Environmental Management

The investigation considered the biological and physico-chemical quality of the Kakum River, human activities within the catchment and their effect on water quality and the environment, and suggested mitigating measures to conserve natural resources. The results showed that pH, conductivity and total dissolved solids were within the Ghana Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) standards for raw water. The turbidity of the water, of which the means were 28.9 to 74.8 NTU and 29 to 127.7 NTU in the wet and dry seasons respectively, were far above the EPA standard for raw water. Dissolved oxygen concentrations of the water were low with mean values of 1.33 to 4.22 mg/l and 0.81 to 4.57 mg/l in the wet and dry seasons respectively. Mean nitrate concentrations of the water were 0.01 to 1.27 mg/l and 0.18 to 3.45 mg/l in the wet and dry seasons respectively. Mean iron concentrations of the water were 2.85 to 5.03 mg/l and 2.32 to 6.45 mg/l in the wet and dry seasons respectively, and were high in relation to water treated for drinking purposes. Faecal pollution in the river was higher in the wet season than in the dry season, due to human influence.