Chika Nwachukwu

The Impact of Paper Mill Effluent on the Quality of Imo River Chika Nwachukwu

This work assessed the quality of effluents from a paper recycling plant and its effect on the physico-chemical quality of the receiving Imo River system. Upon receiving effluents,the entire quality of the river changed. The river was discovered to have a good potential for recovery from the discharge of waste water from the paper mill as the waste water effluent has not overwhelmed the self purification ability of the river water. Besides, comparison of its quality with the Federal Environmental Protection Agency (FEPA) (1990) guidelines for maximum concentrations allowed for effluent discharge into inland waters for the pulp and paper industry shows that the quality of the effluent falls within limits However,all parameters were higher in sediments than in water samples. This is a common fact as sediment acts as sink and reservoir for heavy metals in a river system.