ABSTRACT
The Niger Delta is unique in Nigeria because it is the home of Nigeria’s oil industry, with its attendant environmental hazards such as water, land and air pollution. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are among the most toxic and persistent components of crude oil. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are toxic contaminants and pose health risks to humans and the ecosystem due to their persistence in the environment. This study determined the concentrations of PAHs in surface water of Okenrenkoko River, Delta State, Nigeria. The water samples were collected from three sampling stations across the river using precleaned glass bottles, and were analyzed for the presence of 16 PAHs using Gas Chromatography – Flame Ionization Detector (GC- FID). A total of 10 PAH congeners (naphthalene, acenaphthylene, acenaphthene, phenanthrene, anthracene, chrysene, benzo(a)anthracene, benzo(k)fluoranthene, dibenz(a,h)anthracene and benzo(g,h,i)perylene) were detected in the water samples at mean concentrations 33.08, 16.39, 0.19, 7.51, 2.09, 0.46, 0.21, 0.46, 0.11 and 2.44µg/L respectively. Concentrations of total PAHs obtained in water samples ranged from 52.11 – 58.75µg/L. Naphthalene recorded the highest concentration of 33.08µg/L. fluorine, fluoranthrene, pyrene, benzo(b)fluoranthene, benzo(a)pyrene, and indeno(1,2,3-cd)pyrene were below detectable limits. The results from this study portend a significant public health and environmental risk, to humans and aquatic life. An immediate attention from Nigeria’s Federal Environmental Protection Agency is required in order to protect the river from further pollution and the people living in this community.
