Perceived Effect of Shipborne Sewage Discharge on Water Quality of Apapa Sea Port
1Mba, Akudo Chinwe, 1Okwu-Delunzu, 2Ugoyibo Virginia and 3Nnadi, Ezekiel Ejiofor
1Environmental Management Department, ESUT Business School, Enugu
2Faculty of Environmental Sciences, Enugu State Uni. of Sci. & Techn., Agbani.
3Civil Engineering Department, Kampala International University, Uganda.
Corresponding Author: nnadi.ezekiel@kiu.ac.ug, Kuds299@yahoo.com
ABSTRACT
The Apapa Sea Port in Lagos, Nigeria, faces significant environmental concerns due to shipborne sewage discharge. Over 3 billion tons of sewage are discharged annually, posing health risks and causing disease outbreaks. Understanding this relationship is crucial for developing policies to protect marine environments and port operations. The study investigates the perceived effects of sewage wastewater pollution on the marine environment, focusing on Apapa Port, Nigeria’s largest and busiest port. The study used a sample of 475 individuals, with a stratified frame of 323 respondents, resulting in a sample size of 245 using Yaro Yamane’s formula. Descriptive statistical methods were used to summarize and interpret data, with a mean score of 2.5 as the threshold for classification. Inferential statistics, including ANOVA and regression analysis, were used to test the research hypotheses. The results shown that the perceived impact of sewage pollution on water quality, with findings showing a strong awareness and concern among port personnel regarding its deleterious effects, including eutrophication (mean rating: 3.825), harmful algal blooms (mean rating: 3.921), habitat degradation (mean rating: 3.868), and waterborne diseases (mean rating: 4.018). The Hypotheses testing confirmed that sewage discharge significantly impacts the study area (p-value = 0.048) and that the implementation of MARPOL Annex IV has a significant influence on pollution levels (p-value < 0.05). The study concludes with recommendations to improve treatment processes, enforcement mechanisms, infrastructure, and stakeholder collaboration to ensure compliance and protect the marine ecosystem at Lagos Port, among many others.
Keywords: Apapa seaports, sewage, shipborne, pollution, waste management.
CITE AS: Mba, Akudo Chinwe, Okwu-Delunzu, Ugoyibo Virginia and Nnadi, Ezekiel Ejiofor. (2024). Perceived Effect of Shipborne Sewage Discharge on Water Quality of Apapa Sea Port. Research Output Journal of Public Health and Medicine 3(3):6-15. https://doi.org/10.59298/ROJPHM/2024/33614