Perceptions of Effects of Short Lived Climate Pollutants on the Health of Urban Poor Communities 2008-2018: a Case Study of New Kru Town Community, Liberia
Abstract
Every year dirty air causes premature deaths of more than 5.5 million people around the world making it one of the leading fatal health risks. Short Lived Climate Pollutants (SLCPs) has been widely linked to air quality degradation especially within congested urban slum communities. The study determined the perceptions of the effects of SLCPs on the health of Urban Poor Communities in New Kru Town, Monrovia under the specific objectives including; to determine the types of SLCPs related illnesses experienced within urban poor communities, to determine the SLCPs related disease-causing deaths reported within urban poor communities and to establish potential prevention interventions necessary for curtailing SLCPs. The study employed a mixed method strategy involving 132 households randomly sampled from 200 households in New Kru Town. Key informant interviewees from relevant fields were contacted for pertinent information relating to the same. Statistical and thematic analysis guided the analysis of both quantitative and qualitative data. The research findings depicted that SLCPs indeed affect the health of the urban poor communities. The study found out that respiratory infections were the most common forms of illnesses experienced among the poor urban households due to Black carbon emanating from prolonged use of charcoal, diesel and Jako lantern. Chest pain & shortness of breath were the major symptoms mentioned by the respondents at (51.8%) followed by wheezing at (31.8%) & coughing (16.5%). These respiratory infection symptoms could be attributed to exposure to both indoor and outdoor SLCPs. Stroke was noted to be the leading cause of death. Majority of the deceased (76.4%) were above 50 years old while those between ages 36 – 50 years were only (23.6%). This therefore means that the elderly were more vulnerable to health impacts due to SLCPs. The null hypothesis that; SLCPs does not affect the health outcomes of the urban poor communities was tested and rejected using Pearson’s Chi-Square (X2) test at 0.05 significance level (Calculated value 10.53; Tabulated value 7.82). The study concluded that respiratory infections were the most common forms of illnesses while stroke was the leading cause of death among the urban poor communities. Measures to reduce exposure to SLCPs among urban poor households should involve developing and enforcing air quality monitoring program and implementation of sustainable energy for all programmes.
Publisher
University of Nairobi
Rights
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United StatesUsage Rights
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/us/Collections
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