Assessment of Heavy Metals Contamination in Groundwater and Its Implications for Public Health Education: A Case Study of an Industrial Area in Southwestern Nigeria

Abstract

Heavy metals’ presence in groundwater has garnered a lot of attention recently due to their impact on ecosystem and human health. Thus, this chapter was designed to assess the effects of heavy metals contamination in groundwater and its implication for public health education in selected communities located in an industrial area in Ogun state, southwestern Nigeria. Fifty groundwater sources were identified using a handheld global positioning system and analyzed for physicochemical and heavy metals properties. Four-hundred participants were selected and interviewed using pre-tested semi-structured questionnaire. The results indicated that there were high quantities of heavy metals in the groundwater that were above the allowable limit set by national and international regulations. A larger percentage of the respondents’ drinks water from groundwater supply. The majority of those surveyed were poorly informed on the effects of heavy metal contamination. The following ailments were experienced by the respondents in the last 6 months: frequent watery stool, difficulty in breathing, and skin infection. Few of the respondents reported the following occurrences in their household in the last 1 year: still birth, stunted growth in child, and death due to cancer. Therefore, there is a requirement for immediate public health education and health promotion activities among the local populace.