Stakeholders’ Views on Ways to Reduce The Use of Plastic Bags and Its Environmental and Public Health Impacts in Sokoto Metropolis, Sokoto State, Nigeria

International Journal of Research and Scientific Innovation (IJRSI) | Volume VII, Issue IV, April 2020 | ISSN 2321–2705

Stakeholders’ Views on Ways to Reduce The Use of Plastic Bags and Its Environmental and Public Health Impacts in Sokoto Metropolis, Sokoto State, Nigeria

Aliyu Abubakar Shehu^1*, Faruk Usman Maiyaki², Muhammad Habibu Yahaya³, Sulaiman Aliyu^4
1Save the Nature Foundation, Sokoto, Nigeria
²Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education, Sokoto State, Nigeria
³Department of Biological Sciences, Nigerian Defense Academy, Postgraduate School Kaduna, Nigeria
⁴College of Basic and Remedial Studies, Sokoto, Sokoto State, Nigeria
*Corresponding Author

Background

Plastic shopping bags are mostly used for disposing waste, transporting goods, packaging items, and sometimes transporting food items and drinking water. However, Inappropriate plastic and other waste causes huge negative impacts on environmental and public health (Schenck et al., 2019).
One of the enormous challenges with plastic bags (PB) in developing countries is that they block sewage systems (Adane & Muleta, 2011; Muhonja et al., 2018). When sewage passages are blocked, this causes foul odors and a breeding ground for disease vectors, such as mosquitoes, which are responsible for the transmission of malaria (Rayne, 2008). For example, in India and Bangladesh, sewage blockage has led to several human deaths. In India, for example, flooding in Mumbai led to the demise of a thousand individuals. This flood was as a result of the blockage of storm drains by plastic bags (Somanathan & Gupta, 2009). Consequently, different states in India and governments across the world placed legislation to reduce plastic bag consumption (Somanathan & Gupta, 2009).
In Nigeria, plastic bags are used in wrapping table water, biscuit, salt, ice cream and several other consumables. Polyethylene bags are used in all markets, restaurants, homes, and shopping centers in Nigeria. These bags are found in the entire streets and corners of the country, for example in Edo State and Ondo State in Nigeria (Aziegbe, 2007; Akinro et al., 2012). In Nigeria, most states and cities such as Ado-Ekiti encounter waste management problems as a result of poor management of waste (Adefemi & Awokunmi, 2009).
The improper and indiscriminate disposal of plastic bags in some areas of Sokoto is a problem that cannot be over emphasised, residential areas lack proper waste disposal systems and hence plastic bags generated from households are being disposed on the fringes of street corners, and culverts(Awosan et al., 2017)This problem is further compounded by the proximity of some dump sites to residential homes there by exacerbating environmental health risks especially in developing countries (Annamalai,2015; WHO,2017)..Although the government has implemented this proposed ban, it may have widespread impacts across the country, given the reliance of millions of Nigerians on plastic bags for daily activities. The ban may be ineffective if the government does not enforce it or if the general public does not support it.
The central motor park and the market square areas in Sokoto are not left out of this irony. commuters, resident hawkers and traders often smell the stale stench emanating from heaps/piles of solid wastes generated from these areas. However, despite the massive amount of plastic waste bags produced, people seem to be unaware or feel indifferent on their environmental impact in Sokoto state. Furthermore, there is lack of awareness and knowledge among the populace in Sokoto community on the environmental impact of plastic bags and the effect that it poses on the environment, which has invariably skyrocketed the problem at an alarming rate.
Taking into cognisance the magnitude and seriousness of the problems, it is therefore necessary that the aim of the research was focused on identifying stakeholder’s views on ways to reduce the use of plastic bags and their negative environmental impacts in Sokoto community.

Keywords: Plastic, Bags, Waste, Environment, Health, Impacts, Sokoto

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