Maduka Omosivie, Ephraim-Emmanuel Benson
Department of Preventive and Social Medicine, University of Port Harcourt, Port Harcourt, Nigeria.
AAS Open Res. 2019 Jul 10;2:23. doi: 10.12688/aasopenres.12964.1. eCollection 2019.
Studies carried out in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria have demonstrated a link between oil exploration and poor-quality drinking water. However, many of these studies have been limited by small coverage and focus on few parameters. This study thus aimed at a comprehensive assessment of the quality of public sources of drinking water in three gas flaring and three non-gas flaring communities in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria. A total of 13 samples were collected from the major sources of drinking water in six communities in Rivers, Bayelsa and Delta States, Nigeria. These were stored and transported in line with International standards to a certified environmental laboratory where physical, chemical, bacteriological and petro-chemical assessments were conducted for 27 parameters. Some samples had a pH below the normal range for drinking water, with median pH value of 4.63. All chemical parameters assessed fell below the normal acceptable range with exception of magnesium which exceeded the acceptable range. There were11 samples (91.7%) with microbial contamination; total and faecal coliform demonstrated at values ranging between 15 and 90 most probably number (MPN)/100 ml for total coliform and 9 to 23 MPN/100 ml for faecal coliforms. Oil, grease and total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH) were identified in water samples from all communities. Values for oil and grease ranged between <0.001 and 0.015 mg/l, while TPH values were between <0.001 and 0.046 mg/l. There was no significant difference between median values in gas flaring and non-gas flaring communities. Distortion of physico-chemical properties, and hydrocarbon and faecal contamination of drinking water are a major challenge in oil-bearing communities in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria irrespective of gas flaring status. This calls for urgent interventions to improve the quality of drinking water for the people of the Niger Delta.
在尼日利亚尼日尔三角洲地区开展的研究表明，石油勘探与饮用水质量差之间存在联系。然而，这些研究大多存在覆盖范围小、仅关注少数参数的局限性。因此，本研究旨在全面评估尼日利亚尼日尔三角洲地区三个天然气燃烧社区和三个非天然气燃烧社区的公共饮用水源质量。总共从尼日利亚河流州、巴耶尔萨州和三角州六个社区的主要饮用水源采集了13个样本。这些样本按照国际标准储存和运输至一家经认证的环境实验室，在那里对27个参数进行了物理、化学、细菌学和石油化学评估。一些样本的pH值低于饮用水的正常范围，pH中位数为4.63。除镁含量超过可接受范围外，所有评估的化学参数均低于正常可接受范围。有11个样本（91.7%）受到微生物污染；总大肠菌群和粪大肠菌群的值分别为15至90最可能数（MPN）/100毫升和9至23 MPN/100毫升。所有社区的水样中均检测出石油、油脂和总石油烃（TPH）。油脂含量在<0.001至0.015毫克/升之间，而TPH值在<0.001至0.046毫克/升之间。天然气燃烧社区和非天然气燃烧社区的中位数之间没有显著差异。无论天然气燃烧状况如何，尼日利亚尼日尔三角洲地区产油社区的饮用水理化性质扭曲以及碳氢化合物和粪便污染都是一项重大挑战。这就需要采取紧急干预措施来改善尼日尔三角洲地区居民的饮用水质量。
