Assessment of brewery effluent, effluent impacted pond and soil in Uyo Akwa-Ibom state

Abstract

The inability to properly dispose of industrial effluents and the impacts of this, on the environment, are major concerns facing industrialized nations. An assessment of brewery effluents and their effects on adjoining soil in Uyo, South-south Nigeria were investigated using standard protocols. Results revealed that the effluent at the point of discharge was free of faecal coliform, Clostridia, or Salmonellae-shigellae contaminants but contained an average of 3.5 x 10⁴ CFU/ml and 3.7 x 10² CFU/ml of heterotrophic and total coliform bacteria densities  respectively. The adjoining soil was laden with high densities of pollution indicators, enteric bacteria, and fungi. Nutritive salts (SO₄²- , PO₄^3-, and NH₄+) and heavy metals (Fe, Zn, and Pb) were high in both effluent discharges and soil. The brewery effluent would be of immense benefit if the heavy metals load are reduced and human activities regulated within the effluent discharge facility, to check for possible contamination by bacterial pathogens.