Assessment of Heavy Metals (As, Cr, Zn) Contamination in Soil from Kawarin Yashe Artisanal Gold Mine, Northwestern Nigeria Using Instrumental Neutron Activation (INAA)
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.33003/fjorae.2024.0102.02Abstract
This study was conducted in one of the few locally Gold mines in Katsina State Northwestern Nigeria called Kawarin Yashe Artisanal Gold mines. The concentration of As, Cr and Zn in gold bearing soil in the mines were investigated using instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA) techniques. Stratified random sampling technique was adopted using soil auger at about 25 - 100 cm to the ground. Experimental results showed that s has a mean concentration of 2.82 ± 0.11 mg/kg, ranging from 0.54 ± 0.14 to 5.11 ± 0.09 mg/kg, Cr has a mean concentration of 46.6 ± 2.0mg/kg ranging from 3.03 to 88.7 ± 105mg/kg and Zn has a mean concentration of 47.96 ± 7.10 mg/kg ranging from 16.30 to 97.2 ± 10mg/kg. The values of As are within the average of 5mg/kg and range 1-50 values, Cr are within the world average values and within the tolerable limit of 100 mg/kg and range of 1-100 mg/kg, respectively. The values of Zn was above the world average of 50 mg/kg. The concentrations obtained in the work are more than the world average values and tolerable limit which implies that the miners and surrounding communities are at risk due to the high concentration of Zn in the area, despite the non-technical nature of the mining activities.
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