Continental J.

Water, Air and Soil Pollution 3 (1): 1 11, 2012 ISSN: 2251 - 0508 Wilolud Journals, 2012 http://www.wiloludjournal.com Printed in Nigeria doi:10.5707/cjwasp.2012.3.1.1.11

CONTENTS OF SOME ANIONS IN MELONS (CURCURBITACEAE) GROWN IN MAIDUGURI, NIGERIA E. I. Uwah and V. O. Ogugbuaja Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, University of Maiduguri, P.M.B. 1069, Maiduguri, Nigeria ABSTRACT The contents of nitrate, nitrite, phosphate and sulphate in watermelon (Citrullus vulgaris) and cucumber (Cucumis sativus) grown and consumed in Maiduguri, Nigeria, were investigated in edible portions of the vegetables. These anions were equally investigated in the surface soils where the vegetables were grown. The anions contents in the soil and vegetable samples were determined using UV-Visible Spectrophotometric method. Nitrate contents in the vegetables ranged from 135.30 4.32 to 945.00 22.36 gg-1 in melons obtained from the two sample areas of Alau dam and Gongulon. Nitrite ranged from 52.19 3.00 to 91.98 0.42 gg-1. Phosphate ranged from 2198.00 27.08 to 3195.50 28.00gg-1 while sulphate contents ranged from 2042.50 11.03 gg-1 to 3150.60 9.57 gg-1. The anions contents were higher in the soil samples. The anions contents in both the vegetable and soil were lower in the controls. These are indications of possible pollution of the areas as a result of excessive usage of fertilizers, agro-chemicals and irrigation with wastewater. The results for nitrates and nitrites obtained in this study were higher than the published maximum permissible content of nitrate and nitrite in some vegetables and fruits. These high anions values could put consumers of the vegetables at health risk. KEYWORDS: Fertilizers, pollutants, anions, soils, melons, wastewater INTRODUCTION A number of factors are responsible for the distribution of pollutants in soils and plants. Some of these factors include the intensification of agriculture and large-scale use of fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides (Webster, 2007). Other factors include environmental conditions such as temperature and rainfall. The characteristics of both soils and plants in the uptake, retention and distribution of pollutants are also important (Manahan, 2005). Major categories of soil pollutants include: Nutrients (fertilizers, sewage sludge), acids, heavy metals, radioactive elements and agro-chemicals (herbicides, insecticides, fungicides and other pesticides). Many of these pollutants are discharged into the soils through land waste disposal, inputs from the atmosphere and irrigation with municipal waste water (Radojevic and Bashkin, 1999). Pollution of plants is of concern for two reasons: Firstly, pollutants may have direct or indirect phytotoxic impacts on the plants themselves, leading to a decline in crop yields and threatening food supplies; secondly, the plants may act as a vehicle for transferring pollutants into the food chain. For example, Cd is readily accumulated by plants and may get to levels which are adverse to the plants and consequently posing a threat to animals and humans that consume the plants (Radojevic and Bashkin, 1999). Fertilizers contain not only elements necessary for plant nutrient and growth, but anion and trace metal impurities. The excessive application of nitrogen and other inorganic fertilizers and organic manures to plants such as vegetables can accumulate high levels of nitrate and other anions. Consequently their consumption by humans and animals can pose serious health hazards. It has been reported that vegetables that are consumed with their roots, stems and leaves have a high nitrate accumulation, whereas melons and those vegetables with only fruits as consumable parts have a low nitrate accumulation (Zhou et al., 2000. In a similar study at Salinas Valley, California, Zink and Yamaguchi, 1962 reported that a relationship was found between the nitrate content of lettuce and the amount of nitrogen fertilizer applied. They found out that nitrate content of the plant was largely dependent on the application of nitrogen fertilizer and on the growth rate of the plant. Positive effects of organic fertilizers on nitrate accumulation in spinach have been reported by some studies (Barker, 1975; Stopes et al., 1988). It was also reported that easily decomposable organic fertilizers such as blood meal and guano might increase nitrate accumulation in spinach in the same way as conventional chemical fertilizers, especially with excessive application rates (Termine et al., 1987).

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Food and vegetable crops productions require access to fertile land, water and other necessary inputs. In Nigeria, Government has in recent years built additional dams and canals for dry season farming and have increased the provision of fertilizers, herbicides, pesticides and modern farm equipments to boost food and vegetable crops productions (Lawal and Singh, 1981). Various classes of vegetables are grown in many parts of Nigeria (Uwah et al., 2009). In Borno State, vegetables are heavily cultivated and consumed as food (Bokhari and Ahmed, 1985). This area is known for its dryness, with Sudan type of Climate, Savanna or Tropical grasslands Vegetation, light annual rainfall of about 864mm and temperature ranging from 32 41oC, with mean of the daily maximum exceeding 40oC between March and May before the onset of the rains in June (Adeleke and Leong, 1978). These vegetables are irrigated with dam waters and all kinds of available waste and polluted waters. Similarly, to enhance the yield of these vegetables, fertilizers and manures are occasionally added to the soil. There are the possibilities of over applications of these fertilizers and manures. Hence, the uptake and storage of some anions and heavy metal pollutants from these waters, fertilizers and manures by these vegetables are very likely since these salts and heavy metals are soluble and mobile in ground water (Uwah et al., 2007). These will indeed expose consumers of these vegetable crops to bioaccumulation of trace metals and anions with time. There is therefore, the need to carry out extensive screening on the vegetables grown and consume in Maiduguri, in order to determine the contents of some anions (nitrate, nitrite, phosphate and sulphate). It was in this regard, that Curcurbitaceae; watermelon (Citrullus vulgaris) and cucumber (Cucumis sativus) which are some of the vegetable crops grown in the area were screened in order to assess the levels of the anions. MATERIALS AND METHODS Sample area and sampling Edible portions of watermelon (Citrullus vulgaris) and cucumber (Cucumis sativus) vegetable crops and top or surface soil (0 20 cm) samples were collected from the vegetable farms of Alau dam and Gongulon, irrigated with the Alau dam water, sewage and all kinds of available wastewater, and cultivated with the applications of fertilizers, manures, herbicides and pesticides. Samples were also collected from experimental gardens cultivated on a piece of virgin land, irrigated with unpolluted water and without the applications of fertilizers, manures, herbicides and pesticides, to serve as the controls. Collections were made from December, 2007 to May, 2008. Samples collections were made six (6) times during the period. The map of the study area is shown in Figure 1. During each collection, samples were randomly collected from different plots and homogenized into composite samples in the two sample areas. Sample collections were carried out according to the methods described by (Radojevic and Bashkin, 1999) into cleaned new polyethylene bags and transported to the laboratory. Vegetable samples preparations for Nitrate, Nitrite, Phosphate and Sulphate analyses. Vegetable samples were cleaned to remove visible soil and then washed with tap water, thereafter with distilled water several times and then sliced into nearly uniform sizes to facilitate drying at the same rate. The sliced samples were then dried in an oven at 105oC for 24 hours until they were brittle and crisp. At this stage no micro organism can grow and care was taken to avoid any source of contamination. The dried samples were mechanically ground into fine particles using clean mortar and pestle and sieved to obtain <2 mm fractions. Determination of Nitrate (NO3-) and Nitrite (NO2-) in the vegetable samples solutions A portion (1g) of each of the sieved samples was taken separately in 100ml polyethylene or glass bottles, 40ml of distilled water were added, capped and shaken for 30 minutes. The solutions were filtered and the filtrates made up to the marks in 100ml volumetric flasks (Radojevic and Bashkin, 1999). The determination of nitrate in each of the vegetable sample solutions was performed by using UV-Visible Smart spectrophotometer (model 2000) at a wavelength of 543nm. The equipment was scrolled to select the stored programme number for nitrate (64 Nitrate-N). The result, which was obtained as Nitrate-Nitrogen (NO3-N) was converted to ppm Nitrate (NO3-) by multiplying by 4.4 (conversion factor) (LaMotte, 2000). The concentration levels of nitrate (gg-1) in the samples were calculated from: NO3- (gg-1) = C x V/M (1)

Where; C is the concentration of NO3- in the sample (ppm), V is the total volume of the sample solution (100ml) and M is the weight of the sample (1g) (Radojevic and Bashkin, 1999).

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Nitrite levels in the sample solutions were similarly determined. In this case however, different reagents were used. The programme number for nitrite was 67 Nitrite-N and the reaction period was five minutes as against ten minutes for nitrate. Nitrite-Nitrogen (NO2--N) was converted to ppm Nitrite (NO2-) by multiplying by 3.3 (conversion factor) (LaMotte, 2000). The content levels of nitrite (gg-1) in the samples were calculated from: NO2- (gg-1) = C x V/M (2)

Where; C is the concentration of NO2- in the sample (ppm), V is the total volume of the sample solution (100ml) and M is the weight of the sample (1g) (Radojevic and Bashkin, 1999). Determination of Phosphate A portion (1g) each of the sieved vegetable samples were taken in a clean porcelain crucibles and 5cm3 of 20% (w/v) magnesium acetate added and evaporated to dryness. They were ashed in a furnace at 500oC for 4 hours and acid-digested with concentrated HNO3 and 6M HCl. 10 cm3 of 6M HCl were added to each of the crucibles, covered and heated on a steam bath for 15 minutes. The contents of each of the crucibles were transferred into different evaporating basins and 1cm3 of concentrated HNO3 added and the heating process continued for 1 hour to dehydrate silica. 1cm3 of 6M HCl was then added, swirled and followed with the addition of 10cm3 of water, heated and cooled. The resulting solutions were filtered into 50cm3 flasks and volumes made up to the marks (AOAC, 1984; Radojevic and Bashkin, 1999). Phosphate concentrations in the vegetable extracts were analyzed using Hach Direct Reading spectrophotometer (model, 44800-00) by the reactive phosphorus-amino acid method (also called orthophosphate method) at a wavelength of 530nm (HACH, 1975). The concentrations of phosphate (g/g) in the vegetable samples were calculated from: PO43- (g/g) = C x V/M (3)

Where; C is the concentration of PO43- in the sample (ppm), V is the total volume of the sample solution (50cm3) and M is the weight of the sample (1g) (AOAC, 1984; Radojevic and Bashkin, 1999). Determination of Sulphate The procedures of samples preparations for sulphate analyses were similar to those of phosphate, except that, 5cm3 of Magnesium nitrate solution were added to the sieved samples to prevent loss of sulphur and then heated on a hot plate to 180oC until the colour of the samples changed from brown to yellow (AOAC, 1984; Radojevic and Bashkin, 1999). Sulphate concentrations in the vegetable extracts were analyzed using Smart spectrophotometer (model, 2000) at a wavelength of 420nm. The equipment was scrolled to select the stored programme number for sulphate (89sulphate). The results in ppm or mg/l SO42- were recorded (LaMotte, 2000). The content levels of sulphate (g/g) in the vegetable samples were calculated from: SO42- (g/g) = C x V/M (4)

Where; C is the concentration of SO42- in the sample (ppm), V is the total volume of the sample solution (50cm3) and M is the weight of the sample (1g) (AOAC, 1984; Radojevic and Bashkin, 1999). Determination of Nitrate (NO3-) and Nitrite (NO2-) in the Soil Samples The soil samples were homogenized and air-dried in a circulating air in the oven at 30oC and sieved through a 2 mm sieve. 10g of the sieved soil samples were taken in 250cm3 polythene bottles, 100cm3 of 2 M KCl added and shaken for 1 hour on a shaker and then filtered. 5 cm3 of 2% boric acid (H3BO3) solution were pipetted into a 50cm3 conical flask and placed under the condenser top about 4cm above the surface. 20cm3 of the extract were taken in a distillation tube and 0.2g of MgO added and followed with the addition of 0.2g Devardas Alloy. The tube was distilled until about 30cm3 of the distillate collected. Soil samples preparation for nitrite determination was similar to that of nitrate except that fresh soil samples rather than dried samples were used (Black, 1965; AOAC, 1984; Radojevic and Bashkin, 1999). Nitrate (NO3-) and nitrite (NO2-) concentrations in the soil distillates was determined using Smart spectrophotometer (model 2000) at a wavelength of 543nm, similar to those previously for the vegetable samples.

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Determination of Phosphate in the Soil Samples About 2g of air-dried soil were taken in a polyethylene bottle and 50cm3 of water added. The bottle was shaken continuously for 5 minutes and repeatedly filtered through a Whatman no. 42 filter paper until a clear extract was obtained. 10cm3 of the sample extract were then taken in a 50cm3 volumetric flask and diluted to just under 40cm3and 8cm3of the reaction mixture were added and the volume made up to the mark (Bray and Kurtz, 1945; AOAC, 1984; Radojevic and Bashkin, 1999). Calibration standards were prepared by adding volumes of standard phosphate solution (10g Pdm-3) corresponding to between 5 and 60 g P (0.5 6cm3 of the standard solution) to a series of 50cm3 volumetric flask. To each flask, 8cm3of the reaction mixture were added and the volume made up to the mark. Water blank was then prepared by taken 8cm3 of the reaction mixture into a 50cm3 flask and the volume made up to the mark. The solutions were then mixed thoroughly and allowed to stand for at least 10 minutes. The absorbance of the solution was measured at 880 nm in 1 cm cell spectrophotometer. A calibration graph which was a straight line graph through the origin was plotted against g P. The amount of phosphorus in the sample was determined from the graph and the concentration calculated from: Mg Pdm-3 = g P/V (5)

Where; V is the volume of the sample (cm3). The concentration of phosphate-P in the sample extract was then calculated and converted to mg P/kg soil according to the equation: PO43--P (g/g) = C x V/M (6)

Where; C is the concentration of PO43--P in the extracts (g Pcm-3), V is the total volume of extract (50cm3) and M is the weight of the sample (2g) (Bray and Kurtz, 1945; AOAC, 1984; Radojevic and Bashkin, 1999). Determination of Phosphate in the Soil Samples Sulphate was extracted from the soil samples by fusion as described by Radojevic and Bashkin, 1999). Approximately 0.5g of sodium carbonate and 0.05g of sodium peroxide were taken in a clean platinum crucible and 0.10g of finely ground oven dried soil sample added and mixed with a glass rod. About 0.30g of sodium carbonate was further spread on top of the mixture and cover with the lid. The crucible was supported on a silica triangle and heated over a flame until the contents liquefied. The crucible was later removed from flame, swirled gently, cooled and then immersed in about 50cm3water in a 250cm3 beaker, 3cm3of concentrated HCl was then added, covered with a watch glass and heated for 30 minutes on a boiling water bath. The solution was then transferred into a 100cm3 volumetric flask and the volume was made up to the mark. A blank was prepared by the same procedure, but without the sample. The soil solution was immediately poured into an absorption cell and the absorbance measured on a spectrophotometer at 420 nm after 6 minutes. A series of calibration standards was prepared by pipetting aliquots of the standard sulphate solution corresponding to between 0.5 and 5 mg SO42- (5 50cm3) into a 100cm3 volumetric flask and the volume made up to the mark. The concentration of sulphate in the extract was evaluated and calculated from: SO42- (g/g) = C x V/M (7)

Where; C is the concentration of SO42- S in the sample extracts (mg Sdm-3), V is the volume of the extract (100cm3) and M is the weight (0.10g) of the soil sample that was extracted (Allen, 1989). Determination of some physicochemical parameters and particle fractions of the soils Organic carbon was determined by means of a potassium dichromate back titration method as described by McCleod (1973). Cation exchange capacity (CEC) was determined by the silver thiourea method as described by Rayment and Higginson (1992). The soil pH (1:5 soil water extract), Electrical conductivity (EC) (1:5 soil water extract) and the soil particle size fractions were equally determined using standard laboratory methods as described by Rayment and Higginson (1992).

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Transfer Factors (TF) for Anions from Soils to Vegetables Transfer factor is the ratio of the concentration of anion in a plant to the concentration of anion in soil. The transfer factors (TF) for each anion were computed based on the method described by Harrison and Chirgawi (1989) according to the following equation: TF = Ps (g/g dry wt)/St (g/g dry wt) (8)

Where Ps is the plants anion content originating from the soil and St is the total anion contents in the soil. Data Analyses Data generated were subjected to statistical tests of significance using the Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) at p<0.05 to assess pairs of results in the vegetables and soils. That was in order to assess significant variation in the levels of the anions in the vegetables as well as in soils. Probabilities less than 0.05 (p < 0.05) were considered statistically significant. All statistical analyses were done by SPSS software for windows. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Content levels of the Anions in the Melon Vegetables and Soils The content levels of the anions in the melon family of vegetables are as shown in Table 1. The levels of nitrate in the vegetables ranged from 135.304.21 g/g in water melon to 945.00 22.36g/g in cucumber obtained in the two sample areas of Alau dam and Gongulon. The corresponding levels of nitrate in the control ranged from 92.5 1.10 to 340.31 1.10g/g. Nitrite levels ranged from 52.19 3.00gg-1 in watermelon to 91.98 0.42g/g in cucumber. Nitrite levels in the control ranged from 28.50 4.55 to 29.65 1.36g/g. Those of sulphate ranged from 2545.00 51.96 gg-1 in cucumber to 3150.60 9.57g/g also in cucumber. Sulphate levels in the control ranged from 760.00 0.21 to 1034.12 3.14g/g. Phosphate levels in the vegetables ranged from 2837.5047.87 gg-1 in cucumber to 3195.5028.00g/g also in cucumber while its corresponding levels in the control ranged from 610.20 3.20 to 850.25 4.32g/g. The concentrations of the anions (nitrate, nitrite, sulphate and phosphate) in the soils are as presented in Table 2. Nitrate levels were relatively higher than those of nitrite in the two sample areas. Those of sulphate were higher than phosphate while nitrate and nitrite were low when compared with sulphate and phosphate levels. Nitrate levels were 311.55 0.75 and 398.652.56g/g in Alau dam and Gongulon, respectively. The nitrite concentrations were 203.33 4.80 and 253.933.41g/g in Alau dam and Gongulon, respectively. Sulphate levels were 2295.18 41.88 and 3397.70 40.96g/g while the phosphate concentrations were 2436.38 38.89 and 3576.40 33.54g/g in the two sample areas. The levels of the anions in the controls ranged from 84.31 0.03g/g nitrite to 1350.00 1.50g/g phosphate.
Statistical test of significance using ANOVA revealed marked significant differences (p < 0.05) among the anions contents in vegetables from the two areas with their corresponding levels in the controls. This suggested possible pollution of the areas and indeed the vegetables as a result of excessive usage of fertilizers, herbicides and other agro-chemicals, as well as the use of waste water in irrigating the soils and the environmental factors pertinent in the study areas. The fact that concentrations of these anions in the vegetables varied between the two sample areas could be attributed to differences in anthropogenic activities, like different farming practices in the areas (Cantliffe and Phatak, 1974b; Maynard et al., 1976). This could also be attributed to a number of environmental factors such as drought (Younis et al., 1965), temperature (Cantliffe, 1972c), day light intensity, soil temperature and soil type (Gangolli et al., 1994). These, in fact, suggested possible pollution of the Gongulon area more than the Alau dam area. The trends of the variations of the anions levels in the melon family of vegetables were: phosphate > sulphate > nitrate > nitrite. The higher levels of the anions in the soil samples obtained in the Gongulon area could equally be attributed to similar reasons. Some Physicochemical Parameters of the Soils The results for the determination of some physicochemical parameters in soils are as shown in Table 3. The results showed low organic carbon (OC) and organic matter (OM) in the study area. The values of OC (%) were 0.40 and 0.74 in Alau dam and Gongulon, respectively. Those of OM (%) were 0.69 and 1.28 in the two areas. Similarly, cation exchange capacity (CEC) in meq100-1g and the electrical conductivity (EC) in (mhocm-1) values were low. The CEC (meq100-1g) values for the two areas were 5.33 0.01 and 5.43 0.10 and those of EC (mhocm-1) were 0.22 0.03 and 0.24 0.05. The soil pH values in the two areas were as high as 6.23 0.20 and 6.69 0.04 respectively. The values of these parameters in the control samples were: OC (%) 0.22, OM (%) 0.35, CEC (meq100-1g) 5.04 0.15, EC (mhocm-1) 0.20 0.12 and pH 6.67 0.57. The high pH values of 6.23 0.20 and 6.69 0.04 in the two respective sample areas of Alau dam and Gongulon are indicative of slightly acidic environment. The high pH values in the study area may be attributed mainly to the

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buffering effect of carbonate containing materials such as cement or bricks (Abulude, 2005; Uwah, 2009). Statistical test of significance using the ANOVA, revealed significant differences (p < 0.05) between the values of organic carbon (OC), and organic matter (OM) in the soil samples obtained in the two areas with their corresponding values in the control samples. However, cation exchange capacity (CEC), electrical conductivity (EC) and pH values in samples obtained in the two areas did not show statistical differences (p > 0.05) with their corresponding values in the control samples. Levels of Particle Size Fractions of the Soils The levels of particle fractions of the soils are as presented in Table 4. Particle size analyses of the soils revealed the levels of clay (%) in the two respective areas to be: 9.00 and 8.50; sand (%) as 84.00 and 86.00 and silt (%) as 5.00 and 7.50. The levels of these parameters in the control samples were: clay (%) 8.80, sand (%) 84.00 and silt (%) 7.20. There were significant differences (p > 0.05) between the concentrations of clay, silt in soil samples obtained in the two sample areas of Alau dam and Gongulon with their corresponding levels in the control samples. In general, the results revealed the soils to be loamy sand in texture and slightly acidic with low organic matter contents. Transfer Factors (TF) of the Anions Soils to Vegetables The transfer factors (TF) of the anions from soils to vegetables are as presented in Figure 2. Transfer factor is one of the key components of human exposure to anions through the food chain. Transfer factors were computed for the anions to quantify the relative differences in bioavailability of anions to vegetables or to identify the efficiency of a vegetable species to accumulate a given anion. These factors were based on the root uptake of the anions and discount the foliar absorption of atmospheric anion deposit (Lokeshwari and Chandrappa, 2006; Awode et al., 2008). The trend in the anions variations was: NO3- > SO42- > PO43- > NO2-. These results indicated that the vegetables have the potential of accumulating more nitrate and less nitrite. Several human health hazards due to nitrate toxicity as a result of high levels of nitrite in vegetables have been identified. The toxicity of nitrate is thought to be due to its reduction to nitrite and conversion to nitrosamines and nitrosamides through reaction with amines and amides, whose carcinogenic action is well known (Walker, 1990). The principal mechanism of nitrite toxicity is the oxidation of the ferrous (Fe2+) in haemoglobin to ferric (Fe3+), producing methaemoglobin. As a consequence of methaemoglobin formation, oxygen delivery to human tissues is impaired (Knobeloch et al., 2000; Mensinga et al., 2003). Methaemoglobinemia, earlier believed to be in infants only, has been reported by Gupta et al (2000a) in people of different age groups being most susceptible to nitrate toxicity. A high percentage of acute respiratory tract infection with a history of recurrence has also been reported in children consuming high nitrate content (Gupta et al., 2000b). Recurrent diarrhea in children up to 8 years of age (Gupta et al., 2001) and recurrent stomatitis (Gupta et al., 1999) are also associated with high nitrate ingestion. Some other reported effects are infants mortality, early onset of hypertension, hypothyroidism, diabetes and an adverse effect on cardiac muscles, alveoli of the lungs and adrenal glands (Gupta, 2006). In animals, nitrate toxicity varies according to species. Ruminant animals develop Methaemoglobinemia while monogastric animals exhibit severe gastritis (Bruning-Fann and Kaneene, 1993). Crops high in nitrate not only pose a direct danger to human and animal health, but also cause financial losses to agriculture and the food processing industry. High nitrate content leads to a low shelf life of vegetables, thereby increasing losses during storage. Severe phosphate toxicity can result in various symptoms resulting from low plasma calcium levels. Moderate phosphate toxicity occurring over a period of months, can result in the deposit of calcium phosphate crystals in various tissues of the body (O Dell and Sunde, 1997). High dietary intake of phosphorus (as phosphate) may upset the calcium/phosphorus balance of the body leading to mineral deficiencies and several other related health problems (WHO, 1978). CONCLUSION Taking all these health risks encountered in the diet as a result of high levels of these anions (pollutant indicators) in the vegetables, the maximum allowable levels of these anions in vegetables should not exceed levels that reflect good agricultural practices and farmers should be educated on the problems associated with excessive usage of fertilizers and other chemicals and irrigating the crops with waste and all sorts of polluted water. The levels of some of the anions in the vegetables reported in this study were higher than the published maximum permissible contents of the anions in some vegetables and fruits. These high anions values could put consumers of the vegetables at health risk at the time of this study. Growers of vegetables in the area should be

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educated on the needs to grow crops with safe levels of these anions. The results obtained in this study would go a long way in providing a baseline data for the assessment of the levels of these anions in watermelon (Citrullus vulgaris) and cucumber (Cucumis sativus) grown and consumed in Maiduguri, Nigeria. REFERENCES Abulude, O. F. (2005). Trace Heavy Metals contamination of Soils and Vegetation in the vicinity of livestock in Nigeria. EJEAFChe., 4 (2), 863 870. Adeleke, B. O. and Leong, G. C.(1978). Certificate Physical and Human Geography. (West African Ed.). Oxford University Press Nigeria, pp.171 173. Allen, S. E. (1989). Chemical Analysis of Ecological Materials. 2nd Ed., Blackwell, Oxford, 154. pp. 150

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Awode, U.A; Uzairu, A; Balarabe, M.L; Okunola, O.J and Adewusi, S.G. (2008). Levels of some Trace Metals in the Fadama Soils and Pepper (Capsicum annuum) along the bank of River Challawa, Nigeria. Asian J. Sci. Res. ISSN 1992 1454, pp.1 6. Barker, A. V. (1975) Organic vs. Inorganic Nutrition and Horticultural Crop Quality. 50 53. HortScience, 10 (1):

Black, C. A. (1965). Methods of Soil Analysis. Agronomy, No.9. Part 2. Amer. Soc. Agro.Madison. Wisconsin, pp. 1011 1018. Bokhari, M. H. and Ahmed, M. S. (1985). Food Plants in Borno State Nigeria. Ghulamdi Publishers, Lahore, pp.1 46. Bray, R. H. and Kurtz (1945). Determination of Total Organic and Available forms of Soil Sci., 59: 39 45. Phosphorus in Soils.

Bruning-Fann, C. S and Kaneene, J. B. (1993). The Effect of Nitrate, Nitrite, and N-Nitroso on Animal Health. Vet. Hum. Toxicol., 35: 237 253.

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Cantliffe, D. J. (1972c) Nitrate Accumulation in Spinach Grown at Different Temperature. J. Am. Soc. Horti. Sci., 97(5): 674 676. Cantliffe, D. J., and S. C. Phatak (1974b). Effect of Herbicides on Weed Control and Nitrate Accumulation in Spinach. Hort. Sci. 9(5): 470 472. Gangolli, S. D., Van Den Brandt, P. A., Feron, V., Janzowsky, J .C. Koeman, J. H., Speijers, G. J. A., Spiegelhalder, B., Walker, R., and Wishnok, J. S. (1994). Assessment: Nitrate, Nitrite and N-Nitroso Compounds. Eur. J. of Pharmacol., Environ. Toxicol. and Pharmacol. Sect., 292: 138. Gupta, S. K., Gupta, R. C., Gupta A. B., Seth A. K., Bassin J. K and Gupta,D. K and Sharma, S. (1999). Epidrmiological evaluation of recurrent stomatitis, nitrates in drinking water and cytochrome b5 reductase activity. Am. J. Gastroenterol. 94: 1808 1812. Gupta, S. K., Gupta, R. C., Gupta A. B., Seth A. K., Bassin J. K. And Gupta A. (2000a).Methemoglobinemia A Problem of All Age Groups in Areas with High Nitrate in Drinking Water. Nat. Med. J. India. 13: 58-61. Gupta, S. K., Gupta, R. C., Gupta A. B., Seth A. K., Bassin J. K. and Gupta A. (2000b). Recurrent Acute Respiratory Tract Infection in Areas having High Nitrate Concentration in Drinking Water. Environ. Hlth. Persp., 108: 363 366.

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Gupta, S. K., Gupta, R. C., Gupta A. B., Seth A. K., Bassin J. K. And Gupta A. (2001). Areas with High Nitrate in Drinking Water. Arch. Environ. Hlth. 56: 369-374.

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Gupta, S.K. (2006). Nitrate Toxicity and Human Health, Proceedings of the Workshop on Nitrogen in Environment, Industry and Agriculture. New Delhi, India, pp 8 10. HACH (1975). HACH Water and Waste Water Analysis Procedure Manual. HACH IOWA, USA, pp.289 291. Chemical Company.

Harrison, R. M. and Chirgawi, M. B., (1989).The assessment of air and soil as contributors of metals to vegetable plants I. Use of a filtered air growth cabinet. Sci. Total Environ. 83: 1334. Knobeloch, L., Salna, B., Hogan A., Postle ,J and Anderson, H (2000). Blue babies and Well Water. Environ Health Perspect.108: 675678.

some

trace

Nitrate-Contaminated

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McCleod, S. (1973). Studies on Wet Oxidation Procedures for the Determination of Organic Carbon in Soil. In Notes on Soil Techniques. (CSIRO Division of Soils: Melbourne), pp. 73 79. Mensinga, T. T., Speijers G.J.A. and Meulenbeit (2003). Health Implications of Exposure to Environmental Nitrogenous Compounds. Toxicol. Rev. 22: 41 51. ODell B. and Sunde R.A. (1997). Handbook of Nutritionally Essential Mineral Elements. Mercel Dekker, pp. 33 41. Radojevic, M. and Bashkin, N. V. (1999). Practical Environmental Analysis. Royal and Thoma Graham House, Cambridge, pp. 180 430. New York, NY

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Rayment, G.E. and Higginson, F.R. (1992). Australian laboratory handbook of soil and water methods. Inkarta Press: Melbourne, pp.25 30.

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Uwah, E. I. (2009).Concentration Levels of some Heavy Metal Pollutants in Soil, and Carrot (Daucus carota) obtained in Maiduguri, Nigeria. Continental J. Applied Sciences (Wilolud Online Journals) 4,76 88. Uwah, E. I; Ndahi, N. P and Ogugbuaja (2009). Study of the Levels of some Agricultural Pollutants in Soils, and Water Leaf (Talinum triangulare) obtained in Maiduguri, Nigeria. J. Applied Sciences Environ. Sanita. 4(2), 71 78. Webster, M. (2007). Land Pollution Visual Dictionary Online, pp.1 2. WHO (1978). Evaluation of Certain Food Additives and Contaminants, 21st Report. Wld. Hlth. Org.Tech. Rep. Ser., No. 617. Younis, M. A., A. W. Pauri, H. L. Mitchell, and F. C. Stickler (1965). Temperature and its Interactions with Light and Moisture in Nitrogen Metabolism of Corn (Zea mays L.). Crop Sci. 5: 321 326. Zhou, Z. Y., Wang, M. J. and Wang, J. S. (2000). Nitrate and Nitrite Contamination in Food Rev. Int. 16: 61 76. Vegetables in China.

E. I. Uwah and V. O. Ogugbuaja: Continental J. Water, Air and Soil Pollution

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Table 1: Content levels (g/g) of some Anions (nitrate, nitrite, sulphate and phosphate) in Melon Family of Vegetables obtained from Alau dam, Gongulon and the Controls Sample areas Vegetables NO3Alau dam Watermelon 135.30a 4.21 248.40b 4.32 92.15c 1.10 830.03a 18.09 945.00b 22.36 NO252.19a 3.00 61.58b 9.87 28.50c 4.55 72.86a 0.39 91.98b 0.42 Anions SO422545.00a 51.96 3468.50b 5.77 1034.12c 3.14 2042.50a 11.03 3150.60b 9.57 PO432837.50a 47.87 3085.80b 42.60 850.25c 4.32 2198.00a 27.08 3195.50b 28.00

Gongulon

Watermelon

Control

Watermelon

Alau dam

Cucumber

Gongulon

Cucumber

Control Cucumber 340.31c 29.65c 760.00c 610.20c The above values are means of replicate values (n = 6). Within column, means with different alphabets are statistically different (p<0.05). Table 2: Content levels (g/g) of some Anions (nitrate, nitrite, sulphate and phosphate) in soil samples obtained from Alau dam, Gongulon and the Controls. Sample areas Alau dam Gongulon Control NO3311.55a 0.75 398.65b 2.56 198.52c 2.01 Anions NO2SO42a 203.33 4.80 2295.18a 41.88 b 253.93 3.41 3397.70b 40.98 c 84.31 0.03 1301.00c 1.41 PO432436.38a 38.89 3576.40a 33.54 1350.00b 1.50

The above values are means of replicate values (n = 6). Within column, means with different alphabets are statistically different (p<0.05) Table 3: Some Physicochemical Parameters of the Soils Sample Areas OC (%) Alau dam Gongulon Control 0.40a 0.74b 0.22c OM (%) 0.69a 1.28b 0.35c Parameters CEC (meq/100g) 5.33a 0.01 5.43a 0.10 5.04a 0.15

EC (mho/cm) 0.22a 0.03 0.24a 0.05 0.20a 0.12

pH 6.23a 0.20 6.69a 0.04 6.67a 0.57

The above values are means of replicate values (n = 6). Within column, means with different alphabets are statistically different (p<0.05). OC = Organic carbon, OM = Organic matter, CEC = Cation exchange capacity, EC = Electrical conductivity

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E. I. Uwah and V. O. Ogugbuaja: Continental J. Water, Air and Soil Pollution

3 (1): 1 11, 2012

Table 4: Particle Size Fractions of Some Soils Sample Areas Clay (%) Alau dam Gongulon Control 9.00a 8.50b 8.80c Particle size Sand (%) 86.00a 84.00a 84.00a

Silt (%) 5.00a 7.50b 7.20c

The above values are means of replicate values (n = 6). Within column, means with different alphabets are statistically different (p<0.05).

Nitrate
3

Nitrite

Sulphate

Phosphate

2.5

2 Ta s e f c o s r nf r a t r

1.5

0.5

0 Water melon Alau dam Cucumber Water melon Gongulon Cucumber

Figure 2: Transfer Factors (TF) of the Anions from Soils to Melon Family of Vegetables Received for Publication: 14/12/2011 Accepted for Publication: 24/02/2012 Corresponding Author E. I. Uwah Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, University of Maiduguri, P.M.B. 1069, Maiduguri, Nigeria Email: uwahemmai@yahoo.com

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