Habitat assessment for seasonal variation of river pollution in Ibadan, Nigeria, in a geographic information systems interface.

More accurate spatio-temporal predictions of urban environment are needed as a basis for assessing exposure in environmental studies and to inform urban protection policy and management authorities. Using habitat assessment protocol, the author assesses the pollution status of rivers in Ibadan, Nigeria. Data used include hydrographic feature data and habitat assessment data. These basic environmental components are the result of the integration of a wide range of relatively independent factors which enable a more complex analysis of the environment in urban areas. Geographic information systems were used for data management, input and output of data and visualisation. The pollution status of the inland rivers assessed during the rainy season (July to September) and dry season (October to March) in the eleven local government areas in Ibadan suggested that out of the twenty-two sample points, seven (31.8%) and six (27.3%) were slightly polluted and nine (40.9%) and ten (45.4%) were moderately polluted during the rainy and dry seasons, respectively. The environmental models are focused on the assessment of surface-water quality of habitat in relation to human activities. Although the models are calibrated and tested by application in the metropolitan area of Ibadan, the structure of this project is applicable to other similar areas.