LEACHATE AND GROUNDWATER QUALITY IN LAGOS STATE, NIGERIA.

Lasisi, Adedoyin, K.S.

Research and Development Department, Office of Environmental Services, Ministry of the Environment, the Secretariat Alausa, Ikeja, La os, !i eria" #hone !o$ %&'()*%)'+,-'+ E(mail Address$ ladedoyin.yahoo"com Note: This paper was presented at an in- house seminar for officers of Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency, The views e pressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent the opinion of the government.
A/S0RA10

!ater as a gift of nature is generally "elieved to have no enemy# $espite the a"undance of fresh water on the earth, many regions are in deep crisis of water shortage due to there "eing polluted "y human activities, or the ever increasing demand "y industriali%ation and high population growth# Thus, groundwater is the alternative source of fresh water in areas where surface water is polluted or particularly in arid and semi-arid region of the world# &owever, the ground water that is presently rely on is generally "een grossly polluted "y various sources e#g# solid waste !aste is defined as any su"stance or o"'ect discarded for any reason, whether part or all and such su"stance may "e recycled e#g# ru""ish, trash, scraps, tiles, "ottles, cans, papers, chemicals, slugs, machine parts, scrap metals etc# (nce waste is deposited at the landfill )dumpsite* pollution can arise from the migration of "oth gas and leachate# There are three "road types of contaminants present in leachates that can pollute groundwater and su"se+uently affects pu"lic health# These are ha%ardous chemicals, conventional and nonconventional contaminates# The cost of cleaning up groundwater contaminated "y ,unicipal Solid !aste landfill leachates re+uire large sum of money and technology, which are presently not availa"le in our society# Thus it is important that efforts are geared towards preventing pollution that will arise from leachate#

-NT.($/0T-(N

!ater as a gift of nature is generally "elieved to have no enemy# &owever, water is very essential to the well "eing of man, animals and plants# (f all the earth1s essential elements that support life water is the second most important after air# Ama%ingly, a mere 2 per cent of the world1s water is fresh, not salty# (ut of this, 345 of the fresh water is loc6ed up in glacier and ice caps or in the underground a+uifer thus leaving 7 percent that is readily accessi"le to human 6ind# 8asically, the total do not amount of water on earth do not increases nor decreases, as the amount on earth now is all there had "een# This is "ecause the water in and around the world endlessly circulates from the oceans to the atmosphere, to the land9 into the river and "ac6 to the ocean again# ,oreover, despite the a"undance of fresh water on the earth, many regions are in deep crisis of water shortage due to there "eing polluted "y human activities, or the ever increasing demand "y industriali%ation and high population growth# Thus, groundwater is the alternative source of fresh water in areas where surface water is polluted or particularly in arid and semi-arid region of the world# GROUNDWATER :roundwater is a resource of glo"al importance, particularly in areas where access to surface water is limited# :roundwater resources include shallow and deep rechargea"le a+uifers that are connected to rivers9 streams or seas while non-renewa"le a+uifers or fossil water are those that may have "een created "y age# :roundwater ma6es up a"out 34 percent of the world1s supply of fresh water e cluding fresh water in glo"al ice# :roundwater may in this case "e directly fed through seepage from run off# ;urthermore, groundwater may "e fed from the soil surface "y an impervious stratum "ut in general, the water is deeper lying# &owever, alluvial groundwater presents a special case9 where ground water is located in alluvial soil close to a river# Thus, the +uality of the river water directly influences the +uality of such ground water# Also, the characteristics of groundwater depend on the geological nature of the terrain, which in turn determine the composition of the water# This is constantly in contact with the ground in which it stagnates or circulates leading to e+uili"rium "etween the composition of the soil and that of the water# !ater that circulates in a sandy organitic su"stratum is acidic and has few minerals# !hile water that circulates in limestone contain "icar"onate thus ma6ing it al6aline# This water is usually characteri%ed "y wea6 tur"idity, constant temperature, chemical composition, and an almost a"sence of o ygen# &owever,

confined groundwaters, especially one circulating in 6ast terrain usually appear tur"id with various pollutants# :enerally, groundwaters are often very poor micro"iologically and also contain iron, manganese, fluoride, sulphide, etc in concentrations that e ceed the standards for drin6ing water# This is due to the composition of the groundwater where the water is store# LA:(S :.(/N$ !ATE. Nigeria is su"divided into nine different hydrogeological "asins# Lagos is located within the $elta "asin within which water ta"le a+uifers are a"undant# -n Lagos, there is su"stantial report of four a+uifers hori%on, which are made up of alternating se+uence of sands and clays# -n some area, the medium is coarse sand layer, which occurs "elow the superficial laterite# This contains high yielding a+uifer with a free water ta"le within which predominantly lateral ground water movement occurs# Also, there are reports that vertical groundwater flow appears to occur across the clay in relatively small )a+uifer*# The upper and lower a+uifer units have "een identified as local water sources# &owever, additional significant a+uifers are generally encountered "etween <= and 7==m and at a"out >==m "elow ground# The first shallow a+uifer sediment is used for very small private domestic supplies, while the second and third a+uifer )coastal plains sands* provides su"stantial +uantities of water for pu"lic water supply, industry and private supplies# The fourth a+uifer is the deep and highly productive A"eo6uta formation that is only accessa"le "y selected few# The provision of water supply relates differently to groundwater, since it is fre+uently an important source for "oth the municipal water company, typically operating a few high yielding wells or well fields and for the private individuals# &owever, the concern of pu"lic and private water industries is the decreasing availa"ility and deteriorating +uality and +uantity of ground water# Today groundwaters are polluted "y various sources that include petroleum products , septic tan6s, landfill leachate etc# ,oreover, the most significant impact on groundwater +uality arises from the contamination from landfill leachate# Landfill leachates are a more intracta"le pro"lem as, even if they can "e collected effectively9 sophisticated treatment is needed "efore they can "e discharged into the environment# &owever, landfill leachates collection and treatment is not

availa"le in all landfills in Lagos# Thus, leachates contamination is pro"a"ly inevita"le# LAN$;-LL LEA0&ATES !aste is defined as any su"stance or o"'ect discarded for any reason, whether part or all and such su"stance may "e recycled e#g# ru""ish, trash, scraps, tiles, "ottles, cans, papers, chemicals, slugs, machine parts, scrap metals etc# (nce waste is deposited at the landfill )dumpsite* pollution can arise from the migration of "oth gas and leachate# &owever, gas pro"lem have "ecome increasingly high over the years# The management of gases from landfill sites can "e controlled through the installation of engineered gas e traction system# This engineering control system is not in use in any of the dumpsite )landfill* present in Lagos# Thus, landfill gases still constitute a great pro"lem# (n the other hand, landfill leachates are a more intracta"le pro"lem# Leachate is the name given to grossly polluted li+uid that can emerge from land filled decomposed waste mass# Also, it can "e said to "e li+uids that results from water collecting contaminates as it tric6les through agricultural, pesticides or fertili%ers wastes# -t is important to recogni%e that the deposition of almost any waste to landfill )dumpsites* will give rise to leachate whose chemistry is not in e+uili"rium with the chemistry of the surrounding environment thus resulting in pollution# Numerous physico-chemical and "iological processes govern the generation of leachates# The pioneer investigation that provided the "asis for a scientific understanding of these processes was conducted in ,anchester in 7327-2? "y @ones and (wen and su"se+uent studies "y ;ar+uahar et al#, )73AB* and .ees )73<=*#The rate of leachate generation is affected "y various factors which include the age of the refuse, waste density, water content, humidity, rainfall etc#!ater acts as transport medium for "acteria and for their nutrients and waste products# Thus, the lac6 of moisture will reduce degradation rates and will result in a landfill producing gas and leachate at a slower rate "ut over a much longer period of time#

The decomposition of waste ta6es place "y the action of micro"es within the waste mass# The decomposition of waste ta6es place in three stages9 thermal stage, acetogenic stage and methogenic stage# -n the first stage, aero"ic organisms present in the waste attac6 the degrada"le waste# -n the presence of o ygen in entrapped air, to form more simple organic compounds, car"on dio ide and water# &eat is then generated and aero"ic organisms multiply# The second stage commences when all the o ygen is consumed or displaced "y car"on dio ide# The degradation processes is then ta6en over "y organism that can thrive in either the presences or a"sent of o ygen# The organisms "ra6e down the large organic molecules present in food, paper and similar waste into more simple compounds such as hydrogen, ammonia, water, car"on dio ide and organic acid# $uring this acetogenic stage, car"on dio ide concentration can reach a ma imum of 3=5 "ut usually achieve a"out 4=5 of gas generated# -n the third and final anaero"ic or methogenic stage, species of methane forming organisms multiply and "ra6e down organic acids to form methane gas and other products# The water-solu"le degradation products from these "iological processes, together with other solu"le components in waste such as, the rusting of metals items will "e present in leachates# The composition of leachate varies from landfills to landfills# &owever, "ased on the compilation of Lee and @ones )7332* who presented the compilation of information from the literature on chemical composition of municipal landfill leachate as detailed in Ta"le 7 "elow:

PARAMETER TYPICAL CONCENTRATION AVERAGE RANGE

8($ 0($ T(0 Tva )as acetic acid* Total C'eldah NB)as N* Nitrate )as N* Ammonia )as N* Total Phosphate )Po?* (rthophosphate )Po?* Total al6alinity Total &ardness Total Solids Total $issolvedDSolids Specific 0onductance ),hosDcm* P& 0alcium ,agnesium Sodium 0hloride Sulphate 0hromium )total* 0opper Lead Nic6el Einc ,ethane gas 0ar"on dio ide

7,===-2=,=== 7,===-4=,=== A==-7=,=== A= -B<,=== 7=-4== =#7-7= 7==-?== =#4-4= 7#=->= 4==-7=,=== 4==-7=,=== 2,===-4=,=== 7,===-B=,=== B,===-<,=== 4-A#4 7==-2,=== 2=-4== B==-7,4== 7,===-B,=== 7=-7,=== =#=4-B =#=B-7 =#7-7 7=-7,=== =#4-2= >=5 ?=5

7=,4== 74,4== 2,4== NA 4== ? 2== 2= BB 2,>== ?,B== 7>,=== 77,=== >,A== >#2 7,=== A== A== 2<= =#3 =#=4 =#4 =#4 ?2= B7

All values are in mgDl e cept as noted NA-Not availa"le#

$/,PS-TE ,ANA:E,ENT -N LA:(S# -n Lagos, the last decade have seen considera"le changes in the management of dumpsites# At the inception of Lagos !aste ,anagement Authority as Lagos State .efuse $isposal 8oard in 73AA, there were five e isting dumpsites within Lagos metropolis namely9 pelewura )Adeni'i Adele*, :"agada, -solo, Acha6po and ('ota# These sites were open swamps that are progressively reclaimed with refuse# The dumping of waste is done without proper planning programme for leachate or landfill gas thus putting the populace at the ris6 of environmental pro"lem# -n view of this, the state government under the !orld 8an6 Assisted Pro'ect pac6age of 73<< commissioned a consultant for the development of landfill sites for the state# The pro'ect gave rise to sites such as (lusosun, A"ule-eg"a, and Solus#The (lusosun landfill site is a"out ?B hectares in si%e with a life span of 24 years receives an average of 7#B million tones of waste annually# The A"ule-Eg"a )(6e -odo* landfill is a"out 2#= hectares# !hile Solus is a"out 2#= hectares# -t must "e noted that Pelewura, :"agada, -solo, Acha6po and ('ota have "een closed down to waste disposal operations# !ith the e isting landfills sites, the average tonnage of solid waste disposed wee6ly in the state is estimated to "e 7A=== metric tones, while the recorded dailywaste generation rate is a"out =#46g per capita# &owever, with the composition of a still active landfill in Lagos and the climatic condition of the state, the leachate generation is e pected to "e high# According to -6em )733>*, ta"le "elow represent the composition of an active landfill site in Lagos# Ta"le B: shows the composition of an active landfill site in Lagos# 0omposition Fegetation Paper Te tiles Plastic ,etals :lass Total 5 waste composition 43 7A B 7B < B 7==

;rom the a"ove values it can "e noted that the percentage of decomposa"le materials is greater than the less decomposa"le materials# ,oreover, it is worthy of note that some other factors that contri"ute to the leachate generation include: the mean annual rainfall in Lagos is 7>B=#43mm, which varies from place to place# :enerally, relative humidity is very high in Lagos "eing in a tropical region with relative humidity ranges fromA>5 to <=#45#The morning hours recorded annuals average of 3=5 while =72==hours has annual mean of A75#the average moisture content of Lagos waste is estimated to "e 2>#<5#)Lasisi C#S#A#,B==7*# !ith this state of climatic condition leachate generation in Lagos is e pected to "e high# Ta"le "elow shows typical composition of leachate from e isting landfills in Lagos state# PA.A,ETE. (L/S&(S/N S(L/S A8/LE-E:8A o Temperature ) 0* 2?#B= 2A#?= 27#B= P& A#2= <#?= A#A< TSS 7=?33 3A=3#?= <3<2#>? T$S B<A2 24?2#<= 2>23#B? TS 7AAB> 72B4B#B= 7B>BB#<< 0hloride 7273 72<3#== 77AA#B= Sulphate 4<B 2B7 AB< Nitrate 2#4B A#>= A>#A7 Phosphate =#=2 =#B> 7#B> Lead =#4? =#4= =#7= ,agnesium >=#3< 42#7A >?#>2 -ron <#=7 7=#43 7=#<3 0opper =#7= =#7= =#B= 0alcium 72#43 7?#A4 77#>3 ,ercury 7#== B#7= B#2= 0admium =#=7 =#=7 =#=7 Arsenic =#43 =#>= ?#B7 Nic6el =#=? =#=B =#27 $issolved ( ygen B#2? B#22 2#74 G,ean of five samples All results in mgDl e cept as noted Source: Lasisi C#S#A,)B==7*

:.(/N$!ATE. P(LL/T-(N 8H LEA0&ATE# There is a common misconception that since the materials placed in landfills are "asically household wastes, they are relatively Isafe1 and are not li6ely to adversely affect pu"lic health and groundwater +uality# &owever, one need only to consider the proposition of drin6ing the oo%e that developed at the "ottom of a gar"age can or water used to clean gar"age disposal plastics to understand that it is not desira"le to have solid waste leachate in water considered desira"le for pota"le use# Het this is what happens when leachate from municipal solid waste landfill is allowed to contaminate water that is or could "e used for domestic supply# The /SEPA estimates that there are a"out 44,=== landfills in the /nited State with A45 of which are polluting groundwater# -f this is happing in the /S where there is a groundwater-monitoring programme, then only :od 6nows the +uantity of leachates that are presently polluting groundwater in Lagos with high water ta"le# As reported, there are three "road types of contaminants present in leachates that can pollute groundwater and su"se+uently affects pu"lic health# These are ha%ardous chemicals, conventional and non-conventional contaminates# :intautass et# al, )733B* reported the present of Pheno yal6anoic acid her"icide in leachate, which had not "een previously reported# -n a study trip to the e isting landfills in Lagos, it is not surprising to note the present of cans and container of her"icides, germicides and other materials in the landfills# 8elevi and 8accini )73<3* estimated that unlined landfills in a fairly wet climate will ha%ardous chemical, such as, lead at concentration a"ove drin6ing water standards for several thousands years# Presently, automo"ile waste oil with its elevated heavy metals and hydrocar"ons are routinely thrown into household trash# Also, various types of "atteries, such as, mercury, nic6el and cadmium "ased are presently "een disposed off in landfill in Lagos# Also, the disposal of "urned out fluorescent tu"es used for home or commercial lighting also eventually finds its way to the groundwater#

HOW YOU CAN HELP

,inimi%ing the type of materials disposed into landfills helps in the reduction of the types of contaminants presents in the leachates# The removal of materials, such as, "attries, and other heavy metal "ased products from waste# The use of degrada"le waste as a source of filling materials for old wells should "e discourage# -ndustrialist that generates ha%ardous waste should ma6e effort to develop their own landfill# (rgani%ed household ha%ardous material collection programs are introduced to reduce the amount of ha%ardous chemicals discarded from homes# Education of waste operators on ha%ardous materials should "e organi%ed# -ntroduction of waste chec6ingDtrac6ing programme "e esta"lished# 0ompulsory development of a groundwater-monitoring programme put in place# $evelopment of criteria for proper landfill disposal facility# -ntroduction of a waste reduction programme#

0(N0L/S-(N The removal of contaminants from contaminated landfill is generally difficult# -t involves the use of many methods, such as, air stripping, "ioremediation, ion e change deminerali%ation or reverse osmosis, activated car"on colums etc# This means that the cost of cleaning up groundwater contaminated "y municipal solid waste landfill leachates re+uire large sum of money and technology, which are presently not availa"le in our society# Even if they are cleaned up they cannot "e relied upon to provide safe drin6ing water supply# -n this view, the /S EPA in 7333 concluded that once a water supply well has "een contaminated "y ,S! leachates, the well has to "e a"andoned as source of pota"le water supply# Thus, there is need for the development of a leachate-monitoring program, which must include routine measurement of a wide variety of chemicals that are 6nown or suspected to "e present in the landfill that can "e measured at very low concentration# ,ore than 3=5 of the contaminates present in landfill leachate are not identified or +uantified9 their pu"lic health implication are un6nown# The efficacy of groundwater JremediationK-treatment methods in removing such contaminants to JsafeK levels cannot "e determined# Thus, prevention and monitoring is the only option# !e must "e wise, groundwater resources is "ecoming the only availa"le sources of water supply#

.E;E.EN0ES

7# Adesina (# : )B===*: Sustaina"le ,anagement of ,unicipal Solid !aste# Lagos State E perience# JPaper Presented at a ?-day -nternational 0onferenceDE hi"ition ENF-.(N-N-:E.-A B===# B# 8elevi,&#, and 8accini, P#,)73<3*: JLong-Term 8ehavior (f ,unicipal Solid !aste# Landfills !aste ,gt#L.es#A:?2-4># 2 0oe @# @#)73A=*:Effects of Solid !aste on :roundwater Muality# @ American !ater !or6s Assoc#, BB,AA># ? ;ederal ,inistry (f &ousing and Environment )73<B*: The State of the Environment in Nigeria# ,onograph Series No B: Solid !aste ,anagement in ;ifteen 0ities and /r"an areas in Nigeria# ;&E# Lagos# 4 Lasisi, C#S#A )B==7*: 0omposition (f Landfill Leachates from e isting Landfills in Lagos state# > Lavalin -nternational )733B*: $esign L(peration .eport for the (regun Landfill Site# A Lindorff $#E )73A3*: :roundwater Pollution-a Status .eport# :roundwater, 7A,3-7A# < ,ather @# $# )733?*: Preventing :roundwater Pollution ;rom Landfilled !aste-is Engineered 0ontainment an Accepta"le Solutionin :roundwater Muality Edited "y &#Nash and :#@# & ,c0all 0hapman L&all# London# 3 (ladele (si"a'o, Sunday A'ayi, ;olashade Ade"iyi and Popo A6inyan'u )B===*: Pu"lic Analyst1s .eporting System as Applied to Environmental -ssues# -nstitute (f Pu"lic Analyst of Nigeria News Fol#B#No ? pg# A-7=# 7= # .aven A and Avnimelech #H )73A3*: Leaching of Pollutants Sanitary Landfill ,odels# !ater Pollution 0ontrol, 47, BA=4-BA7>#