MICROBIOLOGICAL AND PHYSIOCHEMICAL QUALITY OF SOIL COLLECTED FROM MECHANICAL WORKSHOPS

ABSTRACT The soil is characterized by physical, chemical and biological properties that determine the health of the soil. Soil samples from three (3) different auto mechanical workshops in Eket, Akwa Ibom were analysed microbiologically, and physiochemically, using standard methods. The total heterotrop hie bacterial counts from the three mechanical wokshops designated as polluted soils ranged from 2.0 x 105 to 2.4 x 108 cfu/g. while the total heterotrophic fungal counts ranged from 5.0 x 105 to 4.2 x 106 cfu/g. The crude oil utilizers ranges from 1.24 x104 to 5.0 x 104. The distant soil sample designated as uncontaminated with crude oil had 1.8 x 104, 1.7 x104 and 1.3 x 105 of total heterotrophic bacteria, fungal and crude oil utilizers, respectively. The soil from the mechanical workshops revealed that the presence of Klebsiella sp., Bacillus sp., Micrococcus sp., Enterobacter sp., Streptococcus sp and Pseudomonas sp. for bacteria and Aspergillus spp and Penicillum expansum are fungi, Staphylococcus sp. and Escherichia coli and Fusarium sp, were isolated from the uncontaminated soil. The pH of the contaminated soil were all alkaline while that of the control was acidic. They were more sandy. Their ammonium, phosphate, sulpate and moisture content were higher than what were obtained from the control soil. This study revealed that the activities of the mechanic workshops in the study area:led to the alteration and increase in the microbial load and physico-chemical properties of the soil, which can have resulting effects on the soil constituents. It also shoWed that some of the isolated organism can be used for bioremediation of the contaminated soil.