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The descriptive cross-sectional study assessed contributions of Youth Environmental Scout (YES) clubs toward sustainable environmental programs in selected schools in Ibadan, southwest Nigeria. It involved administration of questionnaires, in-depth interviews and observation checklists and results were analyzed using SPSS 10 software package. Results indicated deplorable state of infrastructure particularly basic amenities like water, excreta disposal, and waste management. Noise pollution was mainly due to vehicular traffic (40, 40%). However, Environmental Awareness (EA) in the three schools studied increased dramatically since the establishment of YES clubs. Waste recycling was found to be significantly associated (p less than 0.001) with the level of environmental awareness. Therefore, having YES clubs in schools would increase awareness and good environmental practices which key elements of environmental education. (Contains 3 tables and 6 figures.)

This study was aimed at documenting the community perceptions on the utilization of an integrated solid waste recycling facility provided by Oyo State Government, Nigeria. The study design was descriptive cross sectional survey and community based. The heads of households (306) at Orita- Aperin, Adekile and Omowumi were administered with semi-structured Questionnaires. A large proportion, 92.8% of the respondents perceived the establishment of the facility as a good and worthy action. Some 74.4% felt that it was easily accessible for them and 60.6% said that they were ready to patronize it if government could involve them in its management. On the segregation of waste for the facility, 74.4% were ready to separate their wastes if government is ready to buy them at an agreed price. Some of them (40.6%) were of the view that government should employ people from the community to operate the plant for its sustainability. The respondents also felt that waste recycling would adequately reduce the problem of air pollution which was hitherto, a problem due to burning of refuse in the neighbourhood. The plant enjoys community acceptability and there is need to promote it through community education, advocacy and social marketing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to tackle the problem posed by solid wastes (SWs) in Ibadan, an integrated solid waste recycling facility was built in 2004 by the Oyo State government at Orita-Aperin without prior information on SW generated in the area. This study was designed to assess the SWs generated in the area, with a view of sustainability of raw material procurement to the facility. The study involved descriptive survey and laboratory components. An observation checklist was used to assess the operational processes of the recycling plant and document the types and amount of the wastes generated. It was observed that the recycling facility could recycle 6000 kg of organic waste into fertilizer, 2000 kg of nylon/plastic waste, and 1000 kg of scrap metal per day. Solid waste generation rate was assessed as 0.15 kg/person/day. The composition of the organic waste showed: organic carbon (70.2%), total nitrogen (2.6%), total phosphorus (0.34%), C:N ratio (27: 1), lead (0.09 mgkg-1), chromium (0.04 mgkg-1), nickel (0.07 mgkg-1), zinc (0.15 mgkg-1), and cadmium (0.02 mgkg-1), indicating that organic waste is of good quality for composting. This study has identified neighbourhood communities as a potential source of organic and nylon/plastic wastes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Inappropriate solid waste management practices in schools in less-developed countries, particularly in major urban communities, constitute one of the major factors leading to declining environmental health conditions. The objective of the authors' descriptive, cross-sectional study was to assess solid waste management problems in selected urban schools in Ibadan, Nigeria. Eight secondary schools with average pupil populations not less than 500 per school were selected randomly. Four hundred questionnaires (50 per school) were administered. In addition, an observational checklist was used to assess the physical environment. Paper and plastics were the most frequently generated wastes. Common methods of solid waste disposal reported were use of dustbins for collection and open burning. Major problems perceived with current refuse disposal methods by the study students were odors, pest infestation, and spillages. Littering and spillages of solid waste were also common features reported. Data suggested inadequate waste management facilities and practices in study schools. The lack of refuse bins may have contributed to waste spillages and the burning practices. Odors may have arisen from both the decay of overstored organic waste rich in moisture and emissions from refuse burning. This scenario poses a community environmental health nuisance and may compromise school environmental quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: The study assessed the behavioural contexts of household shared sanitation (SS), the factors that could enhance its cleanliness and sustainable maintenance in the study area., Study Design: The study design was cross-sectional in nature., Methods: A pretested, interviewer-administered questionnaire with 113 questions provided information on knowledge, attitude and SS maintenance practices from 312 respondents selected through a four-stage sampling technique. Data were analysed by descriptive, chi-square and logistic regression statistics with attitude and toilet cleanliness as the dependent variables, while the sociodemographic characteristics, knowledge and practice, including the toilet cleanliness index, were the explanatory variables at P < 0.05., Results: The mean age of respondents was 46.1 ± 16.4 years. The majority were women (62.7%), tenants (64.7%) and had a secondary education (61.3%). In addition, 27.9% and 2.7% of respondents had shops and gender-segregated SS, respectively. Their knowledge and attitudes were good (66.3%) and positive (72.1%), while the majority (60.3%) of the SS was dirty. Almost two-thirds (62.8%) and 37.2% of respondents, respectively, had one and two or more compartments of unimproved pit toilets (31.6%) and water closets (28.6%), while 1.4% practiced open defaecation, despite having SS. More than two-fifths of SS were cleaned daily (45.4%) by women (52%), using water and soap (33.4%). Most households (93.4%) complied with the SS cleaning routines, with non-compliance attributed to lack of interest (29.5%), apathy when others defaulted (27.9%), lack of time (26.2%) and inadequate water (14.8%). There was a significant association between attitudes and education (P = 0.025), wealth (P = 0.011) and toilet-cleaning frequency (P = 0.015). The positive behaviour determinants of SS are factual knowledge (P = 0.039), efforts required to clean (P = 0.019), the ability to remember (P = 0.011) and cleaning commitment (P = 0.040), while freedom of expression among households using SS was a positive predictor of avoiding conflict, among the social dilemma factors., Conclusions: Good knowledge and positive attitudes were reported among users of SS, although with mixed practice and behaviour patterns. Factual knowledge, cleaning commitments and freedom of expressions predict SS cleanliness, which should be reinforced using periodic messages and structured health promotion strategies., (Copyright © 2018 The Royal Society for Public Health. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The principal objectives of this study are to (a) investigate the prevalence of elevated blood lead levels (EBLLs) in children of three major cities of Nigeria with different levels of industrial pollution; (b) identify the environmental, social and behavioral risk factors for the EBLLs in the children; and (c) explore the association between malaria (endemic in the study areas) and EBLLs in the pediatric population. The study involved 653 children aged 2-9 years (average, 3.7 years). The mean blood lead level (BLL) for the children was 8.9+/-4.8microg/dL, the median value was 7.8microg/dL, and the range was 1-52microg/dL. About 25% of the children had BLL greater than 10microg/dL. There were important differences in BLLs across the three cities, with the average value in Ibadan (9.9+/-5.2microg/dL) and Nnewi (8.3+/-3.5microg/dL) being higher than that in Port Harcourt (4.7+/-2.2micro/dL). Significant positive associations were found between BLL and a child's town of residence (p<0.001), age of the child (p=0.004), length of time the child played outside (p<0.001), presence of pets in a child's home (p=0.023), but negatively with educational level of caregiver (p<0.001). This study is one of the first to find a significant negative association between BLL and malaria in a pediatric population, and this association remained significant after controlling for confounding diseases and symptoms. The shared environmental and socio-demographic risks factors for lead exposure and Plasmodium (most common malaria parasites) infection in urban areas of Nigeria are discussed along with possible ways that lead exposure may influence the host response to infection with malarial parasites.

The bacteriological quality of drinking water from well, spring, borehole, and tap sources and that stored in containers by urban households in Ibadan was assessed during wet and dry seasons. The MPN technique was used to detect and enumerate the number of coliforms in water samples. Results showed that majority of households relied on wells, which were found to be the most contaminated of all the sources. At the household level, water quality significantly deteriorated after collection and storage as a result of poor handling. Furthermore, there was significant seasonal variation in E. coli count at source (P=0.013) and household (P=0.001). The study concludes that there is a need to improve the microbial quality of drinking water at source and the household level through hygiene education, and provision of simple, acceptable, low-cost treatment methods.