Application of Multivariate Analysis for Identification of Pollution Sources in the Densu Delta Wetland in the Vicinity of a Landfill Site in Ghana

Juliet Osei, Frank Kwakyi Nyame, Thomas Kaku Armah, Shiloh Kwabena Osae, Samuel Boakye Dampare, Joseph Richmond Fianko, Dickson Adomako, Nash Bentil

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DOI: 10.4236/jwarp.2010.212122                

Abstract

Surface water samples collected from various sites in the Densu delta wetland, Ghana, were analyzed for pH, temperature, TDS, EC, turbidity, TSS, alkalinity, HCO3-, BOD, COD, Na, K, Mg, Ca, Cl, SO42-, PO4-P, NO3-N, Cr, Pb, Cd, Cu, Co and Fe using titration and Atomic Absorption Spectrometer (AAS). Multivariate statistical analyses such as cluster analysis (CA) and principal component analysis (PCA) were used to identify heavy metal pollution in the wetland area. Results from CA and PCA suggest positive relationships between the two analyses. Linear correlation analysis done also suggests similar relationships. Heavy metals were identified as originating from a common source in all the analyses. The hydrochemistry of the area appears to have been influenced, to a large extent, by dissolution/precipitation as well as numerous but subsistence small-scale agricultural activities that take place in the wetland environment.

Keywords

Densu Delta Wetland, Surface Water, Pollution, Cluster Analysis (CA), Principal Component Analysis (PCA)

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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