Evaluation of Heavy Metal concentrations in Groundwater in a Mining Community: A Case Study of Funakaye LGA, Gombe State

There is a widespread belief that mining activities have serious negative consequences on the environment, particularly groundwater quality.Based on this, groundwater quality in Funakaye area was investigated because mining operations had occurred there for a long time.This study was aimed at analyzing the quality of groundwater in Funakaye, with emphasis on heavy metal contamination.Groundwater samples were obtained from three boreholes in triplicate, and analysed for heavy metal concentration using Atomic Absorbtion Spectrophotometer (AAS) machine.The concentrations were compared to the WHO and NESREA standard limits for quality drinking water.The results showed that heavy metal concentrations in the boreholes were generally high, with Fe ranging from 0.369mg/l to 0.490mg/l, Cd ranging from 0.008mg/l to 0.011mg/l, Cr ranging from 0.489mg/l to 0.793mg/l, Pb ranging from 0.181mg/l to 0.428mg/l, and As ranging from 0.748mg/l to 1.115mg/l, thus exceeding the WHO and NESREA recommended limits.Zn and Cu concentrations in the samples were found to be lower than the recommended limits for drinking water, with Zn ranging from 0.009mg/l to 0.178mg/l and Cu from 0.063mg/l to 0.102mg/l.The concentrations obtained for the parameters studied revealed that the sampled boreholes in Funakaye have characteristics of heavy metal contamination in groundwater.Using water from these sources for domestic purposes, including drinking, may lead to fatal cases of arsenic poisoning, cancer, tissue damage, anaemia and neurodegenerative diseases and the study recommends that a continuous water monitoring programme be developed to check and ensure appropriate actions are implemented, as well as the drilling of deep motorised boreholes far away from the contaminant site.In addition, the government should raise community awareness of potential hazards of environmental pollution.