VARIATION OF HEAVY METALS CONCENTRATION IN OTOFURE, EDO STATE, SOUTHERN NIGERIA.

ABSTRACT

Human activities have resulted in an unexpected accumulation of heavy metals in the various ecosystems. Over the last century, intensified emission of various heavy metals had resulted from anthropogenic sources. Heavy metals are non-biodegradable and persistent environmental contaminants, which may be deposited on the soil surfaces. This study was carried out by taking surface and subsurface soil samples from five sampling points at Otofure community in Ovia North East Local Government of Edo state January 2024 using the essential equipment. These samples were taken in order to check the concentration of some heavy metals in the soils. After collection of the samples, the samples, were prepared for the laboratory analysis and they were analyzed for some heavy metals which include Cadmium (Cd), Lead (Pb), Arsenic (As), Nickel (Ni), Iron (Fe), Chromium (Cr), Manganese (Mn), Copper (Cu) and Vanadium (V) using Atomic Absorption Spectrometry techniques. The mean of the results include Fe 96.08 -65.88 Mg/kg, Pb 4.19-2.09 Mg/kg, Cr 0.10-0.06 Mg/kg, Mn 15.34- 11.82 Mg/kg, Ni 9.87-5.47 Mg/kg, Cd 0.05-0.01 Mg/kg, Cu 30.82-24.36 Mg/kg, V 31.06-20.13 Mg/kg and As 0.08-0.02 Mg/kg. Then the results obtained were compared with other past results and national standards to check if they are exceeding the standards obtained long ago