Heavy metal pollution is a serious issue of concern worldwide because it can
bioaccumulate in aquatic organisms and transferred through the food chain to harm
humans. Information on the heavy metal pollution of aquatic ecosystems is essential to
protect life. Therefore, this study was undertaken to determine the physico-chemical
parameters of surface water, soil particle distribution (SPD) and heavy metals in two
shellfish species in Liverpool axis of Badagry Creek, Lagos State, Nigeria. Twelve
physico-chemical parameters and four heavy metals were studied using standard
methods. The results showed that maximum temperature was 31.0±1.00 ̊C; turbidity,
118.00±50.90NTU; dissolved oxygen (DO), 13.3±3.8mg/l; dissolved carbon dioxide
(COD), 67.7±19.1mg/l; total hardness, 173.0±63.1mg/l; conductivity, 39.2±12.2μS/cm
and chloride was 2.0±0.7mg/l. Water quality parameters showed significant spatial
variations (p<0.05) among sample stations. Pearson’s correction matrices revealed high
correlation of DO with nitrate (r = 0.61), total hardness (r=0.62) and COD (r=0.52) at
p<0.05. The heavy metal concentrations (mg/kg) in the shellfishes, Callinectes pallidus
and Farfantepenaeus notialis were: lead, 0.05±0.05 and 0.04±0.02; copper, 2.03±0.17
and 0.84±0.18; zinc, 3.51±0.44 and 1.99±0.2 and cadmium, 0.02±0.02 and 0.03±0.04
respectively. These levels were not above the WHO standards (for heavy metals in fish
and shell fish). The sediment particle distribution (SPD) showed that Liverpool Jetty
had 19.05% coarse sand and 43.91% fine sand, while Apapa Jetty had the highest
amount of clay 45.29% in the environment. Heavy metals in shellfishes were above the
WHO standards.