Assessment of Metal Contaminants in River Kubanni Zaria, Nigeria

This study examines the levels of concentration of metal pollutants in river Kubanni and the health implications of these metal contaminants. The main sources of data for the study were sediments from long profile of the river and WHO guidelines for drinking water that were obtained from relevant literatures and internet. The samples were prepared and Instrumental Nitrogen Activation Analysis (INAA) was adopted in the analysis of the data using Nigerian Research Reactor 1 (NIRR-1). Twenty nine metal contaminants (Mg, Al, Ca, Ti, V, Mn, Dy, Na, K, As, Br, La, Sm, Yb, U, Sc, Cr, Zn, Fe, Co, Rb, Cs, Ba, Eu, Lu, Hg, Ta, Sb and Th) were identified in the river. The safety levels of the metal contaminants were examined by comparing the obtained values with WHO guidelines for domestic water and it was observed that the river is getting polluted by Al, Mn, As, U, Cr, Fe, Co, Zn, Ba, Na and Sb with severe health implications on the consumers of the river Kubanni water. The levels of concentration of Mg, Ca, Ti, V, Dy, K, Br, La, Sm, Yb, Sc, Hg, Ta, Rb, Cs, Eu, Lu and Th are also high, although there is no WHO standard for comparison, some of these metals are suspected to be harmful to humans when consumed in excess quantity.