Suspended Marine Litter in New Calabar/Bonny Estuary System and Amadi Creek, Rivers State, Nigeria
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.53555/ans.v6i1.1213Keywords:
Plastics, Nylon, Foil, Navigable channels, Suspended debrisAbstract
A study of Nine coastal communities along the New Calabar/Bonny Estuary and Amadi Creek in Rivers State was conducted to: Identify and Geo-reference affected navigable channels in Rivers State; create a map of affected navigable channels in the state; qualitatively and quantitatively characterize floating marine debris in affected channels; Delineate the affected channels; and create awareness among coastal communities on suspended litter hazards. The data for average depth revealed that the water body in Diobu had the highest depth of10 m while Nkpogu and Ogunabali had the least depth of 4 m; average width was highest (100m) at Ukwa Aki while the least (25m) was recorded in Elekahia. The average flow velocity was highest (1.4 m/s) at Amatangbolo, and lowest (0.5 m/s) at Amadi-Ama. Characterization of suspended debris showed that the debris comprised of plastic, nylon, can, and foil. Plastic and nylon recorded the highest amount, accounting for over 70%. Average weight of suspended material per square kilometer ranged from the least value of 7553.33 kg/km2 at Amatangbolo to the highest value of 126,410 kg/km2 at Ogbunabali. Based on 20 tons capacity dumper trucks estimate, this study location would require between 1-7 dumper trucks to evacuate the suspended debris per square kilometers. In conclusion, plastics and nylon are the top ranking floating litter in the study area and as they do not biodegrade easily is a serious concern to the whole ecosystem wellbeing. Therefore it is our duty to safeguard our environment through global best practices and enlightenment campaigns.
Downloads
References
Amuda, O. S., Adebisi, S. A., Jimoda, L. A., & Alade, A. O. (2014). Challenges and possible panacea to the municipal solid wastes management in Nigeria. Journal of Sustainable Development Studies, 6(1).
ASTM D5231 – 92. Standard Test Method for Determination of the Composition of Unprocessed Municipal Solid Waste. ASTM International, West Conshohocken, PA. 2008
Babatunde B. B., Vincent-Akpu I. F., Woke G. N., Atarhinyo E., Aharanwa U. C., Green A. F., Isaac-Joe O (2013). Comparative analysis of municipal solid waste (MSW) composition in three local government areas in Rivers State, Nigeria African Journal of Environmental Science and Technology,. 7(9):874-881
Babatunde, B. B. and Uche, A. O. (2018). Suspended Marine Litter in Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria: A Case Study of Cross River, Qua Iboe River and Jaja Creek. Journal of Geography, Environment and Earth Science International 18(2): 1-13. DOI: 10.9734/JGEESI/2018/45448
Babayemi J.O, Dauda K.T (2009). Evaluation of Solid Waste Generation, Categories and Disposal options in Developing Countries: A Case Study of Nigeria. J. Appl. Sci. Environ. Mgt. 13:83-88.
Bożena Mrowiec (2017). Plastic pollutants in water environment. Environmental Protection and Natural Resources vol. 28, 4(74): 51-55. DOI 10.1515 /oszn-2017-0030
Ezeah, C., & Roberts, C. L. (2012). Analysis of barriers and success factors affecting the adoption of sustainable management of municipal solid waste in Nigeria. Journal of Environmental Management, 103, 9-14.
Guerrero, L.A, Maas, G., & Hogland, W. (2013). Solid waste management challenges for cities in developing countries. Waste management, 33(1), 220-232.
Iyama, W.A. and Edori, O.S. (2014). Seasonal Variation in Water Quality During Dredging of Water Habitat in the Niger Delta, Nigeria. Trends in Applied Sciences Research, 9:153-159.
Izuafuo, W.A, Chindah, A.C., Braide, S.A., Iyalla, I.A., (2004). An assessment of sediment quality at the vicinity of marine landing jetties at the middle reach of Bonny Estuary, Niger Delta. Scientia Africana 3(2), 1- 10.
King, R.P, Akpan, B.A and King L.R (2013). The spectrum of solid waste pollutants on Qua Iboe River Estuarine Beach, Nigeria. Journal of Aquatic Sciences 28 (1): 57- 68
NEDECO (1961). The Waters of the Niger Delta. Report on an Investigation. The Hague Publishers, Netherland.
Nigeria Population Commission (NPC) (2019). 2006 Census figures http://www.population.gov.ng [Accessed January, 2019]
Otene, B. B., & Davies, O. A. (2013). The epipelic algal distribution of upper bonny estuary, Amadi-Ama creek, Niger delta in relation to sediment quality indices. Scintific Journal of Animal Science, 2, 26-34.
Wagner, M. and Lambert, S. (2018): Freshwater Microplastics – Emerging Environmental Contaminants? Springer, Cham. (ed.)
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2020 International Journal For Research In Applied And Natural Science (ISSN: 2208-2085)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
In consideration of the journal, Green Publication taking action in reviewing and editing our manuscript, the authors undersigned hereby transfer, assign, or otherwise convey all copyright ownership to the Editorial Office of the Green Publication in the event that such work is published in the journal. Such conveyance covers any product that may derive from the published journal, whether print or electronic. Green Publication shall have the right to register copyright to the Article in its name as claimant, whether separately
or as part of the journal issue or other medium in which the Article is included.
By signing this Agreement, the author(s), and in the case of a Work Made For Hire, the employer, jointly and severally represent and warrant that the Article is original with the author(s) and does not infringe any copyright or violate any other right of any third parties, and that the Article has not been published elsewhere, and is not being considered for publication elsewhere in any form, except as provided herein. Each author’s signature should appear below. The signing author(s) (and, in
