Kano farmers irrigate with filthy water

Some of the notable dams in the state include Challawa Gorge and Tiga Dam, two of the ambitious irrigation projects in West Africa, and help greatly in ensuring success of the all year round farming. Kano State has emerged as the most irrigated state in the country with more than 3 million hectares of cultivable […]

Some of the notable dams in the state include Challawa Gorge and Tiga Dam, two of the ambitious irrigation projects in West Africa, and help greatly in ensuring success of the all year round farming. Kano State has emerged as the most irrigated state in the country with more than 3 million hectares of cultivable land under the supervision of Hadejia/Jama’are River Basin Development Authority.
However, this development has given rise to sparsely distributed irrigation centres in the state that are operating without any form of regulation from any quarters.
Some of the centers that operate unregulated are those located along the bank of River Jakara, carrying water throughout the year from the city to Wasai dam in Minajibir local government of the state. Although this is not the nature of most semi-arid rivers, it so happens that the Jakara river gets some of its water supply from urban Kano’s industrial and domestic sewages in addition to seasonal rainfall.
Malam Abdu Usman Babangida is an irrigation farmer that farms carrot, cabbage and lettuce along the Jakara River bank at Kwakwaci irrigation site situated in Fagge local government of the state metropolitan. According to him, the water they use in their farms has an irritating odour that he said made him to believe it is coming from the tanneries. He added that, for the past 9 years, he had never been visited by any environmentalist or health official on any issue regarding his activities as a farmer.
He said: “Of course, the water we are using is mostly odorous due to its source which is the tanneries and abattoir, and I have been a farmer here for over 8 years but I have never been visited by any environmental or health official. Nevertheless, on rare occasions, we use to have visitors from agric department of our local government on issues regarding to agricultural activities and that is all. We use to sell directly to hawkers, especially the carrot and the cabbage.”
A visit to the irrigation site revealed that farmers there are using the filthy water to irrigate their plants.
Another irrigation farmer at Jabba irrigation site said farmers in the area have been irrigating their vegetables with the filthy water for ages, adding: “The water seems to be more helpful as we do not require the use of much fertiliser as the water is rich in nutrient and it assist in having good yield.”
But a nutritionist with the state ministry for local government, Malam Mukhtari Tijjani Isa, said using filthy water in irrigation could produce very good yield and the produce may not necessarily be contaminated. However, he warned that there is also the possibility of becoming contaminated in the process of harvesting which, he said, is very dangerous to health.
He Added: “Direct consumption of produce such as salad, cabbage and carrot gotten from such irrigation site that uses filthy water is very dangerous. In fact, it is one of the major contributory factor in the spread of or outbreak of cholera, malaria parasite and there is the possibility of the spread of guinea worm, though it is said that it has been eradicated. I advise that every perishable produce should be properly washed with clean water and salt before consumption, only through that we can save ourselves from such epidemic outbreak.”