摘要：This study assessed the seasonal surface water quality of River Ala upstream Akure-Nigeria. This was necessitated by the peoples' consideration of water from rivers as substitute to the reigning incidence of water shortage in the downstream of the river. Six locations were chosen spatially within the urban built-up to reflect a consideration of all possible human activities that are capable of changing the quality of river water. Water samples were collected for a period of 12 months. The water samples collected were analyzed for physico-chemical parameters which include pH, total dissolved solids, dissolved oxygen , biochemical oxygen demand, total hardness, calcium, magnesium, chlorine, nitrate, iron and zinc using standard procedures. For spatial reference the location of sampling points were determined with GPS and interpolated on digitized topographical map sheets of the study area. The observed results of the laboratory analysis were then presented, described and compared descriptively with the international standards for drinking water. It was observed that variation exists in the quality of the sampled waters and impaired to different degrees using WHO drinking water standards for the selected parameters. The results of the correlation coefficient shows that inverse or direct relationship exist between some parameters for instance, there is inverse relationship between pH and DO at 95% confidence level during the rainy season while Ca+ has direct relationship with Mg and Cl¯ 95%. Therefore, considering the level of impairments of Ala River in Akure-Nigeria, water is unsafe for domestic purposes and it continuous use prognosticate health danger to the residents.
