Geochemical Analysis of Groundwater Quality in Agbara and Environs

This study examines the geochemical compositions of groundwater from three communities viz: Agbara, Igbesa and Lusada to determine their suitability for human consumption. A total of seventeen (17) boreholes were sampled and analyzed using standard procedures. The parameters determined include: pH, temperature, electrical conductivity (EC), redox potential (RP), biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), anions (Cl -, PO 4 3-, NO 3 -, SO 4 2-, HCO 3 -and metals (As 2+ , Ca 2+ , Mg 2+ , K + , Na + , Mn 2+ and Cd 2+ ). Results showed variations in the values of water quality parameters from one community to another. pH of water samples from Agbara and Igbesa were acidic (4.1 -5.8) and generally fell below World Health Organization (WHO) limit of 6.5 -8.5 while that of Lusada was within the WHO range. Chloride, phosphate, bicarbonate and BOD values were generally high in all the three study areas greater than the acceptable limits in drinking water. Metal concentrations in all the sampled groundwater were very low while cadmium and arsenic were not detected in Igbesa and Lusada samples. Since most of the parameters with abnormal values have no (WHO) health-based guidelines, groundwater in these study areas may be suitable for direct consumption.