Environmental pollution in Africa

Abstract

Africa is blessed with natural and mineral resources, but exploitation of these resources has led to extreme pollution of the environment. Population growth and urbanization due to developments have also contributed immensely to the current pollution in Africa. Traffic emissions, transported dust and open burning are all significant contributors to air pollution in Africa. The Sahara desert is a major source of transported dust, especially during the harmattan season in West Africa. Mercury emissions are very high in South Africa due to coal combustion and gold mining. Air pollutants may contaminate water and soil through atmospheric deposition. However, the major pollution sources for surface waters are the urban and industrial discharges of untreated effluents into the water. A few African countries have standards for effluent discharge into surface waters, but it is unknown whether these standards are being enforced. Though groundwater sources in wells and boreholes are the major sources of drinking water for the African populace, the biological water quality of these groundwater sources is mostly low in the region due to close proximity to sanitary facilities. Identified sources of soil pollution in Africa include agricultural activities, mining, roadside emissions, auto-mechanic workshops, refuse dumps and e-waste. Oil spills are a major problem in oil-rich African countries such as Nigeria and Angola. Agricultural activities are the lowest impacting the soil in Africa, while e-waste recycling was the highest with Pb, Cu and Zn at extremely high concentrations (>1%). There is a need for proper regulation of environmental pollutants in Africa.