Perceived Health Impacts, Sources of Information and Individual Actions to Address Air Quality in Two Cities in Nigeria

Timothy M. Chukwu (), Stephen Morse and Richard J. Murphy
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Timothy M. Chukwu: Centre for Environment and Sustainability, School of Sustainability, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences, University of Surrey, Guildford GU2 7XH, UK
Stephen Morse: Centre for Environment and Sustainability, School of Sustainability, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences, University of Surrey, Guildford GU2 7XH, UK
Richard J. Murphy: Centre for Environment and Sustainability, School of Sustainability, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences, University of Surrey, Guildford GU2 7XH, UK

Sustainability, 2023, vol. 15, issue 7, 1-22

Abstract: Poor air quality (PAQ) has serious effects on the environment, climate change, and human health. This study investigated the perceived health impacts of PAQ in two cities in Nigeria (Abuja and Enugu), including whether PAQ may have an interaction with COVID-19 infection and intensity. A recent report published in the Lancet has pointed to the complexity of the health care system in Nigeria and a lack of data on disease burden, so the research in this paper took a self-reporting (perceptual) approach to exploring the health impacts of PAQ. The research also sought to explore the main sources of information used by people to inform them about air quality (AQ) and the actions they are likely to take to address PAQ. The results imply that many of the respondents in the two cities perceived their health to be adversely affected by PAQ and that PAQ worsens both the chances of infection and the intensity of COVID-19. Unsurprisingly, older people were found to be more vulnerable to the health impacts of PAQ. Most respondents, especially younger ones, obtained their information on AQ via electronic media (internet, social media) rather than printed media. Respondents considered that the primary action to address PAQ is proper waste management. Paying the government to address PAQ was regarded as the least likely action, although the government was acknowledged as having a key responsibility.

Keywords: pollutant; poor air quality; health impacts; city; perceptual indicators; environment; demographic; public information; actions; individual (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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