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Volume 3, Issue 2 (Suppl)
Trends in Green chem
ISSN: 2471-9889
Environmental & Green Chemistry 2017
July 24-26, 2017
Page 82
5
th
International Conference on
6
th
International Conference on
July 24-26, 2017 Rome, Italy
Environmental Chemistry and Engineering
Green Chemistry and Technology
&
Phytoremediationof heavymetal-pollutedaquatic ecosystem(OlogeLagoon) bywaterhyacinth (
Eichhornia
crassipes
[mart.] solms) and the socio-ecological implications
Isreal Ugochukwu Oshiojum
1,3
, Ndimele C C
2
and
Ndimele P E
3
1
Lagos State University, Nigeria
2
University of Ibadan, Nigeria
3
Lagos State University, Nigeria
T
he indiscriminate discharge of industrial effluents containing harmful substances such as heavy metals has become a global
problem because of the negative effects of these substances on humans. Water hyacinth (
Eichhornia crassipes
) has been considered
a menace since it entered Nigerian inland waters through neighbouring Republic of Benin in the 80’s. Attempts to eradicate it has not
been successful.Thus, there is a need to explore its useful potentials. It is used in paper production, feed formulation, phytoremediation,
etc. Phytoremediation is a bioremediation process that uses plants to remove, transfer, stabilize, and/or destroy pollutants in the
soil and water. This study investigated the ability of water hyacinth in passive phytoremediation of heavy-metal polluted aquatic
ecosystems and the socio-ecological effects of the plant’s invasiveness. The study was conducted over a period of 18 months (July, 2013
– December, 2014) and 5 sampling stations (Owo River, Agbara, Otto Jetty, Morogbo and Etegbin) were chosen based on proximity
to points of discharge of effluents, presence of water hyacinth and human activities. The metals investigated are Cu, Zn, Pb, Fe, Cd
and As. The result showed that water hyacinth absorbs heavy metals from its environment and the rate of absorption depends on
concentration of the metal. It was also discovered that the presence of water hyacinth and illegal sand-mining has adversely affected
the delivery of ecosystem services such as fisheries, tourism, etc. The consequences of these unregulated anthropogenic actions cause
loss in biodiversity, food insecurity and ultimately threat human lives.
Biography
Isreal Ugochukwu Oshiojum is currently working in Department of Fisheries at Lagos State University, Nigeria. He is an expert with specialization in Aquaculture
and Ecology.
i.oshiojum@gmail.comIsreal Ugochukwu Oshiojum et al., Trends in Green chem, 3:2
DOI: 10.21767/2471-9889-C1-002