Effects of Textile Effluents on the Physico - Chemical Parameters and Heavy Metal Concentrations of River Kaduna

Industrial effluents contribute to the pollution of water bodies and this has been related to heavy disease load in communities relying on the water bodies. This study investigates the effects of textile effluents on the physicochemical parameters and heavy metal concentration of River Kaduna. Heavy metals (Cd, Ni, Pb, Zn, Cu and Fe) and physiochemical parameters (temperature, pH, electrical conductivity (Ec), turbidity, dissolved oxygen (DO), biological oxygen demand (BOD) and chemical oxygen demand (COD)) were analysed from water samples collected from five (5) sampling stations within the period January to March, 2020. About 22km was covered along the course of the river and the average distance between the stations is about 4.4km.The result from the physiochemical parameters shows the water Temperature (26.55-28.200C), Ec (120.06-182.35), DO (0.41-9.89), BOD (0.17-0.40), COD (3.22-36.10) were below the WHO and FEPA permissible limit and Turbidity (8.66-16.72) was above the limit. The result from heavy metal analysis reveals; Cd (0.05-0.07), Ni (1.55-2.55), Pb (0.59-1.45), and Fe (0.35-0.55) were found to be above acceptable limits when compared to Standards Organization of Nigeria (SON) and World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines. The concentration of all the heavy metals were larger than their respective control values showing the impact of external factors which must be checked. The study concluded that River Kaduna water body is polluted with heavy metals due to effluent discharged by the textile companies and other human activities along the bank of the river.