Assessment of the impact of climate change on the occurrences of malaria,pneumonia,meningitis,and cholera in Lokoja City,Nigeria

This study examined the impact of climate change on the occurrence of malaria,pneumonia,meningitis,and cholera in Lokoja City,Nigeria,with the aim of investigating the spatial distribution and prevalence of the four kinds of diseases as well as the coping strategies of people in the area.We collected the rainfall and temperature data of Lokoja City during 2000-2020 from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration(NASA),and the medical records data of the four kinds of diseases from the Kogi State Ministry of Health.We also conducted a semi-structured questionnaire of 250 residents,who have experienced one of these diseases,to investigate their coping strategies with these diseases.The Pearson correlation and multiple regression analysis were used to research the relationship between the climate parameters and cases of diseases.The result showed annual variations in climatic parameters with R^(2)values of 0.0557,0.0009,and 0.4915 for rainfall,maximum temperature,and minimum temperature,respectively.A positive and significant relationship were observed between maximum temperature and malaria(r=0.80),rainfall and malaria(r=0.54),minimum temperature and meningitis(r=0.64),as well as rainfall and cholera(r=0.66)at P<0.05 level.For the regression analysis R^(2)=0.71,0.50,and 0.52 for malaria,cholera,and meningitis,respectively at P<0.05 level.During 2000-2020,cases of malaria were highest in Ward A with 15,422,while 715 cases of pneumonia were highest in Kupa North Ward.In Ward A,3787 cases of cholera were recorded to be the highest,while cases of meningitis were highest in Kupa North Ward with 2383 cases.Investigation revealed that malaria is more common in the wet season,while cholera and meningitis cases were highest in the dry season.The study revealed that the most practiced coping strategy is the use of medications by about 90%of the respondents.More studies are recommended in the study area to establish a causal link between climate change and disease occurrence,and intervention from government in form of prevention and control programmes should be vigorously implemented.

Changes of water chemistry from rainfall to stream flow in Obagbile Catchment, Southwest Nigeria

Water chemistry changes when it flows through different pathways.This study aims to characterize the differences of water(including rainwater,overland flow,soil water,groundwater,and stream water)chemistry of five kinds of water in Obagbile Catchment in Southwest Nigeria,determine the changes in water chemistry that occur as the water moves from one pathway to another,and identify the factors responsible for the water chemistry changes.To do these,we collected 50 water samples from 10 heavy storms that received equal to or more than 10 mm of rain within an hour to test the changes of water chemical properties across various pathways in this study.The results show that overland flow had the highest p H and electrical conductivity(EC)and rainwater had the lowest values of the two parameters.Ca^(2+),Mg^(2+),Cl^(ˉ),and HCOO^(ˉ) were found to have their highest concentrations in stream water;meanwhile,NO_(3)^(–),NH_(4)^(+),and SO_(4)^(2–) were found to have almost the same low concentrations in all the water samples.K+was only dominant in stream water;while dissolved organic carbon(DOC)was lowest in rainwater,same in overland flow,soil water,and groundwater samples,and highest in stream flow.Principal component analysis(PCA)showed that for all the water samples from different pathways,two factors mainly accounted for the total variances.The two factors were related to the crustal and anthropogenic sources in rainwater,suggesting that the high loadings of major cations(e.g.,Ca^(2+) and Mg^(2+)) in rainwater samples are soil-derived.The PCA for the overland flow and soil water showed strong correlations among pH,EC,and the concentrations of Na^(+),Mg^(2+),HCOO^(-),and CH_(3)COO^(-),while the high loadings of all the parameters and the strong correlations among each other were evident in the stream water.In conclusion,the chemical constituents found in water are also the components of pathways through which the water flows.The major factors responsible for the change in the chemical properties of water in Obagbile Catchment are weathering and anthropogenic activities.