THE EFFECT OF TRANSPORTATION LAND USE ACTIVITIES ON THE HEALTH OF URBAN RESIDENTS A CASE STUDY OF LAGOS ISLAND

Abstract

This study provides an overview of the emergent public health risks attributable the effect of transportation land use activities on the health of urban residence. Growing evidence has substantiated a causal relationship between air pollution and mortality, hospital admissions for respiratory or cardiovascular disease and an associated increased risk of myocardial infarction. Lagos, the former capital of Nigeria with a population of 15 million has been identified as one of the fastest growing megacities with annual mean concentrations many times higher than the thresholds recommended by the WHO. Given the urban conglomeration of Lagos, this study shows that differential traffic density, socio-economic conditions, access to healthcare and proximity to sources of emissions create differential susceptibility of communities to ill health attributable to air pollution, especially within vulnerable groups including children, the elderly and pregnant women. The study therefore argues that an understanding of the scale and spatial variation of air pollution is not sufficient for reducing the risks posed to public health. An effects-based approach needs to be adopted in order to frame air pollution problems in the city within a public health context, rather than as an environmental nuisance

TABLE OF CONTENT

Title page

Approval page

Dedication

Acknowledgment

Abstract

Table of content

CHAPETR ONE

1.0   INTRODUCTION 

1.1        Background of the study

1.2        Statement of problem

1.3        Objective of the study

1.4        Research Hypotheses

1.5        Significance of the study

1.6        Scope and limitation of the study

1.7       Definition of terms

1.8       Organization of the study

CHAPETR TWO

2.0   LITERATURE REVIEW

CHAPETR THREE

3.0        Research methodology

3.1    sources of data collection

3.3        Population of the study

3.4        Sampling and sampling distribution

3.5        Validation of research instrument

3.6        Method of data analysis

CHAPTER FOUR

DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION

4.1 Introductions

4.2 Data analysis

CHAPTER FIVE

5.1 Introduction

5.2 Summary

5.3 Conclusion

5.4 Recommendation

Appendix

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

• Background of the study

Lagos is a port city located in the south-western region of Nigeria. It was the capital of Nigeria from 1914 to 1991. Since the mid-1970s, urban landscape development in Lagos has been characterized by the rapid growth of residential and business settlements around busy and often congested road networks. It is estimated that 75% of Nigerian industries are located in the city. Lagos attracts large numbers of the Nigerian population which has led to rapid urbanization with limited infrastructural capacity. Lagos has a growing population of 15 million, which makes it the fastest growing city in Africa and one of the world’s largest megacities. The urban sprawl of Lagos consists of two major regions: the Island and the Mainland area. The Island is the commercial district surrounded by slums with high population density. The mainland is made up of expansive and growing settlements which join Lagos with other neighboring states in Nigeria. The climate is tropical, hot and wet with an average temperature of 27 °C. It is widely recognized that the spatial planning of human urban activity is affecting quality of life, health and well-being. First to give some definitions: settlements in this context include cities, towns and villages. The tentacles of large settlements spread out far beyond urban areas, into hinterlands and networks, linking places together through commuter residence and work, retail, educational and leisure activities. So there is no clear functional distinction between urban and rural settlements within a town or city region. Land use planning is conventionally called ‘town and country planning’ in Britain, following the 1947 Act, but since 2004 is officially termed ‘spatial planning’, implying a more integrated, inter-agency process. In literature the term ‘built environment’ is often used to mean the human-made environment that may be subject to planning. It does not refer only to buildings and hard infrastructure but to all the physical elements that go to make up settlements, including greenspace. Health is defined broadly, in line with the World Health Organization (WHO), as ‘not only the absence of disease but a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being. The enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health is one of the fundamental rights of every human being, without distinction of race, religion, political belief or economic or social condition’ (WHO, 1946). Health in this sense is linked to every aspect of life – the social, the economic and the environmental – and can be seen as consonant with the anthropogenic version of sustainable development evident in the UN Brundtland definition. Just as equity (intra-generational as well as inter-generational) is a key aspect of sustainable development, so concern for health inequalities is central to public health policy.

Health and land use planning are historically linked. Modern planning originated in the nineteenth century expressly in order to combat unhealthy conditions—the unsanitary, over-crowded and inhumane conditions of the burgeoning industrial cities. It was recognised then, and still is, that there is an umbilical link between environmental conditions and human health. This link has been articulated in the modern era as permeating the human condition. The environment is seen as one of the key determinants of health, alongside inherited characteristics, lifestyles, and social and economic variables (Lalonde, 1974; Whitehead and Dahlgren, 1991). It is not only a matter of the direct physical impacts on health – for example of foul air or contaminated water – but also of indirect social and behavioural effects, on the exercise we take, the people we meet, and the degree of inequality in access to housing, employment opportunities, health services and other facilities. Land use planning and concern for the built environment originated from a public health focus. The Industrial Revolution of the nineteenth century caused a rapid growth of coal, steel, and manufacturing industries. In turn, this brought workers and their families from the countryside to the cities in droves. These exploding cities lacked sanitary infrastructures to cope with the swelling masses. Improvised and often crowded housing typically lay adjacent to factories that discharged smoke and other pollutants The lack of a framework for the review, assessment and management of air pollution in the city implies that Lagos residents are exposed to significant ambient air pollution and therefore subject to attendant public health risks. Ambient air pollution in Lagos is caused by both natural and anthropogenic factors. These include a significant natural contribution from desert dust transported from the Sahara to the Gulf of Guinea by north-easterly trade winds. However, Vehicular traffic, petrol and dieselfuelled power generators, and uncontrolled open incineration of waste and major thermal power stations are the main emissions sources within the city. The city typically experiences smog events caused by elevated levels of particles in the city e.g. the 12th October 2005 smog episode. These smog episodes further highlight an imperative need to evaluate the public health risks of air pollution in addition to identifying pollutant sources.

• STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Land as one of the factors of production is relatively scarce in supply, the effect of land use activities on the health and safety of the environment has become very cumbersome and a course of worry to the emerging cities. This is because land are used for diverse purposes; ranging from agriculture, industrial, residential, commercial and mining. Some of these activities on land causes pollution and hazardous to public health. It is on this back drop that the researcher intends to investigate the effect of transportation land used activities on the health of urban resident.

• OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY

The main objective of this study is to ascertain the effect of transportation land use activities on the health of urban residence. However, for the successful completion of the study, the researcher therefore set out the following sub-objectives:

1. To ascertain the relationship between transportation land use and the health of urban residents
2. To ascertain the relationship between land use and public health

• To ascertain the impact of land activities on the environment

1. To evaluate ways of promoting effective land used and environmental safety.
   • RESEARCH HYPOTHESES

For the successful completion of the study, the following hypotheses were formulated:

H₀: There is no significant relationship between land use and public safety

H₁: There is a significant relationship between land use and public safety.

H₀²: there is no significant relationship between land use activities and public health

H₂: there is a significant relationship between land use activities and public health.

• SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

At the completion of this study the findings will be of great benefit to the urban and regional planners to ensure effective planning of the society

The findings will also be of great benefit to the public health workers to ensure ways of protecting the environment from hazards emanating from the use of land for transport activities.

The study will also be of great importance to environmentalist in other to formulate and implement environmental laws.

Finally the study will be of great benefit to researchers as it will add to the pool of knowledge.

• SCOPE AND LIMITATION OF THE STUDY

The scope of the study covers effect of transportation land use activities on the health of urban residents; but in the cause of the study, there are some factors that limited the scope of the study;

Availability research materials: materials that the researcher require for the research work was unavailable for the research work.

Time factor: time was not on the researchers to consult various sectors of the economy to review employees or given out questionnaire to various institutions on the effect of government revenue policies. As we all know, time is never our friend. The time scheduled for the completion of this research thesis was too short. As a result, generating information/data was strenuous as it coincides with final year examination period, which needed attention.

Finance: this is another barrier that limited the researcher’s work.

• OPERATIONAL DEFINITION OF TERMS

Land

Land, sometimes referred to as dry land, is the solid surface of the Earth that is not permanently covered by water. The vast majority of human activity throughout history has occurred in land areas that support agriculture, habitat, and various natural resources

Health

Health is the level of functional and metabolic efficiency of a living organism. In humans it is the ability of individuals or communities to adapt and self-manage when facing physical, mental or social changes.

Environmental health safety

Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) is an umbrella term for the laws, rules, guidance and processes designed to help protect employees, the public and the environment from harm.

Transportation

Transport or transportation is the movement of humans, animals and goods from one location to another. Modes of transport include air, land (rail and road), water, cable, pipeline and space. The field can be divided into infrastructure, vehicles and operations

1.8 ORGANIZATION OF THE STUDY

This research work is organized in five chapters, for easy understanding, as follows

Chapter one is concern with the introduction, which consist of the (overview, of the study), statement of problem, objectives of the study, research question, significance or the study, research methodology, definition of terms and historical background of the study. Chapter two highlight the theoretical framework on which the study its based, thus the review of related literature. Chapter three deals on the research design and methodology adopted in the study. Chapter four concentrate on the data collection and analysis and presentation of finding.  Chapter five gives summary, conclusion, and recommendations made of the study.

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