study points Sample collection Three (3) boreholes were selected at different locations of the study area. The water samples were collected from the sampling points in precleaned plastic containers and labelled appropriately. The collected borehole water samples were aseptically transferred into sterile containers and brought to chemistry research laboratory, Yobe State University Damaturu for preparation and analysis. Sample Preparation and Sample Analysis One hundred millilitres (100 ml) of the water sample was measured and the pH was determined using Ecotests pH meter at the site. The ttemperature was determined using thermometer, while conductivity was determined using conductivity meter. The turbidity of the wastewater and surface water were determined using the absorbtimetric method of the spectrophotometer. The stored programme of the spectrophotometer was calibrated using the standard for formazin solution as a reference. Nitrate, sulphates, phosphates and chlorides, Calcium, Sodium and Magnesium were determined using DR/2010 HACH portable data logging spectrophotometer. The samples were digested according to the method described by Clesceri et al., (1989). Standard Solutions of each element were prepared according to manufacturer procedure for Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy used. The concentrations of the standards were within anticipated range of the unknown sample. Absorbances of these standards were measured at the maximum wavelength of the analytes. A plot of the absorbance against the standard concentration gives a straight line graph passing through the origin according to Bear’s law is obey. The digested samples were used to determine the concentration of the heavy metals using Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer (Buck scientific model 210GP). Absorbances of these samples were measured at their specific wavelengths. From the standard calibration curve (Beer Lambert’s law), absorbances of the unknown were measured at their specific wavelength of their absorption and read out from the graph. Data collected were subjected to one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) to assess whether heavy metals varied significantly between dry and rainy season samples. Probability less than 0.05 Muhammad M. G. B. et al., Assessment Of Boreholes Water Quality….. 113 (p<0.05) were considered statistically significant. All statistical calculations were performed using graph pad instant (2003) for windows. Results were presented in mean ± standard deviation. Results and Discussion Table 1 present the mean values of some physical parameters of groundwater samples of Gajiram, Nganzai local government area of Borno state. The results revealed that the highest and lowest mean pH in dry season is 6.89±0.19 and 6.82±0.18 while in rainy season were 6.90±0.03 and 5.74±1.09 respectively. The pH in all study areas fall below the WHO (7.0-8.5) recommended limit. Discharge of untraveled effluence with such a pH into ponds rivers or on lands for any purpose may be detrain entail to soil fauna and aquatic biota such as zooplankton and fishes, since low pH level may affect the physiology of fish (Islam et al., 2014). The mean concentration of turbidity revealed that the highest and lowest mean in dry season are 41.36±20.37 and 3.59±1.95 respectively while in rainy season, were 3.59±1.95 and 10.45±0.56 respectively. The turbidity observed in was above the recommended limits of WHO (5 – 25 NTU) while the other samples in B1, B2 and B3 were within and below limit. The results were found statistically significant difference (P<0.05) among the borehole not the season. Water turbidity is very important because high turbidity is often associated with higher level of disease causing microorganism, such as bacteria and other parasites (Shittu et al., 2008). The mean electrical conductivity level observed in the study area revealed that the highest and lowest mean in dry season were 8.68±7.01 and 7.72±4.86 respectively while in rainy season were 63.42±12.38 and 33.80±13.16 respectively. The electrical conductivity observed in all the samples in both dry and raining season were found below the standard limit of WHO 2011(400 µ/cm). The statistical analysis revealed that there was no significant difference between the seasons. Although there is disease or disorder associated with conductivity of drinking water (NSDWQ 2007) electrical conductivity is a measure of waters capacity to convey an electric current. This propriety is related to the total concentration of longed substances in the water. The more dissolve salt in water, the stronger is current in flow and higher the electrical conductivity in short EC of water increases with salt. The mean temperature observed in the study area revealed that the highest and lowest mean in dry season were 42.77±0.46 and 33.80±13.16 respectively while in rainy season were 42.1±0 and 40.2±0 respectively. The mean temperature observed in all the samples in both dry and raining season were found above the standard limit of WHO (35°C). The result was not found statistically significant difference (p<05) among the boreholes and also between the seasons. This may be due to the seasonal variation at the time of sample collection. Muhammad M. G. B. et al., Assessment Of Boreholes Water Quality….. 114 Table 1: mean concentration of some physical parameters in groundwater of gajiram location for dry and raining season (2019) Location pH Turbidity (Ntu) Conductivity (µ/Cm) Temperature (°C) DRY WET DRY WET DRY WET DRY WET B1 6.82±0.18 6.85±0.03 41.36±20.37 5.89±0.31 7.72±4.86 63.42±12.38 41.67±1.85 40.2±0 B2 6.86±0.27 5.74±1.09 3.59±1.95 0.40±0.17 8.68±7.01 33.80±13.16 42.77±0.46 41.73±0.12 B3 6.89±0.19 6.90±0.03 9.23±1.30 4.63±0.25 8.35±6.79 57.73±1.35 42.53±0.23 42.1±0 WHO 7.0-8.5 5-25NTU 400µ/cm 35°C Key: B1Ajari Borehole, B2Kumburi Borehole, B3 –Gajiram 2 Primary School Borehole Table 2 present mean concentration of heavy metal in ground water sample of Gajiram, Nganzai local Government area of Borno state in dry season. The result revealed that concentration of heavy metals differs with sample locations. Iron has the highest concentration (0.395±0.192 mg/l) at location B1 while some heavy metals (Co and As) were not detected at all location. Table 3 present mean concentration of heavy metals in groundwater sample at gajiram, Nganzai Local government area of Borno state in raining season. The result revealed that the concentration of heavy metals differs with sample locations. Iron has the highest concentration (0.470±0.041 mg/l) at location B1 while some heavy metals (Co, Cd and As) were not detected at all locations. The high value of iron might be due to the fact that the chemicals used in the process contain iron as at the time of the sampling. Prakash and Somashekar (2006) assessed the groundwater quality of Anekal Taluk, Bangalore, India and the results were interpreted by statistical analysis. Out of 1026 bore well and hand pump water samples, 836 samples were not suitable for domestic purpose. About 42% samples showed iron concentration beyond permissible limits which may be due to processes involved during rock formation. About 31% of water samples showed E.Coli exceeding beyond acceptable limits of BIS, indicating faecal contamination of water. Table 2: Mean concentration of some heavy parameters in groundwater of gajiram location for dry seasons (January, February and March 2019) Locatio n Parameters for Dry Season (mg/L) C O Cd Fe Cr Pb As Zn Mn B1 N D 0.002±0.0 01 0.395±0.1 92 0.005±0.0 13 0.006±0.0 07 ND 0.291±0.3 60 0.065±0.0 53 B2 N D ND 0.114±0.0 78 ND 0.006±0.0 04 ND 0.352±0.5 18 0.062±0.0 19 B3 N D ND 0.068±0.0 24 ND 0.006±0.0 05 ND 0.292±0.3 81 0.058±0.0 32 WHO 1.0 0.5 0.5 0.05 0.05 0.1 5 0.02 Key: B1Ajari Borehole, B2kumburi Borehole, B3 –Gajiram 2 Primary School Borehole, ND: Not detected Muhammad M. G. B. et al., Assessment Of Boreholes Water Quality….. 115 Table 3: mean concentration of some heavy metal parameters in groundwater of gajiram location for raining season (June, July and August 2019) Location Parameters for Raining Season (mg/L) CO Cd Fe Cr Pb As Zn Mn B1 ND ND 0.470±0.0 41 0.001±0.0 01 0.006±0.0 01 ND 0.002±0.0 03 0.001±0.0 001 B2 ND ND 0.050±0.0 52 ND 0.004±0.0 02 ND ND ND B3 ND ND 0.077±0.0 67 ND 0.006±0.0 01 ND ND ND WHO 1.0 0.5 0.5 0.05 0.05 0.1 5 0.02 Key: B1Ajari Borehole, B2Kumburi Borehole, B3 –Gajiram 2 Primary School Borehole, ND: Not Detected Figure 1, 2 and 3 present concentrations of Anions and cations in different parts of gajiram groundwater samples for Dry season from Nganzai local government area, Borno state. In the sample analysed Sulphate has highest concentration in January and February 2019 while Chloride was high in March 2019. The concentration of Sulphate was high with 68.57mg/l and Chloride was high 83.18 mg/l. Phosphate showed least concentration of 0mg/l. The other of Anions and cations in the sample were SO4> Na > Cl > NO3 > Ca > Mg > F > PO4 in January and February while Cl >SO4> Na > Ca > NO3 > F > Mg > F > PO4 in March. Figure 4, 5 and 6 present concentrations of Anions and cations in different parts of Gajiram groundwater samples for raining season from Nganzai local government area, Borno state. In the sample analyzed Chloride has highest concentration. The concentration of Chloride was high with 8.82 mg/l. Phosphate and Fluoride showed least concentration of 0mg/l. The other of physical parameters in the sample were Cl >SO4> Mg > Na > NO3 > Ca > F > PO4. The high sulphate concentration defected in the effluents are also known to cause eutrophication and algal boom, (ogiehor et al., 2000) these sulphates can be precipitated by calcium – containing compounds to form calcium sulphate which has a low level of solubility. High sulphate concentration may have laxative effects on consumers if ingested. Chlorides re-enter the eco-system and may ultimately and up in the ground water. High salt content an only acceptable if the effluents are discharge into tidal/marine environments. The level of salt as chloride under acid Animism can be determined by titration a known volume of effluent with a silver nitrate solution, using potassium chromate as an indicator. The presence of chloride on the other hand in the natural water could be attributed to pollution from sewage, minerals and industrial effluents (Mandel et at.; 2011) further non geochemical conditions could make chlorides to present in varying conditions (Aremu et al., 2011). Dietvorst (2013) carried out a water quality study in rural Cambodia which showed that a shallow aquifer was chemically less of a health risk than a deep aquifer; however, microbial contamination was considerable for both open and rope-pump shallow wells. The presence of iron and manganese may lead to the formation of incrustations of pipe mains by the deposition of ferric Muhammad M. G. B. et al., Assessment Of Boreholes Water Quality….. 116 hydroxide and manganese oxide. Chloride concentration in excess of 250 mg/l may have an undesirable taste. Sulphate concentrations in excess of 250 mg/l may have a laxative effect on humans. Jameel et al., (2006) analysed groundwater samples from Pettavaithalai area of Tamilnadu and showed high values of cations and anions above the acceptable limits indicating groundwater contamination. Figure 1: Concentrations of Ions in different locations of Gajiram Groundwater for the Month of January 2019. 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 B 1 B 2 B 3 Mg Na Ca F PO Cl SO4 NO3 P 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 B 1 B 2 B 3 Mg Na Ca F PO Cl SO4 NO3 P Muhammad M. G. B. et al., Assessment Of Boreholes Water Quality….. 117 Figure 2: Concentrations of Ions in different locations of Gajiram Groundwater for the Month of February. Figure 3: Concentrations of Ions in different locations of Gajiram Groundwater for the Month of March, 2019. Figure 4: Concentrations of Ions in different locations of Gajiram Groundwater for the Month of June. 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 B 1 B 2 B 3 Axis Title AxiLocation Mg Na Ca F PO Cl SO4 NO3 P 0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3 3.5 4 4.5 5 B 1 B 2 B 3 Mg Na Ca F PO Cl SO4 NO3 location