EFFLUENT IMPACT ON WATER QUALITY
ABSTRACT
This project work was aimed at determining the effect of effluent impact on water quality on Aba River. This became pertinent owing to the fact that companies discharge their effluent into the river without treatment. Four different samples were collected from four locations and analyzed, which include Upstream Sample (A), Unilever Effluent (B), Nigeria Breweries Effluent (C), and Down Stream Sample (D).
The results obtained indicated that there is industrial input of metals like Iron, Copper, Zinc, Calcium and non metals like Sulphate, Phosphate, Chloride, and Carbonate. This parameters were higher when compared with WHO’s standard.
The microbiological analysis showed that the river is highly polluted.
Finally conclusions were drawn and recommendations made.
NTRODUCTIONÂ
Effluent impact on water quality is a point of great concern. This is because, it has been observed that the quality of water people use has a great effect on their health. If proper care is not taken to ascertain the characteristics or composition of the discharged effluent, then environment is exposed to numerous hazards.
One may ask what an effluent really is. An effluent is defined as an industrial liquid waste. It is characterized by the components used in such industries. This implies that the composition or characteristics of effluent varies from industry to industry.
Impact at the other hand is defined as an effect felt as a result of an action taken or a process carried out. It becomes pertinent to carryout Environmental Impact Assessment of possible action to be taken or projects to be carried out. Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is defined as a management tool used to assess and evaluate any potential change in the environment (including air, water, land, natural resources, fauna flora, humans and their interaction) whether adverse or beneficial, wholly or partial, that results from an organisations activities, products or services (Ofunne, 2002).
We are really concerned with the effect the discharge of liquid industrial waste (effluent), from Unilever plc and Nigeria Breweries Limited; have on the quality of water obtainable at the river where they are discharged. This impact that is our point of concern is dependent of the various compositions of the effluent and its degree.
Wastewater ought to be collected or a sewer system and transported to plant for treatment prior to disposal (Mark and Mark, 2008). Dilution into a surface water course and purification by nature yield additional quality improvement. The feat of this effluent discharge is that of collecting the water before complete rejuvenation for municipal.
