Toxicological assessment of marine sediment in oil spilled impacted area of Nembe, Niger Delta, Nigeria

Abstract

This study investigated the level heavy metal and health risk associated with marine sediment impacted with oil spill from Santa Barbara River, Nembe. Chemical analysis assessments of the marine sediments were investigated for different heavy metals Lead (Pb), Chromium (Cr), Nickel (Ni) and Mercury (Hg) respectively using flame atomic absorption spectrophotometer (AAS). The mean concentration of the marine sediment was found to be highest for Cr (24.03 ± 0.24), followed by Pb (1.53 ± 0.03) and Ni (3.93 ± 0.03) mg/kg respectively, while Hg was below detection limit. The result shows the heavy metals were below the recommended value stipulated by USEPA and RMENSR with exception of chromium which exceeded maximum permissible limit. This study recommended that there should be continuous monitoring of (Cr, Pb Ni and Hg) levels in sediments of Santa Barbara River to assess the risk of these metals in the river.