Environmental Risk Assesment of Heavy Metals Content of Municipal Solid Waste Used as Organic Fertilizer in Vegetable Gardens on the Jos Plateau, Nigeria

Lar Alexander Uriah; Usman Shehu

doi:doi:10.11648/j.ajep.s.2014030602.11

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Environmental Risk Assesment of Heavy Metals Content of Municipal Solid Waste Used as Organic Fertilizer in Vegetable Gardens on the Jos Plateau, Nigeria

Lar Alexander Uriah, Usman Shehu

Published in American Journal of Environmental Protection (Volume 3, Issue 6-2)

Received: 29 September 2014 Accepted: 5 October 2014 Published: 25 December 2014

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Abstract

This study was conducted on vegetable gardens in and around Jos on the Jos Plateau, North central Nigeria; a city which has had strong European influence as a result of a long history of tin mining activity in the area. The study seeks to assess the degree of accumulation and/or contamination of the heavy metals in compost from municipal solid waste due for application as organic fertilizer in vegetable gardens as well as the potential human health risk associated with the consumption of vegetables grown with such organic fertilizer. Three waste dumpsites in Jos and gardens were selected where vegetables cultivation (cabbage, lettuce, spinach, turnip, carrot, radish, beet root, tomato and spring onions) are practiced. The representative samples of compost material, agricultural soil and vegetables were collected and analyzed for heavy metals such as: As, Cd, Co, Cr, Ni, Pb, Cu, Zn, Sb and Se. Geochemical results show that the concentrations of these elements in the compost are higher (in decreasing order of As>Cd>Zn>Pb>Cu>Cr) compared to that in the soils yet to be applied the organic fertilizer. The degree of contamination of the soils and the compost, the transfer factor (TF) from the agricultural soil to vegetables and its health risk index (HRI) were calculated. Results show that in general, the agricultural soils are severely contaminated by As, Cd, Zn and Pb (CF= 10-25). Other elements such as Cr, Cu and Ni have moderately contaminated the soil. All the vegetables seem to have been severely contaminated by Se and As (Se>As>Zn) and therefore are good accumulators of these toxic metals. The leafy and the root vegetables appear to be the major accumulator of Se and As respectively. The TF of As in all the different varieties of vegetables is >1, indicating that this element is readily absorbed by these plants. The HRI value for As, Pb and Zn is >1 for the all the vegetables and therefore is unsafe posing serious human health risks.

Published in	American Journal of Environmental Protection (Volume 3, Issue 6-2) This article belongs to the Special Issue Integrating Earth Materials, Diet, Water and Human Health
DOI	10.11648/j.ajep.s.2014030602.11
Page(s)	1-13
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2014. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Heavy Metals, Vegetable Gardens, Organic Fertilizer, Human Health Risks

References

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Lar Alexander Uriah, Usman Shehu. (2014). Environmental Risk Assesment of Heavy Metals Content of Municipal Solid Waste Used as Organic Fertilizer in Vegetable Gardens on the Jos Plateau, Nigeria. American Journal of Environmental Protection, 3(6-2), 1-13. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajep.s.2014030602.11

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ACS Style

Lar Alexander Uriah; Usman Shehu. Environmental Risk Assesment of Heavy Metals Content of Municipal Solid Waste Used as Organic Fertilizer in Vegetable Gardens on the Jos Plateau, Nigeria. Am. J. Environ. Prot. 2014, 3(6-2), 1-13. doi: 10.11648/j.ajep.s.2014030602.11

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AMA Style

Lar Alexander Uriah, Usman Shehu. Environmental Risk Assesment of Heavy Metals Content of Municipal Solid Waste Used as Organic Fertilizer in Vegetable Gardens on the Jos Plateau, Nigeria. Am J Environ Prot. 2014;3(6-2):1-13. doi: 10.11648/j.ajep.s.2014030602.11

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@article{10.11648/j.ajep.s.2014030602.11,
  author = {Lar Alexander Uriah and Usman Shehu},
  title = {Environmental Risk Assesment of Heavy Metals Content of Municipal Solid Waste Used as Organic Fertilizer in Vegetable Gardens on the Jos Plateau, Nigeria},
  journal = {American Journal of Environmental Protection},
  volume = {3},
  number = {6-2},
  pages = {1-13},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ajep.s.2014030602.11},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajep.s.2014030602.11},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ajep.s.2014030602.11},
  abstract = {This study was conducted on vegetable gardens in and around Jos on the Jos Plateau, North central Nigeria; a city which has had strong European influence as a result of a long history of tin mining activity in the area. The study seeks to assess the degree of accumulation and/or contamination of the heavy metals in compost from municipal solid waste due for application as organic fertilizer in vegetable gardens as well as the potential human health risk associated with the consumption of vegetables grown with such organic fertilizer.  Three waste dumpsites in Jos and gardens were selected where vegetables cultivation (cabbage, lettuce, spinach, turnip, carrot, radish, beet root, tomato and spring onions) are practiced. The representative samples of compost material, agricultural soil and vegetables were collected and analyzed for heavy metals such as: As, Cd, Co, Cr, Ni, Pb, Cu, Zn, Sb and Se. Geochemical results show that the concentrations of these elements in the compost are higher (in decreasing order of As>Cd>Zn>Pb>Cu>Cr) compared to that in the soils yet to be applied the organic fertilizer. The degree of contamination of the soils and the compost, the transfer factor (TF) from the agricultural soil to vegetables and its health risk index (HRI) were calculated. Results show that in general, the agricultural soils are severely contaminated by As, Cd, Zn and Pb (CF= 10-25). Other elements such as Cr, Cu and Ni have moderately contaminated the soil. All the vegetables seem to have been severely contaminated by Se and As (Se>As>Zn) and therefore are good accumulators of these toxic metals. The leafy and the root vegetables appear to be the major accumulator of Se and As respectively. The TF of As in all the different varieties of vegetables is >1, indicating that this element is readily absorbed by these plants. The HRI value for As, Pb and Zn is >1 for the all the vegetables and therefore is unsafe posing serious human health risks.},
 year = {2014}
}

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TY  - JOUR
T1  - Environmental Risk Assesment of Heavy Metals Content of Municipal Solid Waste Used as Organic Fertilizer in Vegetable Gardens on the Jos Plateau, Nigeria
AU  - Lar Alexander Uriah
AU  - Usman Shehu
Y1  - 2014/12/25
PY  - 2014
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajep.s.2014030602.11
DO  - 10.11648/j.ajep.s.2014030602.11
T2  - American Journal of Environmental Protection
JF  - American Journal of Environmental Protection
JO  - American Journal of Environmental Protection
SP  - 1
EP  - 13
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2328-5699
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajep.s.2014030602.11
AB  - This study was conducted on vegetable gardens in and around Jos on the Jos Plateau, North central Nigeria; a city which has had strong European influence as a result of a long history of tin mining activity in the area. The study seeks to assess the degree of accumulation and/or contamination of the heavy metals in compost from municipal solid waste due for application as organic fertilizer in vegetable gardens as well as the potential human health risk associated with the consumption of vegetables grown with such organic fertilizer.  Three waste dumpsites in Jos and gardens were selected where vegetables cultivation (cabbage, lettuce, spinach, turnip, carrot, radish, beet root, tomato and spring onions) are practiced. The representative samples of compost material, agricultural soil and vegetables were collected and analyzed for heavy metals such as: As, Cd, Co, Cr, Ni, Pb, Cu, Zn, Sb and Se. Geochemical results show that the concentrations of these elements in the compost are higher (in decreasing order of As>Cd>Zn>Pb>Cu>Cr) compared to that in the soils yet to be applied the organic fertilizer. The degree of contamination of the soils and the compost, the transfer factor (TF) from the agricultural soil to vegetables and its health risk index (HRI) were calculated. Results show that in general, the agricultural soils are severely contaminated by As, Cd, Zn and Pb (CF= 10-25). Other elements such as Cr, Cu and Ni have moderately contaminated the soil. All the vegetables seem to have been severely contaminated by Se and As (Se>As>Zn) and therefore are good accumulators of these toxic metals. The leafy and the root vegetables appear to be the major accumulator of Se and As respectively. The TF of As in all the different varieties of vegetables is >1, indicating that this element is readily absorbed by these plants. The HRI value for As, Pb and Zn is >1 for the all the vegetables and therefore is unsafe posing serious human health risks.
VL  - 3
IS  - 6-2
ER  -

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Author Information

Lar Alexander Uriah

Department of Geology, University of Jos, Jos, Nigeria
Usman Shehu

National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA), Federal Ministry of Environment, Abuja, Nigeria

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Lar Alexander Uriah, Usman Shehu. (2014). Environmental Risk Assesment of Heavy Metals Content of Municipal Solid Waste Used as Organic Fertilizer in Vegetable Gardens on the Jos Plateau, Nigeria. American Journal of Environmental Protection, 3(6-2), 1-13. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajep.s.2014030602.11

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ACS Style

Lar Alexander Uriah; Usman Shehu. Environmental Risk Assesment of Heavy Metals Content of Municipal Solid Waste Used as Organic Fertilizer in Vegetable Gardens on the Jos Plateau, Nigeria. Am. J. Environ. Prot. 2014, 3(6-2), 1-13. doi: 10.11648/j.ajep.s.2014030602.11

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AMA Style

Lar Alexander Uriah, Usman Shehu. Environmental Risk Assesment of Heavy Metals Content of Municipal Solid Waste Used as Organic Fertilizer in Vegetable Gardens on the Jos Plateau, Nigeria. Am J Environ Prot. 2014;3(6-2):1-13. doi: 10.11648/j.ajep.s.2014030602.11

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@article{10.11648/j.ajep.s.2014030602.11,
  author = {Lar Alexander Uriah and Usman Shehu},
  title = {Environmental Risk Assesment of Heavy Metals Content of Municipal Solid Waste Used as Organic Fertilizer in Vegetable Gardens on the Jos Plateau, Nigeria},
  journal = {American Journal of Environmental Protection},
  volume = {3},
  number = {6-2},
  pages = {1-13},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ajep.s.2014030602.11},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajep.s.2014030602.11},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ajep.s.2014030602.11},
  abstract = {This study was conducted on vegetable gardens in and around Jos on the Jos Plateau, North central Nigeria; a city which has had strong European influence as a result of a long history of tin mining activity in the area. The study seeks to assess the degree of accumulation and/or contamination of the heavy metals in compost from municipal solid waste due for application as organic fertilizer in vegetable gardens as well as the potential human health risk associated with the consumption of vegetables grown with such organic fertilizer.  Three waste dumpsites in Jos and gardens were selected where vegetables cultivation (cabbage, lettuce, spinach, turnip, carrot, radish, beet root, tomato and spring onions) are practiced. The representative samples of compost material, agricultural soil and vegetables were collected and analyzed for heavy metals such as: As, Cd, Co, Cr, Ni, Pb, Cu, Zn, Sb and Se. Geochemical results show that the concentrations of these elements in the compost are higher (in decreasing order of As>Cd>Zn>Pb>Cu>Cr) compared to that in the soils yet to be applied the organic fertilizer. The degree of contamination of the soils and the compost, the transfer factor (TF) from the agricultural soil to vegetables and its health risk index (HRI) were calculated. Results show that in general, the agricultural soils are severely contaminated by As, Cd, Zn and Pb (CF= 10-25). Other elements such as Cr, Cu and Ni have moderately contaminated the soil. All the vegetables seem to have been severely contaminated by Se and As (Se>As>Zn) and therefore are good accumulators of these toxic metals. The leafy and the root vegetables appear to be the major accumulator of Se and As respectively. The TF of As in all the different varieties of vegetables is >1, indicating that this element is readily absorbed by these plants. The HRI value for As, Pb and Zn is >1 for the all the vegetables and therefore is unsafe posing serious human health risks.},
 year = {2014}
}

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TY  - JOUR
T1  - Environmental Risk Assesment of Heavy Metals Content of Municipal Solid Waste Used as Organic Fertilizer in Vegetable Gardens on the Jos Plateau, Nigeria
AU  - Lar Alexander Uriah
AU  - Usman Shehu
Y1  - 2014/12/25
PY  - 2014
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajep.s.2014030602.11
DO  - 10.11648/j.ajep.s.2014030602.11
T2  - American Journal of Environmental Protection
JF  - American Journal of Environmental Protection
JO  - American Journal of Environmental Protection
SP  - 1
EP  - 13
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2328-5699
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajep.s.2014030602.11
AB  - This study was conducted on vegetable gardens in and around Jos on the Jos Plateau, North central Nigeria; a city which has had strong European influence as a result of a long history of tin mining activity in the area. The study seeks to assess the degree of accumulation and/or contamination of the heavy metals in compost from municipal solid waste due for application as organic fertilizer in vegetable gardens as well as the potential human health risk associated with the consumption of vegetables grown with such organic fertilizer.  Three waste dumpsites in Jos and gardens were selected where vegetables cultivation (cabbage, lettuce, spinach, turnip, carrot, radish, beet root, tomato and spring onions) are practiced. The representative samples of compost material, agricultural soil and vegetables were collected and analyzed for heavy metals such as: As, Cd, Co, Cr, Ni, Pb, Cu, Zn, Sb and Se. Geochemical results show that the concentrations of these elements in the compost are higher (in decreasing order of As>Cd>Zn>Pb>Cu>Cr) compared to that in the soils yet to be applied the organic fertilizer. The degree of contamination of the soils and the compost, the transfer factor (TF) from the agricultural soil to vegetables and its health risk index (HRI) were calculated. Results show that in general, the agricultural soils are severely contaminated by As, Cd, Zn and Pb (CF= 10-25). Other elements such as Cr, Cu and Ni have moderately contaminated the soil. All the vegetables seem to have been severely contaminated by Se and As (Se>As>Zn) and therefore are good accumulators of these toxic metals. The leafy and the root vegetables appear to be the major accumulator of Se and As respectively. The TF of As in all the different varieties of vegetables is >1, indicating that this element is readily absorbed by these plants. The HRI value for As, Pb and Zn is >1 for the all the vegetables and therefore is unsafe posing serious human health risks.
VL  - 3
IS  - 6-2
ER  -

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