WATER BUDGET FOR MAIN CAMPUS OF THE AHMADU BELLO UNIVERSITY, ZARIA

Water supply to the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU) Main Campus, based on surface water from an impounding reservoir, is irregular, in some areas only few hours daily, while pressure at the taps is low. Explanations are many and contradict each other. Some accusing fingers point out at the silting up of the Kubanni Dam, until recently the only source of water. Others say that the water demand in the Campus grew beyond installed capacity of the Waterworks. However, all critics agree that the ABU Water Supply Scheme is ailing. As a remedy, Ahmadu Bello University embarked on drilling boreholes to supplement its ailing surface water scheme. The Authors were pessimistic: as long as reason(s) of inadequate surface water supply has/have not been identified, the boreholes may not help. They may soon dry up one after another if there is not enough water underground. But how much water is there, underground? Nobody knows. How much water is available from the ground surface? Again nobody knows. What is the water demand of the Campus? Nobody knows. Without answering these questions, no viable water policy is possible. The Authors observed this and prepared the following water budget: Water consumption in the Campus in the year 2005 was 3,101 m3/d . Total Surface Water Resources are 24,410 m3/d while Utilizable Surface Water Resources are 3,214 m3/d, which is still more than the water consumption. Utilizable Groundwater Resources are negligible and amounts to 37 m3/d, too little to supplement the ailing surface water supply. The finding of the research is that there is enough surface water to meet water demand from the Campus now and in the future. Was it, then, a right decision to tap groundwater as a supplement to the surface water? There was no such a need, the paper concludes.