Title: Impact of Vehicle-related activities on Apo Automobile village soil and nearby Agricultural farm in Abuja, Federal Capital Territory, Nigeria.
Authors: Okibe. P. Ora, Samaila I.K, Sangari D.U, Magaji J.I
Volume: 8
Issue: 10
Pages: 182-187
Publication Date: 2024/10/28
Abstract:
The study investigated the concentration of heavy metals in soil samples collected from the selected automobile village and its environs and compared the results to international standards to identify any potential threats to the environment due to the volume of waste generated and disposed of as a result of vehicle-related activities carried out there. Samples were collected at 0-15cm from the automobile village and a nearby agricultural farm during the dry and rainy seasons, packed in polythene bags, and transported to the laboratory for physicochemical properties and heavy metal concentration analysis using standard procedures and AAS respectively. The following heavy metals detected are: Fe, Zn, Mn, Cd, Cr, Pb, Cu, Hg, As. The concentration of the heavy metals at the automobile village were higher than at the agricultural farm except for Zn, Mn, and Hg that had higher concentration in the agricultural farm than in the automobile village, indicating potential transfer of the chemicals released at the automobile village to nearby agricultural farm. The result obtained showed that soil contamination by heavy metals was taking place at the automobile village because of the presence and concentration of heavy metals detected. The result of the physicochemical properties revealed that the agricultural farm has better soil quality and was less degraded than the soil of the automobile village, which could be due to the vehicle-related activities generating high volume of hazardous material as waste and dumped on the soil . The study revealed the presence of nine heavy metals mentioned above and that the agricultural farm in the vicinity of the automobile villages exhibited elevated levels of heavy metals, surpassing the permissible limits for agricultural soils implying the potential transfer of contaminants from the automobile village to the nearby agricultural farm. The proximity of the automobile village to the agricultural farm and its vehicle-related activities significantly impacts the soil of the nearby agricultural farm. Government and regulatory bodies should set guidelines for improving soil management practices in automobile villages.