Spatiotemporal Variations in the Physicochemical and Microbiological Concentrations of Groundwater in Port Harcourt, Nigeria

The study involves the analyses of the physicochemical and microbiological concentrations of groundwater from 12 water samples for both dry and wet seasons. The aim was to determine the spatial and temporal variations of the ambient groundwater quality for both seasons and of the processes leading to an improved understanding of the groundwater in the area. Sixteen quality parameters include: pH, Turbidity, TSS, Conductivity, Total Hardness, Cl–, PO4, NO3–, SO4 2–, HCO3-, Fe, Zn, Cr, Cu and Pb. The study revealed that pH values ranged from 5.17 to 6.50 in both seasons, indicating that almost all samples were slightly acidic in both seasons. The relatively high values of some of the parameters in the wet season could be attributed to the influx of sediments from interland and waste from dumpsites as well as human activities. Heavy metal concentrations in most of the locations were found to fall below the WHO (2006) limits, except iron that exceeded the limit. The bacteriological anal...