Integrating Multiple Lines of Evidence in Ecological Risk Assessment: A Case Study of Crude Oil Pollution in the Mangroves of Bodo Creek, Ogoniland, Nigeria
Keywords:
Niger Delta, Crude oil pollution, Ecological risk assessment, Weight-of-evidence analysis, Mangrove swamp, Environmental contamination, Heavy metals, Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), Total hydrocarbon content (THC), Benthic community disturbance, Mangrove cover loss, Ecological impacts, Human health risks, Remediation effortsAbstract
Crude oil pollution poses a significant threat to environmental integrity, particularly in coastal and marine ecosystems. This study employs a TRIAD approach, integrating multiple lines of evidence, to assess the ecological risks and human health hazards associated with crude oil pollution in Bodo Creek, Ogoniland, Nigeria. The investigation includes chemical analyses of contaminants, ecological evaluations, and risk assessments to determine the extent of environmental degradation following significant oil spills in 2008 and 2009.Chemical analyses revealed widespread contamination, with concentrations of heavy metals and Total Hydrocarbon Content (THC) exceeding regulatory standards at all sampling stations. Simple linear regression showed significantly that THC negatively correlated with species richness (p < 0.05, R² = 0.76). Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAH), specifically benzo-a-pyrene (b-a-P) at all sampled stations exceeded both the Canadian Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and background concentrations in rural Europe.The benthic fauna disturbance using AMBI software analysis of the biotic index indicated reduced species richness and diversity at all stations compared to pre-spill reference stations. The extent of mangrove destruction was severe, with complete loss at station 3 and significant reductions at other stations. The integration of findings in this study from Ecological Line of Evidence (EcoLoE) and Chemical Line of Evidence (ChemLoE) showed that Weight of Evidence (WoE) risk values exceeded 0.5 at all stations, signifying severe ecological damage and direct risks to human health due to strong food web interactions and local activities.
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