Environmental and Health Impact of New Oko-Oba Agege Abattoir, Lagos State Nigeria

This study examined the operational characteristics of abattoir operators; examined the socio-economic characteristics of people living within a 900-metre radius of the selected abattoir in Lagos metropolis; examined the environmental impacts of abattoir; investigated the health impacts of abattoir operations on residents in the study area; examined the factors influencing residents’ decision to stay in the study area. These were with a view to providing information that could improve the environmental condition in the study area. Two sets of data were collected, the first one was obtained from residents through questionnaire administration, in other to administer the questionnaire, the study area was stratified into three strata: 1-300 meters, 301-600 meters, and 601-900 meters. Geographic Information System (GIS) analysis identified 274, 751, and 912 buildings respectively in these strata, totaling 1,937 buildings in the Oko-Oba, Agege area. A systematic sampling method was used, selecting every 20th building, resulting in 27, 75, and 92 buildings sampled from each stratum, totaling 193 questionnaires administered. The second sets of data was collected from the abattior operators through convenience sampling technique, using this method 21 operators who were willing were selected to participate in the interview. The data collected through questionnaire, was then analyzed with SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Sciences). Various analytical tools were employed, including descriptive and inferential statistics methods; such as cross tabulation, Mean scores, Chi-Square, ANOVA and factor analysis. The results of the findings showed that all operators were males, who slaughtered above 200 animals on a daily basis. They generated animals feed and manure mostly. The study on socio-economic characteristics revealed that 58.03% female and 41.97% of respondents were male. Educational findings indicated that the majority (74.6%) of the residents had tertiary education, 5.70% and 13.99%, of respondents respectively, had primary and secondary education as their highest educational qualification, while 5.70% had no formal education. With ethnic distribution showing, 44.56% Yoruba, 24.87% Igbo, 20.21% from other tribes, and 10.36% Hausa/Fulani. Regarding religion, 72.54% were Christians, 24.87% Muslims, and 3.11% traditional worshippers. A majority 83.42% perceived no threat from the abattoir, while 16.58% expressed concerns. Analysis on resident’s’ income revealed it was a significant factor, with income ranging from 50,000 to 500,000 naira in the first stratum, 15,000 to 300,000 naira in the second stratum and 15,000 to 100,000 naira in the third. Residents residing closer to the abattoir (1m-300m) faced significant environmental challenges; flies, mosquitoes and cockroaches were prevalent with a mean of 4.89, 4.81 and 4.78 respectively, moving further away (301m-600m and 601m-900m) reduced these impacts. Findings on health impacts revealed that within (1m-300m) fever/malaria, stomach ache and back pain were more prevalent with a mean of 4.41, 4.37, 4.00 respectively, however, these impacts reduced with distance. Additionally, factors influencing residents' decisions to stay varied across distance strata (100-300m, 301-600m, and 601-900m), These factors are ecological factor, economic opportunities, neighbourhood Environment and psychological. Overall, the study underscored the complex interplay between environmental factors, socioeconomic characteristics, and public health perceptions in abattoir vicinities, offering crucial insights for urban planning and community health initiatives.