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Research Article
Anthropogenic Drivers of Spatial Trends in Groundwater Quality in the Upper Athi River Basin of Kenya, East Africa
Ebenezer Ashun
,
Naa Dedei Tagoe*
Issue:
Volume 12, Issue 4, August 2024
Pages:
58-73
Received:
26 June 2024
Accepted:
10 July 2024
Published:
23 July 2024
Abstract: Rapid urbanization and population growth in the upper Athi River basin in Kenya have increased the strain on the sub catchments water supply and sanitation situation. Due to increasing demand, inadequate supply of drinking water and lack of sanitation facilities, people in the sub-catchment are increasingly reliant on groundwater as a primary or supplementary water source. However, the use of on-site wastewater systems and agricultural pollution, mainly from runoff containing fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, and faeces, pose a threat to groundwater in the sub catchment. Subsequently, the current study was conducted in the Thiririka sub catchment, Kiambu County, Kenya, to determine the safety of groundwater sources and to examine the factors influencing groundwater quality in the catchment area. This study assessed the influence of anthropogenic activities on the physical, chemical, and bacteriological quality of groundwater in the Upper Athi River basin of Kenya between April and June 2022. Twenty variables were analyzed and compared with water quality standards to determine hydro chemical characteristics, evidence of contamination, and suitability of groundwater. Shallow wells (SW) had higher concentrations of major ions and key parameters than boreholes (BH), such as alkalinity (7%), turbidity (96%), nitrates (92%), sulfates (48%), phosphates (93%), chlorides (77%), potassium (84%), sodium (30%) and fecal coliforms (99%) significant at p < 0.01. Concentrations of eleven water quality variables however were comparable in both systems. Farming, animal husbandry, and pit latrines were negatively but significantly correlated with the water quality of SW explaining substantial amounts of variation (≤ 45%) in concentrations of water quality variables. Ionic and coliform levels increased with decreasing distance and vice versa. IDW interpolation maps were generated in ArcGIS software to determine the spatial variability of groundwater quality in the basin. Anthropogenic activities such as pit latrines and animal husbandry impaired the quality of groundwater which in most cases was not potable.
Abstract: Rapid urbanization and population growth in the upper Athi River basin in Kenya have increased the strain on the sub catchments water supply and sanitation situation. Due to increasing demand, inadequate supply of drinking water and lack of sanitation facilities, people in the sub-catchment are increasingly reliant on groundwater as a primary or su...
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Research Article
Characteristics of Sand-Driving Wind Regime and Sand Drift Potential in Sandy Areas on Both Sides of Longyangxia Reservoir in China
Issue:
Volume 12, Issue 4, August 2024
Pages:
74-87
Received:
25 June 2024
Accepted:
23 July 2024
Published:
15 August 2024
Abstract: This study focuses on the desertification areas of Talatan and Mugetan, located on both sides of the Longyangxia Reservoir in Qinghai Province, China. These areas pose serious threats to the safety of the reservoir due to frequent wind-sand activities. The research aims to provide a scientific basis for effective sand control by deeply analyzing the dynamic change of wind.The wind speed and direction data from Shazhuyu and Guinan meteorological stations in Qinghai Province, China were used to calculate the numerical and directional characteristics of sand-driving wind and sand drift potential.The results indicate that: (1) The number of sand-driving wind at Talatan is about 7 times that at Mugetan, and the maximum and average wind speeds are about 7 m/s larger than those at Mugetan. At Talatan, the primary sand-driving wind direction is exclusively West Northwest (WNW). Conversely, at Mugetan, the sand-driving wind direction remains westward in spring, autumn, and winter, shifting eastward solely in summer. (2) The annual sand drift potential of Talatan and Mugetan is less than 200VU, two sandy areas are both in low wind energy environments; (3) The major causes of the significant differences in sand-driving wind regimes between the Talatan and Mugetan are topography, precipitation, wind direction stability.These conclusions offer valuable insights for developing targeted sand control strategies, thereby mitigating the potential hazards posed by wind-sand activities to the Longyangxia Reservoir and its surrounding ecosystems.
Abstract: This study focuses on the desertification areas of Talatan and Mugetan, located on both sides of the Longyangxia Reservoir in Qinghai Province, China. These areas pose serious threats to the safety of the reservoir due to frequent wind-sand activities. The research aims to provide a scientific basis for effective sand control by deeply analyzing th...
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Review Article
A Brief Review of Investigations into Earth’s Temperature Since the Year 1800
Russell Anthony Isaac*
Issue:
Volume 12, Issue 4, August 2024
Pages:
88-97
Received:
14 July 2024
Accepted:
12 August 2024
Published:
27 August 2024
Abstract: For billions of years, natural processes alone, often working over millennia, drove Earth’s temperature and climate. For the last several centuries, human activities are a new driving force that is acting on a very short time scale. Knowing history helps chart necessary future actions with greater confidence. Since the end of the 17th century, investigations relating to Earth’s temperature and its climate have evolved from only scientific interest to also include practical concerns triggered by global warming. The early studies were relatively episodic with gaps of a decade or more common until the mid 20th century when they burgeoned starting with the International Geophysical Year. From the early to mid 1800s, to the early to mid 20th century, the investigations were at the initiation of the individual researchers. Starting in the mid 1950s, the investigations became more extensive, comprehensive and interrelated. Early researchers inferred that the atmosphere played a role in Earth’s temperature, and as far back as the 1850s it was concluded that higher CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere could result in warming Earth. Later investigations provided information on the mechanism which established that atmospheric CO2 concentration and its absorption and re-emitting of infrared radiation was a major factor in Earth’s temperature. Further, its increasing atmospheric concentration is a major driver of a warming globe at a rate far surpassing those detected in the geologic record. This paper traces the history of those researches based on the premise that knowing how we arrived at our current knowledge helps in supporting future research and actions to address the consequences of Earth’s warming.
Abstract: For billions of years, natural processes alone, often working over millennia, drove Earth’s temperature and climate. For the last several centuries, human activities are a new driving force that is acting on a very short time scale. Knowing history helps chart necessary future actions with greater confidence. Since the end of the 17th century, inve...
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