Evaluation of water quality index, Levels and Human Health Risk of Metals in Packaged Groundwater from Abeokuta and Sagamu, Ogun State Nigeria

Abstract

Abstract Groundwater is an important drinking water source in many developing countries of the world. Contamination of this important resource could lead to serious and irreparable health implications for the consumers. This study, therefore, assessed the water quality index (WQI), levels and human health risk of metals in packaged/sachet groundwater collected from Abeokuta and Sagamu, Ogun state Nigeria. One hundred and forty bags of packaged groundwater from different sampling sites were analysed for metals using inductively coupled plasma - optical emission spectrophotometry (ICP-OES). Packaged groundwater data were analysed for simple descriptive and inferential statistics. Human health risk assessment of metals through consumption of packaged groundwater was evaluated for hazard index (HI), hazard quotient (HQ), and cancer risk (CR). Most of the packaged groundwater parameters were within the permissible limits of the World Health Organization except Mn (1118 ± 1719–1727 ± 2218 µg/L) and Fe (491.8 ± 559.1 µg/L) in selected samples. The WQI data (< 100) indicated suitability for drinking purposes, but when regressed against the health risk indicators showed a weak non-significant positive association. The health risk evaluation of metals revealed high HQs > 1.0 for Ca, Mn, Mo, and Cu through consumption packaged groundwater by adults and children at some sampling sites. The CRs for Co and Ni at most monitoring sites indicated values greater than the acceptable limit of 1 x 10− 4, indicating possible cancer development by the consumers.