Urbanizing with or without nature: pollution effects of human activities on water quality of major rivers that drain the Kumasi Metropolis of Ghana

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dc.contributor.authorDarko, G.
dc.contributor.authorObiri‑Yeboah, S.
dc.contributor.authorTakyi, S.A.
dc.contributor.authorAmponsah, O.
dc.contributor.authorBorquaye, L.S.
dc.contributor.authorAmponsah, L.O.
dc.contributor.authorFosu‑Mensah, B.Y.
dc.date.accessioned2022-01-21T15:55:51Z
dc.date.available2022-01-21T15:55:51Z
dc.date.issued2022
dc.descriptionResearch Articleen_US
dc.description.abstractThe effects of urbanization such as population upsurge, increased industrialization, urban agriculture, and rural–urban migration of persons exert pressure on the limited water resources in most cities. This study investigated the impact of human activities on the water and sediment quality of the three main rivers (Wiwi, Subin, and Suntre) in Kumasi, the second-largest city in Ghana. The physicochemical parameters and the concentrations of contaminants, including heavy metals, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, pesticide residues, and microbial loads in the rivers, were linked to the specific human activities at the riverbanks. While all the 37 pesticide residues investigated in river sediments had concentrations below the detection limits (0.005 mg/kg for organochlorines, 0.010 mg/kg for organophos phates, and 0.010 mg/kg for synthetic pyrethroids), the study showed that the sediments are polluted with petrogenic and pyrogenic polycyclic aromatic hydro carbons. River Subin, the most polluted among the three rivers, recorded benzo[e]pyrene concentrations up to 47,169 µg/kg. The geoaccumulation index and concentration factors show that the rivers are highly contaminated with metals such as cadmium, chromium, mercury, and arsenic and are related to human activities. The microbial quality of the rivers was poor, recording specific microbial loads of 6.8, 4.1, and 1.5× 107 counts/100 mL respectively for Wiwi, Subin, and the Suntre Rivers. The three water bodies are therefore not suitable for recreational and irrigational purposes.en_US
dc.identifier.otherhttps://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-021-09686-8
dc.identifier.urihttp://ugspace.ug.edu.gh/handle/123456789/37760
dc.language.isoenen_US
dc.publisherSpringeren_US
dc.subjectWater pollutionen_US
dc.subjectContaminationen_US
dc.subjectIndustrializationen_US
dc.subjectUrbanizationen_US
dc.subjectEnvironmental impacten_US
dc.subjectRural–urban migrationen_US
dc.titleUrbanizing with or without nature: pollution effects of human activities on water quality of major rivers that drain the Kumasi Metropolis of Ghanaen_US
dc.typeArticleen_US

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