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Cadmium, Cobalt, Lead and Zinc Levels in Soil and Edible Vegetables in Yala Urban Area of Cross River State, Nigeria
No full textThe average level of cadmium (Cd), cobalt (Co), lead (Pb) and zinc (Zn)
in the soil and edible vegetables samples collected randomly in Yala
Urban Area of Cross River State was determined using flame Atomic
Absorption Spectrometer. The samples were digested and analyzed for the
metals level or concentration in Chemistry Laboratory, University of
Calabar. The eight vegetables selected for the study were Amaranthus
spp., Corchorus olitorius , Murraya koenigii, Ocimum grattissimum ,
Solanum melongena , Talinum triangulare , Telferia occidentalis and
Vernonia amygdalina . The results indicated that the average level of
the metals in the soil in mgkg-1 ranged from (0.005-0.021) and
(0.004-0.019) in rainy and dry seasons respectively for Cadmium,
(0.162- 0.475) and (0.163-0.472) in rainy and dry season respectively
for Cobalt, and (0.434-1.030) and (0.432-1.027) in rainy and dry season
respectively for Zinc. Also, the average level of the metals
accumulated by the vegetables in mgkg-1 ranged from (0.002-0.009) and
(0.001- 0.007) in rainy and dry season respectively for Cadmium,
(0.050-0.198) and (0.048-0.195) in rainy and dry season respectively
for Cobalt, and (0.158-0.383) and (0.156-0.380) in rainy and dry season
respectively for Zinc. The level of Lead in the soil or vegetables was
not detected. The average level of metals accumulated by the vegetables
and that present in the soil was in the order: Zinc > Cobalt >
Cadmium > Lead. These results revealed that there is no significant
difference between the level of metals in the soil or that accumulated
by the vegetables in rainy and dry seasons of the year. Also the level
of metals accumulated by most of the vegetables was directly
proportional to the amount present in the soil where they are planted.
The Target Hazard Quotients of these metals was less than 1. These
results imply that the concentration of Cadmium, Cobalt, Zinc and Lead
in the soil and vegetables were still low and within the permissible
limits of World Health Organization. Thus, the consumption of the
vegetables in the area may not pose any health risk for now
Sedimentology and Paleogeographic Synthesis of Cretaceous Sediments in Auchi Area of Anambra Basin
No full textThe sedimentary rock in the Auchi area of Edo State constitutes part of
the Upper Cretaceous Deposits of the Anambra Basin, which has its
depocentre in Eastern Nigeria. Lithostratigraphic and Sedimentological
studies carried out on twenty eight (28) selected samples from a
section of a road\u2013cut show that the sediments range from fine
through medium to coarse grained. Sorting is poor to moderate. Grain
size analysis shows that the sediments are strongly fine skewed and
they exhibit mesokurtic to platykurtic kurtosis. These coupled with the
various colours observed in the sediment, ranging from whitish sand
through yellowish brown, pink and reddish brown possibly indicate a
non\u2013marine environment and a fluviatile to deltaic environment of
sedimentation is suggested. The sediments might have been transported
in a fairly high energy medium and deposited under a slightly
fluctuating velocity
Effect of Processing Techniques on the Degradability Characteristics of Acacia ( Acacia hockii ) Leaf
No full textThis experiment was conducted at the Federal University Dutsin-ma
Livestock Teaching and Research Farm in Dutsin-ma Local Government area
of Katsina State, Nigeria. The study was meant to ascertain the effect
of processing techniques on crude protein (CP), acid detergent fiber
(ADF) and neutral detergent fiber (NDF) degradation characteristics of
three differently processed Acacia hockii leaf meal (ensiled (T1), sun
dried (T2) and fresh (T30) incubated in the rumen of five rams at 3, 6,
12, 24 and 48hrs. Acacia hockii leaves were collected from Dutsin-ma
town and used in the experiment as as fresh leaves, sun-dried and
ensiled. Five rams with average live weight of 20kg were fistulated and
used as replicates in a completely randomized design (CRD). They were
fed with groundnut haulms, maize offal and cowpea husk in ad libitum at
a ratio of 70%:30% respectively along with other management practices.
The results of the rumen degradation characteristics showed that there
was a significant (p<0.05) difference in the soluble fraction of
crude protein, acid detergent fibre and neutral detergent fibre
degradation among the treatments. There was also a significance
(p<0.05) difference between the outflow rates of effective crude
protein digestibility, effective acid detergent digestibility and
effective neutral detergent digestibility. It was concluded from the
study that ensiling and drying methods of processing reduces the
ant-nutritional factors and the consequent better degradability of T1
and T2. However, the results of the study also revealed that ensiling
is more effective than drying hence the better degradability recorded
of crude protein, neutral detergent fiber, acid detergent fiber and the
effective passage rate
Knowledge, Attitude and Practices of E-Waste Workers in Owode-Onirin Scrap Market, Kosofe Local Government Area, Lagos State, Nigeria
Get PDFElectronic devices have become essential to our existence leading to an
increase in the rate of electronic waste (E-waste) generation and
environmental degradation. This study evaluates the knowledge, attitude
and prevailing practices of e-waste workers at the Owode-Orinin scrap
market in Kosofe Local Government Area of Lagos Nigeria using 241
Questionnaires to obtain data which were analysed by Pearson
correlation coefficient. The knowledge of the respondents was limited
to the financial and economic value attached to E-waste meanwhile the
environmental and health impact of their occupation were not known,
neglected or considered unimportant. A positive relationship was
established between education, knowledge and attitude of the
respondents. This indicates that increase in education brings about
increase in the knowledge and results in positive attitude of the
E-waste workers. The strong social tie found to exist among the E-waste
workers can be leveraged upon for the transmission of the knowledge
about the environmental health impact of their occupation so as to
conduct their activities in the safest manner possible
Econometric Analysis of the Effect of Changes in Price on Consumption Pattern of Petrol, Rice and Bean in Owerri City, Imo State, Nigeria
Get PDFIt was hypothesized that changes in price could affect the consumption
pattern of petrol, rice and bean, their status as basic needs
notwithstanding. To test this hypothesis, primary data were generated,
subjected to econometric model and analyzed. Two-hundred residents of
different income groups who live in Owerri city, Imo State, Nigeria and
have used petrol, rice and bean for at least ten years and were not
less than thirty-one years old were sampled using standard method. The
pretest result of questionnaire validity and reliability was r = 0.726
and this indicates high reliability. A total of 90% strongly agreed and
agreed that prices of petrol, rice and bean are unstable in Owerri
City, Imo State, Nigeria. The results indicate that 70% of the
consumers strongly agreed and agreed that price affects consumption of
the products irrespective of need. This was a significant observation
too. In the study, availability of petrol, rice and bean affected
consumption in an urban environment.Grain quality was found a strong
determinant of consumption of rice and bean in the city. There was a
positive and non-significant relationship between price and consumption
of petrol, rice and bean and this shows that price is not the most
important determinant of consumption of all commodities. Necessity was
more important than price in consumption of petrol, rice and bean in
the city of Owerri, Imo State, Nigeria. These findings are useful to
econometricians, policymakers, governments and households
Phytochemical Screening and Antibacterial Activities of Aframomum melegueta (K. Schum) Seed Extracts on Salmonella typhi and Klebsiella pneumoniae
Get PDFThe phytochemical screening and antibacterial effects of Aframomum
melegueta (K. Schum)on Salmonella typhi and Klebsiella pneumoniae was
carried out. The phytochemical screening revealed the presence of
alkaloids, flavonoids, tannins, saponins, steroids, anthraquinones,
terpenoids, glycosides and phenols in the seed extract. The
susceptibility test showedzones of inhibition (ZOI) of S. typhi
(11.0mm) and K. pneumonia (13.0mm) with methanolic seed extract (MSE),
while the hot aqueous seed extract (HASE) recorded 3.0mmas ZOI for both
test organisms. The Minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of 200mg/ml
and 100mg/ml were recorded against S. typhi and K. pneumoniae
respectively with MSE, while HASE indicated 400mg/ml and 200mg/ml MICs
against S. typhi and K. pneumoniae respectively. The Minimum
Bactericidal Concentration (MBC) obtained from MSE were 200 mg/ml and
25mg/ml for S. typhiand K. pneumoniae, while HASE had > 400mg/ml for
test microbes. The effectiveness of different concentrations of the
test plant extracts on the test organisms was significant (P<0.05).
Further trials involving other clinical isolates and botanicals at
different concentrations be conducted, to optimize theprocess
Effects of Supplementing Fish Meal with Sesame indicum on Functional Properties, Phytotoxins and Hematological Compositions of Clarias gariepinus
Get PDFThis study analyzed the effects of supplementing fish meal with Sesame
indicum on functional properties, phytotoxins and hematological
compositions of Clarias gariepinus. A total of 150 of C. gariepinus
fingerlings were grouped into 6 tanks with 20 C. gariepinus per tank.
Each tank of fish was served with prepared fish meals supplemented with
various levels of beniseed (S. indicum), namely, DT1 (commercial diet),
stands as the control group, DT2 (0% beniseed with 100% soya bean meal,
DT3 (25% beniseed with 75% soya bean meal, DT4 (50% beniseed with 50%
soya bean, DT5 (75% beniseed with 25% soya bean and DT6 (100% beniseed
with 0% soya bean, individually. The functional properties of each diet
and hematological indices of the treated fish were determined. All
prepared diets have improved the functional properties and their
phytotoxins level remains within the permissible limit as compared to
control diets (DT1). The formulated diets have potentially influenced
the hematological indices analyzed compared to the control diet (DT1).
At any level of S. indicum inclusion in the fish meal of C. gariepinus
there was a potential improvement of the functional properties,
hematological parameters and maintaining the levels of phytotoxins not
to rise above the permissible limit. Thus, experimental diets (DT5 and
DT6) with 75 and 100% S. indicum would be promising candidates which
may be used for the development of the product in various food
industries
Farmers\u2019 Knowledge and Attitude towards the Adoption of Agroforestry Practices in Akinyele Local Government Area, Ibadan, Nigeria
Get PDFThis study presents farmers\u2019 knowledge and attitudes towards the
adoption of agroforestry in Akinyele Local Government Area of Oyo
State. A multistage random sampling technique was used to administer
the questionnaires to a total of 50 respondents. Data collected were
analyzed using both descriptive and inferential statistics. The
demographic factors analyzed showed that the majority of respondents
were males (60.8%) and possess married (54.2%). Majority of the
respondents (66%) do not practice agroforestry and possessed low
knowledge of agroforestry practices. Respondents\u2019 attitudes
towards the practice were inadequate. Furthermore, knowledge of
agroforestry was found to influence the willingness to adopt the
practice, attitudes towards agroforestry practice also influence its
adoption in the study area. Based on the findings, this study
recommends that extension agents and other stakeholders should
intensify effort to pass down adequate knowledge on the practice and
advantages of agroforestry to farmers in the simplest form it can be
well understood, to improve their attitudes and increase their rate of
adoption of agroforestry practices
Water Quality Index of Kolo Creek, Bayelsa State, Nigeria
No full textThe Kolo Creek was assessed to determine the impact of human activities
on the water quality using the Water Quality Index. Water samples were
collected from six sample sites (A-F) during the dry and wet seasons
and assessed for physicochemical and biological parameters. Results
from the study showed a mean e-coli level of 39.83\ub12.93 (Cfu);
mean pH of 7.23\ub10.37 in the dry season and 6.78\ub10.18 for the
wet season; and mean DO levels of 7.58\ub11.00mg/l during the dry
season and 9.29\ub12.67mg/l during the wet season indicating that the
Kolo Creek was biologically polluted but physicochemical potable for
domestic use. However, combined physicochemical and biological
classification with the water quality index ranked the creek water as
medium (Class III) and not good for consumption. The water quality
index was affirmed as a good single measure of water quality
Modelling for the Reduction and Spread Transmission of the Dynamics and Control of Zika virus Disease: Using Ordinary Differential Equations
No full textThe Zika virus is a flavivirus which upon infection in humans causes an
illness known as Zika fever. It is commonly identified by popular rash,
mild fever and arthritis. The Zika virus (ZIKV) was first identified
and isolated from the Zika forest in Uganda in 1947. This paper focuses
on human recovery from treatment and death of mosquitoes from
insecticides in order to reduce the spread of the virus. This shows
that the ZIKV is endemic in a population when the illness exists and is
a threat to a population if there is no control. Therefore, the model
formulated is unique for analysis. The result of this study shows that
the treatment technique without insecticides has no significant
reduction in the infected vectors and hosts. The stability of the
disease shows stable with Ro > 1. Finally, the best option is to use
an insecticide to reduce the spread of the virus on both infected hosts
and vectors