Living with Waste: Major Sources of Worries and Concerns about Landfills in Lagos Metropolis, Nigeria

Abstract

There is widespread public perception that landfills represent unacceptable risks to human health and environment. However, while there is an extensive literature on the impact of landfills in the developed countries, only few exist in African countries. Furthermore, few empirical studies have attempted to ascertain the individual and community level impacts around existing facilities. This is one part of a twin paper that addresses the individual and community level impacts around landfills in Lagos metropolis. While this paper examines the major sources of worries and concerns about landfills in Lagos metropolis, the second paper examines the coping mechanisms in response to impacts experienced among residents living in close proximity to the landfills. A structured questionnaire was the main instrument used in the collection of data for the study. The sample size consists of 930 heads of households in the two locations used for the study (488 in Olushosun and 442 in Abule-Egba). It focused on the nature of geographical variations and intensities of the impacts with distance from the sites. The outcome of the study shows that landfills within Lagos metropolis are uncontrolled and do not conform to international standards of landfill operations. The results reveal that the NIMBY syndrome clearly manifests in that respondents consistently placed high premium on negative externalities of landfills. Specifically, odour, smoke (from burning of wastes), noise, flies and rodents, aesthetics and water pollution were the most frequently mentioned environmental problems, while psychological disturbance, nausea, and diarrhoea were the most frequently mentioned health problems.

Keywords: Landfills; Environment; Risk; Perception; Lagos.