The Impact of Urban Flooding on Surface Water Quality of Awka Town

Anthony C. Okoye, Emma E. Ezenwaji, Kabir A. Awopeju

Department of Environmental Management, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, Nigeria.
Department of Geography and Meteorology, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, Nigeria.
Department of Statistics, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, Nigeria.

DOI: 10.4236/jep.2014.51008                

Abstract

Some physico-chemical and bacteriological parameters were analyzed for in the water samples of four different ponds located in Awka town both prior and after the rain to ascertain the impact of flood in these ponds and to establish whether the pollution was significant. Four samples were collected from each pond both before the rain and after making it a total of thirty-two samples. Twenty-seven parameters were analyzed for in each of the samples. The result revealed that twelve parameters exceeded WHO standard before the rain while fourteen exceeded after the rain. There was significant increment in the values of the analyzed parameters after the rain when compared with the value before the rain as revealed by the Anova statistical tool. It was discovered that there was a major increase in the bacteriological parameters after the rain which implied the serious health impact. It was recommended that users who utilized these ponds for squeezing bitter leaf, processing cassava and washing meats etc. should do so with the caution so as not to expose people to health problems.

Keywords

Ponds; Flood; Pollution; Health Impact; WHO Standard

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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