article · Journal of Global Ecology and Environment
Human activities and population movements linked to social crises have contributed to the deterioration of river water quality in Bamenda, Cameroon. To support future restoration and monitoring efforts, an investigation assessed benthic diatoms across local rivers between January and December 2023. Researchers gathered samples by scrubbing aquatic plants and scraping rocks, alongside measuring water physicochemical properties. The study identified 44 abundant and dominant diatom species. Several taxa, including Caloneis bacillum, Cymbella gamma, Pinnularia gibba, Melosira varians, and Aulacoseira granulata, showed very high occurrence frequencies ranging between 81 and 100 percent. Most recorded genera were cosmopolitan and demonstrated tolerance to elevated nitrate and salinity levels. Overall, the presence of both pollution-tolerant and pollution-sensitive species provides a foundation for biological monitoring frameworks to assist municipal authorities in environmental management.
Expanding urban pressures and social challenges often degrade local river systems, threatening freshwater supplies. Diatoms serve as effective, natural indicators of environmental health because different species respond predictably to pollution. Identifying which species thrive or decline in degraded waters helps environmental planners understand river conditions without relying solely on complex chemical testing.
This early-stage ecological research could enable the creation of tailored biological diatom indices for environmental monitoring. The primary users would be local councils and governmental bodies responsible for water resource management and river restoration. The findings remain at a descriptive, baseline stage, requiring further standardisation and index development before practical deployment in regulatory or commercial water quality testing.
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Aims: Diatoms have been extensively studied by ecologists and taxonomists. They are used for monitoring water quality. Human activities more and more deteriorate the quality of rivers of the city of Bamenda due to rural exodus caused by the social crisis in the North-West Region in Cameroon. The objective of the study was to characterized benthic diatoms in some Rivers of Bamenda with the aim of restoring and monitoring them. Study Design: Diatoms are used for monitoring water quality. Place and Duration of Study: Study took place from January to December 2023 in the city of Bamenda. Methodology: Sampling of Diatoms was done by scrubbing macrophytes for periphyton and scrapping rocks for epilithon. Some physicochemical parameters of water in the study sites were measured. Results: The analyses were able to identify 44 abundant and dominant species were identified. Caloneis bacillum (Grunow) Cleve, Cymbella gamma (A. Schmidt) De Toni, Pinnularia gibba (Ehrenberg) Ehrenberg, Melosira varians (C.Agardh) Kützing and Aulacoseira granulata (Ehrenberg) Simonsen were frequent with the relative frequency located between 81 to 100%. Majority of genera were cosmopolitan and tolerated high level of salinity and nitrates. Conclusion: Some Diatoms species identified in the study area are resistant to pollution and others sensitive, and could be used for developing biological diatom indices. They could be proposed to local council and government for managing water from rivers.
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DOI: 10.56557/jogee/2025/v21i39383
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