Paper Details

The study examined how urbanisation af ects groundwater quality in Gombe Local Government Area, Gombe State, Nigeria. Eleven water samples were collected and analysed using standard methods to assess their physico-chemical properties and compare them to WHO threshold limits. The parameters evaluated include pH, temperature, electrical conductivity (EC), total dissolved solids (TDS), salinity, turbidity, nitrate, sulphate, chloride, fluoride, total hardness, sodium, iron, manganese, arsenic, chromium, and lead. The laboratory analysis results indicated that the majority of physio-chemical parameters in the samples met WHO permissible limits, except for chloride and turbidity values in some samples, which exceeded the thresholds. Analysis of variance and simple correlation show that one-third of the boreholes sampled exhibited strong acidic characteristics, while two-thirds of the sampled water displayed basic characteristics. All the samples showed high levels of dissolved chloride ions. Based on the study findings, the water samples in the study area were deemed suitable for human consumption due to their good quality. Ef orts were made to integrate possible sources of observed phenomena from past studies, which clearly demonstrated that urbanisation, population growth, and urban activities contribute to groundwater pollution threats. The study recommended treating the water extracted on-site before supply and consumption to prevent contamination of groundwater supplies in the study area and ensure consistent water quality.