Poor Drainage System Research Articles

Urban water stress and poor sanitation in Ghana: perception and experiences of residents in the Ashaiman Municipality

Access to safe and adequate water and to sanitation has been a global developmental priority due to their intrinsic impacts on the achievement of the sustainable development goals. Despite the implementation of several measures to improve access to safe water and sanitation, urban dwellers in Ghana struggle to acquire water and access sanitation facilities. This paper identified and examined the vulnerable conditions of households to environmental inadequacies of potable water and sanitation and measures aimed at reducing the risks associated with them in the Ashaiman Municipality. The study revealed that, access to adequate water supply was not necessarily dependent on the physical location of house units, but on factors such as lack of building permit, financial constraints, rental conditions, administrative procedures and ill-suited housing arrangement. Inadequate solid and liquid waste management practices and poor drainage systems were major problems identified in the Municipality. The paper argues that water, drainage systems and logistics for waste management in deprived communities must be provided by the local government and service providers through public–private partnership agreements. We conclude that, planning rules, regulations and procedures should be strictly adhered to and vigorously enforced by the Municipality in order to have a well-organized and planned urban environment.

Assessment of Known Risk Factors for Dengue Transmission in Haraincha Village Development Committee of Eastern Nepal

Introduction Currently dengue is a worldwide public health problem. Almost half of world's populations are at risk of dengue. The first case was reported from Nepal in 2004, since then major outbreaks occurred in the year 2006, 2010, 2012 and 2013. As Jhapa district had outbreak in 2012 and 2013, there is a high chance of outbreak in Morang district also. There might be presence of many known risk factor for dengue transmission at Haraincha Village Development Committee (VDC).Objective To assess the known risk factor associated with dengue transmission in Haraincha Village Development Committee of Morang district of Eastern Nepal.Methodology Community based cross-sectional study was conducted from th th 15 October 2013 to 30 November 2013 in Haraincha VDC of Morang district. The data was collected from 122 households by means of interview using a semi structured questionnaires and direct observation after taking informed consent. We observed the known risk factor of possible dengue transmission. Data were entered into Microsoft excel and analyzed by using SPSS.Results The mean age of the respondent was 38 years with male predominance (61.5%). Only 7.4% were illiterate. The major occupation was agriculture (45.9%). Fifty four percent were above the poverty line. Two percent had history of dengue contracted outside the country. Common risk factors observed were poor drainage system (79%), poor natural light (75%), paddy field nearby household (51%), water filled open containers (44%), big plant near household (31%) and flower vases (26%) etc.Conclusion The known risk factors for dengue transmission were present in Haraincha Village Development Committee.Birat Journal of Health Sciences 2016 1(1): 3-7

Urban vulnerability, disaster risk reduction and resettlement in Mzuzu city, Malawi

For most developing countries at risk of disasters and climate change, adopting structural measures to reduce disaster risks remain a challenge. This paper presents findings of a study conducted through a mixed methods design in a flood risk city in Malawi, Sub-Saharan Africa. The study assesses the city's vulnerability to floods and actions being taken to reduce the risks. It then investigates how resettlement is being promoted as one such risk reduction measure. The study finds multiple vulnerability factors, including unsafe construction practices, poor drainage systems, unregulated solid waste disposal, institutional incapacity, inadequacy of land, settlements in high risk areas, deforestation, siltation of rivers and national disaster risk reduction policies that neglect urban areas. However, efforts to tackle underlying causes of vulnerability are wanting. One positive programme is a slum upgrading pilot project implemented by non-state actors that also lacks government support. In the case of resettlement, its planning and execution is fraught with multiple challenges emanating from haphazard planning and lack of community participation. The paper argues that the emphasis on resettlement is obscuring the key drivers of vulnerability, while simultaneously exposing both resettled and those left behind to further risks. It, therefore, calls for caution when planning and implementing disaster risk reduction policies that have the potential to create new forms of vulnerability to hazards or exacerbate them.

SOCIAL CULTURAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL RELATED FACTORS INFLUENCING THE SELECTION OF AREAS OF RESIDENCE IN KENYA: A SURVEY OF NAIROBI RESIDENTS

Purpose: The purpose the study was to investigate the social cultural and environmental related factors influencing the selection of areas of residence in Kenya in the case of Nairobi residents.Methodology: The researcher used descriptive research design. The scope of the study was limited to Nairobi County. The study identified a population of 985,016 households in Nairobi County out of which a sample of 150 respondents were used. Random sampling technique was used to select the respondents from each category. The study used primary data that was collected using questionnaires. Data was analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). The data was then analysed in terms of descriptive statistics like frequencies and percentages.Results: Results indicated that majority of the respondents found social-cultural factors such as safe neighborhood, relations with neighbors, nearness to family and friends, noise level, degree of crowding, size of household, social class and quality of schools in the neighborhood as being important while choosing their places of residence. The results indicated that the most important social cultural factor is quality of schools in the neighbourhood, followed by safety of neighbourhood, degree of crowding, and social class. The least ranked factors were relations with neighbors, community stability, nearness to family and friends, noise level, and size of household. Results indicated that majority of the respondents attached a lot of importance to environmental factors while choosing their places of residence since most of them disagreed with the statement that they would live in an area with poor drainage systems. On the other hand, majority of the respondents agreed to the statements that cleanliness of the neighborhood was important, running water is important, they would pay more for houses that conserve the environment such as energy-efficient housing, knowledge of the materials used to construct a house is necessary.Unique contribution to theory, practice and policy: The study recommended that that social-cultural factors are very important aspects to consider when choosing place of residence. Therefore, it is advisable to take note of such factors as safe neighbourhood, degree of crowding among others before concluding on where to reside. It is also recommended that it would be significant to prioritize environmental factors such as drainage systems, availability of running water, and cleanliness of the neighbourhood among other environmental factors while concluding a decision on where to reside. It is also recommended that landlords should put into consideration such factors since majority of their potential tenants’ decision to reside in a given area will in most cases be influenced by such factors.

A Study on the Contributing Factors of Major Landslides in Malaysia

Landslide is one of the most prominent geo-hazard that accounts for colossal losses every year. The contributing factors of landslides in Malaysia are reasonably different from rest of the world. According to a study, the most dominant factor that catalysis the slope failure in many countries of the world is geological conditions. However, in case of Malaysia; most of the landslides occur as a consequence of flawed design, improper construction and non-maintenance of slopes which correlates with the human errors. The statistics of Malaysia shows that highest number of landslides took place in 1996 with 71 cases which is followed by 68 cases in 1995. According to the findings of Highland Towers (1993) landslide, the main causes of failure were inaccuracies in design, poor supervision during the construction and inadequate drainage system. Similarly, in case of Taman Hillview and Bukit Antarabangsa landslide, it has been revealed that improper design practices and poor drainage system supplemented with prolonged rain were the significant causes of the cataclysm. Therefore, based on the investigations on retrospective landslides, this study proposes to incorporate Human Reliability Assessment technique as a part of working strategy for slopes along with strong adherence to the design guidelines in order to minimize the likelihood of landslides.

Monitoring soil salinity via remote sensing technology under data scarce conditions: A case study from Turkey

Due to its negative impacts on land productivity and plant growth, soil salinization is a significant problem particularly in arid and semi-arid regions of the world. Among the natural factors of soil salinization, parent materials including high amount of salts and minerals in soil structure, known as primary salinization, can be addressed. Conventional irrigation techniques and poor drainage systems are predominant human-induced activities that result in secondary salinization. Countries with especially dryland environment, face difficulty in providing adequate food for their rapidly increasing population since each year lots of cultivated land are abandoned due to adverse effects of primary and secondary soil salinization. Therefore, monitoring, mapping and predicting soil salinization is of utmost importance regarding lessening and/or preventing further increase in soil salinity through some protective measures. The subject of concern becomes even more pronounced particularly in agricultural lands as is the case in the vicinity of Tuz (Salt) Lake Region in Turkey. This research focuses mainly on multi-temporal monitoring of Tuz Lake Region in order to track changes in areas of salty spots in years 1990, 2002, 2006, 2011 and 2015. A total number of 25 Landsat-5 TM and Landsat-8 images obtained between 1990 and 2015 were analysed in this study. Field electrical conductivity (EC) measurements for 322 soil samples in year 2002 were checked; and 28 of these samples were selected for generating salinity maps representing areas in the vicinity of the lake. All satellite images were radiometrically and atmospherically corrected prior to classification. Following the pre-processing step, five soil salinity indices were applied on all satellite images. 28 soil samples were then overlaid on images in order to extract the exact index values related to soil samples and regression approach was used to relate satellite image-derived salinity indices and field measurements. Linear and exponential regression analyses were conducted separately as the next step for all indices based on data gathered in 2002. Salinity index (SI) 1=B1*B3 showed the best result with R2 value of 0.93 and 0.83 for exponential and linear regression analysis, respectively. Salinity maps for years 1990, 2006, 2011 and 2015 were further produced utilizing the exponential and linear regression expressions attained for year 2002. Besides, this study detected land cover changes in the area from year 2000–2006, and from 2006 to 2012 by using CORINE land cover data to analyse the possible relationships between land cover change and salinity changes.

PREVENTION OF AEDES BREEDING HABITATS FOR URBAN HIGH-RISE BUILDING IN MALAYSIA

Dengue is endemic in Malaysia; it is found mainly in the urban and suburban areas. Aedes Aegypti and Aedes Albopictus have been incriminated in the transmission of dengue virus in many urban areas of South-East Asia, including Malaysia. Dengue cases that have been reported worldwide were related with high rise buildings especially in residential buildings such as apartments and condominiums. This study aims to identify the breeding habitats resulted from building designs in high-rise apartments in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Inspections were conducted at three dengue-hotspots residential buildings located in Lembah Pantai, Kuala Lumpur. The selection criteria of the study sites were based on the most frequent reports on dengue cases from these three localities. The building elements that Aedes breeding were spotted created semi-permanent areas for Aedes breeding. Findings show the buildings were designed with unreachable rain gutters, making checking and cleaning for mosquito breeding in clogged gutters impossible for local residents. Poor drainage and piping system has found to be the Aedes habitats, too. Of these, surprisingly, uneven surface of the concrete rooftops and floors has also become one of the breeding spots, resulting to water stagnation and liveable areas for Aedes to breed. Correlating this findings not only helps target areas to be identified and focused in community search and destroy programs, but most importantly it contributes to high-rise building design and construction features in Malaysia by taking into considerations long-lasting measures for a holistic sustainable environment.

PREVENTION OF AEDES BREEDING HABITATS FOR URBAN HIGH-RISE BUILDING IN MALAYSIA

Dengue is endemic in Malaysia; it is found mainly in the urban and suburban areas. Aedes Aegypti and Aedes Albopictus have been incriminated in the transmission of dengue virus in many urban areas of South-East Asia, including Malaysia. Dengue cases that have been reported worldwide were related with high rise buildings especially in residential buildings such as apartments and condominiums. This study aims to identify the breeding habitats resulted from building designs in high-rise apartments in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Inspections were conducted at three dengue-hotspots residential buildings located in Lembah Pantai, Kuala Lumpur. The selection criteria of the study sites were based on the most frequent reports on dengue cases from these three localities. The building elements that Aedes breeding were spotted created semi-permanent areas for Aedes breeding. Findings show the buildings were designed with unreachable rain gutters, making checking and cleaning for mosquito breeding in clogged gutters impossible for local residents. Poor drainage and piping system has found to be the Aedes habitats, too. Of these, surprisingly, uneven surface of the concrete rooftops and floors has also become one of the breeding spots, resulting to water stagnation and liveable areas for Aedes to breed. Correlating this findings not only helps target areas to be identified and focused in community search and destroy programs, but most importantly it contributes to high-rise building design and construction features in Malaysia by taking into considerations long-lasting measures for a holistic sustainable environment.

Toward Resilient and Sustainable City Adaptation Model for Flood Disaster Prone City: Case Study of Jakarta Capital Region

Flood disaster is one of the problems that could threaten the sustainability of Jakarta. The intensity of major floods continues to increase as a result of high rainfall and land conversion as well as poor urban drainage system. Therefore, the city requires an increased capacity to face flood disaster. The enhancement of the city capacity needs to be well designed to achieve a state of city that is resistant to disaster or what is known as a Resilient City. The purpose of this research is to develop an adaptation model of flood disaster prone city resilience to actualize the sustainability of the city of Jakarta. Based on the position analysis results using Structural Equations Model (SEM), 4 (four) factors affecting the adaptation model of resilience disaster prone city of Jakarta were found, which are spatial arrangement, technology innovation, disaster mitigation, and disaster adaptation. To form a resilient city, resilient ways are required. The effective resilient ways to be implemented in the city of Jakarta are the implementation of orderly spatial management, the enhancement of the adaptive capacity of society and a dynamic and planned urban systems to actualize a resilient and sustainable.

Assessing the conditions of rural road networks in South Africa using visual observations and field-based manual measurements: A case study of four rural communities in Kwa-Zulu Natal

<p>The present study used visual observation and field-based measurements to assess the physical conditions of Minor roads (R3), Collector roads (R4) and Local roads (R5) in four rural communities in Kwa-Zulu Natal Province. The function of these road classes is to provide access from homesteads to main roads that connect rural areas to towns. The aim of this study was to assess the physical conditions of unpaved road networks, with the view to understand the physical, environmental and anthropogenic factors that influence the state of rural roads. Road classes of interest were traversed and a number of surface distresses (such as potholes, rutting, erosion channels, corrugations, loose material and stoniness) were identified and assessed in order to determine the surface conditions of each road class. Thereafter, two classification methods were used to rate the severity and extent of each surface distress on each road class. Results indicate that there was more than one surface distresses identified and assessed on each road class within the selected communities. It was noted that all the road classes had moderate to severe surface distress, except for the R3 road class in Emazabekweni community. The moderate to severe surface distresses reflected problems associated with poor drainage systems and maintenance. Visual observation and field-based methods are useful tools that can aid in identifying and assessing the physical conditions of unpaved roads as well as possible environmental, physical and anthropogenic factors at interplay, especially in resource limited regions. This study recommended that road authorities should ensure that proper drainage systems should be well designed, constructed and maintained on all gravel roads in order to reduce surface deterioration associated with runoff. In addition, road authorities should be carrying out regular monitoring procedures to ensure that surface distresses are identified and resolved during their early stage of development. </p>

Climate Change Effect in Physical and Natural Capital: A Study on Urban Poor in Dhaka City of Bangladesh

A study was conducted on the physical and natural capital in urban slum to assess the effect of climate change on the capitals. Four slums of Dhaka city were selected as the study area. The study was followed a combination of quantitative and qualitative research methods. A stratified random sampling technique was assumed to collect data from the slums. Focus Group Discussion (FGD), Key Informants Interview (KII) and case study tools were employed for the qualitative study. By following the DFID five sustainable livelihood approaches, the research was concerned with physical and natural capital. The main findings of this study revealed that the slum dwellers are normally victim of flood, water logging, heat stress and erratic rainfall effects in their household. The study identifies that due to change in climate, the shelter becomes affected by both heavy and normal rain and poor drainage systems of the slum make it more vulnerable and create water logging. It was found that slum dwellers face problems in water collection during high temperature and water logging. The present findings indicate that the slum dwellers are enduring and combating with the daily livelihood problems.

3. PERAN MODAL SOSIAL DAN MODAL POLITIK DALAM IMPLEMENTASI KEBIJAKAN PENANGANAN BANJIR DAN ROB (Studi Kasus di Kelurahan Tanjung Mas Kecamatan Semarang Utara Kota Semarang)

Policy on flood and tide management has become a severe public issue. In particular, the issue is dealing with the policy implementation as a manifestation of public service to protecting community as an impact of the flood disaster, which has been a long-standing serious issue. This research, Social and Political Capitals For Implementing Policies on Flood and Tide Management, raises a case study in Tanjung Mas Village, Semarang Utara District, Semarang Municipality. The analysis focuses on research question of whether the potentials social and political capitals contributed a significant role in the implementation of the policy of the Semarang Municipal Government in the flood management. The analysis used an approach of naturalistic (descriptive-qualitative) method with an incidental random sampling data collection and Focus Group Discussion. Respondents were selected purposively with the major component of community leaders and citizens of RW 3-9 who became the victims of the flood. The study results raised some issues and problems concerning the implementation of the policy, which theoretically did not comply with the concept of the policy implementation, in which the policy performers did not optimally accommodate local social and political capitals. The most highlighted finding was that all respondents reported that the policy performers and politicians from the Local Boards of Representatives did not truly implemented the policy, tending to sway from their initial promises during the majoral election campaign of 2009. In their political contracts, one of the legislative candidates from particular party promised that the people of Tanjungmas would be set free from flood, elevated from poverty, and survived from unemployment. In practice, none of these promises were answered. For example, the potential of the social capital (collective work, fundraising, and environmental improvement) and political capital (citizen’s political aspiration and rights) accummulated in vary local and pure associations only had a very minor involvement in solving problems related to flood and tide in Tanjungmas area, development of River Semarang, and infrastructure development – in which Sagorake (Saluran Gorong Gorong Rakyat Kebonharjo) Group was involved. It is important to note that the social capital of the local community may grow by P2KP program introduced by central government through The Ministry of Public Work Affairs. The policy of Semarang Municipal Government did not allow the local people social, political, and economic access to the policy implementation. All the programs of the flood and tide management always took place with a project approach without involving local community. Borrowing the concept introduced by Van Meter and Horn (1975:23), the poor coordination, communication and the successful policy implementation program are crucial in the favor of bureaucrats instead of planning and policy-making processes. What Van Meter and Horn writes was proven by the implementation of the flood and tide management in Semarang. The development of Sistem Polder Tawang Kota Lama as flood and tide controller, tourist and conservation site was useless because of lacking management. In addition to this deficiency, the location had a poor drainage system and became the waste dumping site. According to the findings, this research recommended a change in model of policy on flood and tide management from structural to non-structural paradigm, which accommodates the potential of the social and political capitals as the end target of the policy stakeholder.

Prevalence of malaria parasitaemia among residents proximal to environmental waste dumpsites in Gwagwalada metropolis, Abuja, Nigeria

Background: Malaria is a widely explored public health topic which has been documented to constitute more burden among communities residing in proximity to environmental waste dumpsites and poor drainage systems. Objective: This present study sets to examine and compare whether there are more cases of malaria parasitemia burden among people residing proximal and those not proximal to dump sites at Gwagwalada metropolis. Materials and Methods: This was a cross-sectional comparative survey which involved 100 blood samples collected from 25 households proximal to environmental waste dumpsites (test subjects) and another 100 from 25 households that are not proximal to dumpsites (control subjects) in Gwagwalada metropolis of Federal Capital Territory Abuja. These samples were analyzed using standard malaria microscopy. Results: Prevalence of malaria parasitemia was 82.0% among test subjects and 26.0% among control subjects. The highest malaria density recorded was >10,000 parasites/μL in 34 test subjects whereas none was observed from control subjects. Malaria parasitemia among test subjects was common among children (1-10 years) and least among 41-50 years. There was statistical relationship between malaria parasitemia among residents proximal to environmental waste dumpsites, more so with their age distribution (P 0.05). Conclusion: The findings of this study are a clear demonstration that accumulation of waste dumpsites in proximity to residential areas constitutes a pathway to malaria burden, consequently dumpsites should be properly located and managed to minimize their effects on the environment and health of man.

Severity Classification and Characterization of Waterlogged Irrigation Fields in the Fincha’ a Valley Sugar Estate, Nile Basin of Western Ethiopia

Waterlogging is becoming the major threat to the sustainability of irrigated agricultural lands in Fincha’a Valley Sugar Estate (FVSE). In the present study timely and accurate detection of waterlogged areas through piezometer monitoring and remote sensing indicators, along with their characterization and severity classification has been made. Accordingly, spatial maps of groundwater table (GWT) depth were produced in a Geographic information system (GIS) (ArcGIS 10.2) environment from 40 groundwater monitoring piezometer data. Results of the study revealed that FVSE, after nearly 20-25 years of irrigation, is experiencing a serious waterlogging problem. About 324.4 km2 (75.5%) of the delineated plantation fields are severely waterlogged and 105 km2 (24.5%) are critically waterlogged. The study also revealed that the GWT depth for all selected irrigation fields is very shallow in winter compared to spring, autumn and summer seasons. The seasonal fluctuation and spatial variability of groundwater table in the irrigated fields is owing to excess irrigation water application, nature of the soil, topography and high seepage from water bodies and poor drainage system; hence are the main causes for waterlogging (GWT rise) problem in the study area. The groundwater depth is extremely shallow (<1 m below ground) in most of the piezometer sites (about 94.7% of the study area) throughout the entire season and showed great spatio-seasonal variability. The rate of annual increment of groundwater rise, coupled with seasonal fluctuation, has obvious repercussions and grave consequences for the sustainability of Fincha’a Valley Sugar Estate. The serious problem of the rising groundwater table can be tackled by adopting improved irrigation water management practices, designing drainage system and further geological investigations. Therefore, it is highly suggested to critically study the causes, consequences and solutions of the waterlogging problem (GWT rise) in a concerted and integrated manner to get out of this vicious problem.

Road Construction and Gully Development in Hadero Tunto - Durgi Road Project, Southern Ethiopia

Poor drainage systems in roads are among causes of gully erosion and are common in Ethiopia. A study was conducted to assess gully development and perception of farmers on gully erosion problems along Hadero Tunto-Durgi road project, south Ethiopia. The road was built between 2006 and 2008. The study area covered 572 ha of Ereramo, Satame and Koka road sections. Field observations, gully measurement, and household survey were used to generate the necessary data. The study reveals that 20 new gullies have been created down slope of the investigated road segments. Their development is found to be associated mainly with culverts and roadside ditches. The soil loss rate by gully is estimated at 12.86t ha -1 y -1 and the total damaged area estimated at 16,109m 2 . The gully density 9.36 m/ha implies moderately to severely degraded situation. The house hold survey shows that about 96% of sample respondents have experienced problems of gully erosion. They explained that gullies became obstruction of tillage operation, cause for loss of soil and yield reduction, and restrict animal and human movement. The study concludes that if appropriate interventions are not carried out in the area, the rate of gully erosion will increase and reversing the process will be difficult.

Recent advances in shell-sheddable nanoparticles for cancer therapy.

Cancer remains one of the most incurable diseases associated with high mortality and morbidity. Although extensive studies have been carried out for cancer therapy, there are still no gold standards available for treatment. Spurred by advances in biomaterial sciences, recent efforts have focused on the development of polymeric nanoparticles for site-specific delivery of anticancer drugs. Such nanoparticles have distinct characteristics, including high thermodynamic stability, good biocompatibility, and prolonged circulation in the bloodstream. Owing to these unique features, systemically administered nanoparticles can passively accumulate at tumor tissue with leaky vasculature and poor lymphatic drainage system, which is called the enhanced permeation and retention (EPR) effect. However, the site-specific accumulation of nanoparticles does not guarantee high antitumor efficacy because the conventional nanoparticles release the drugs in a sustained manner via the passive diffusion mechanism, which may not endow tumor tissue with cytotoxic local concentrations of the drugs. To surmount this limitation, nanoparticles that can rapidly release the drug at the tumor site need to be developed. In recent years, it has been demonstrated that shell-sheddable nanoparticles have an ability to rapidly release the drug by recognizing the specific environments of the tumor tissue. After systemic administration, shell-sheddable nanoparticles reach tumor sites via the EPR effect, followed by exposure to tumor microenvironment-specific stimuli which cause a burst release of the drug. Representative stimuli, used to design shell-sheddable nanparticles, include pH, redox, enzymes, temperature, ultraviolet, and ultrasound. In this review, we discuss the recent advances in tumor-specific, shell-sheddable nanoparticles for drug delivery.

Environmental impacts of shrimp aquaculture: the case of Chandipur village at Debhata upazila of Satkhira district, Bangladesh

The present study based on primary investigations (focus group discussion, field observation, household interviews etc.), laboratory analysis for soil and water quality (heavy metal test, pH, salinity, electricity conductivity, particle size analysis etc.) and secondary materials (remote sensing data, satellite images analysis etc.) reveals that due to poor drainage system and continuous shrimp farming at Chandipur Village under Debhata Upazila of Satkhira District, salinity level of both soil and water are increasing (1.6 ppt and 13.4 ppt respectively). In addition PH, salinity, electrical conductivity of soil and water have been found in a very fragile condition. Different types of heavy and toxic metals such as Na, Fe, Cr, Zn, Ni and Pd have been detected in ghers’ soil.J. Asiat. Soc. Bangladesh, Sci. 40(1): 107-119, June 2014

Factors affecting efficiency of cotton producers in rural Khorezm, Uzbekistan: Re-examining the role of knowledge indicators in technical efficiency improvement

Few efficiency studies, to date, have been conducted for Central Asian countries. This article fills the gap in the literature by conducting a frontier efficiency analysis using survey data obtained from the cotton producing farms in North-western Uzbekistan. The results of the restricted stochastic frontier model, which follows a three-stage procedure, demonstrate the presence of technical inefficiency in cotton production. The findings illustrate that the results from the traditional frontier models, which use black box tools, lead to biased outcomes. The model displays that farmers' educational background, farm size, water availability, the application of manure, access to formal credit, Water User Association's services, farmers' participation in off-farm work and poor drainage systems, significantly contribute to input use efficiency. A quantile regression also shows that knowledge indicators play a significant role in improving farmers’ efficiency in cotton production. The impact of agricultural experience on technical efficiency is positive, but not significant, in the middle and higher efficiency percentiles. Interestingly, having a basic education is not sufficient in achieving higher efficiency, based on the results obtained. The findings suggest that the provision of agricultural training and the development of agricultural extension services will help farmers acquire new technologies and enhance their decision-making capabilities in farm production which subsequently improve resource use efficiency in cotton production.

Women Participation in Environmental Protection and Management: Lessons from Plateau State, Nigeria

This study provides a general review and a case study of women’s involvement in environmental management in Plateau state. Primary data were generated from Questionnaire survey of women from six local government areas. Majority of the women (79.2%) are involved in farming and contributed significantly to land/soil conservation. (78.4%) of them have planted tree or flowers in the last five years while (79.2%) indicated clearing their surroundings daily in terms of sweeping, clearing drainages and refuse disposal. Problems faced by the women include lack of waste disposal equipment, poor drainage systems and lack of awareness among the general public. Appropriate recommendations were proffered to enhance women involvement in environmental protection and management.

Assessment of Domestic Wastewater Disposal in Some Selected Wards of Maiduguri Metropolis, Borno State, Nigeria

This study evaluates domestic wastewater disposal in some selected wards of urban Maiduguri. The unprecedented population growth in Maiduguri generally is directly proportional to its demand for water supply for both domestic and industrial needs. Consequently the more water is consumed, the more its waste is generated. This in turn encourages its indiscriminate disposal particularly in an environment with poor drainage system such as most parts of Maiduguri urban area. It is against this background that the study examined how domestic wastewater is disposed in Maiduguri using the following objectives: to quantify the amount of domestic wastewater generated in the sampled areas, to study and describe the methods used in disposing wastewater, and to highlight the issues due to poor drainage in the town. The scope therefore, covers only domestic wastewater disposal in the selected wards with reference to individual household wastewater disposal system. This was based on planned and unplanned drainage system areas. New G R A and Bulumkutu were selected as the combination of the planned and unplanned areas, Hausari as unplanned and Gwange as planned areas respectively. Purposive, stratified and accidental sampling methods were employed at different stages in the sampling of the wards and the respondents. Three hundred and sixty copies of questionnaire designed to capture the objectives of the study were administered in the three selected wards (120 for each ward). The data obtained were analyzed using simple descriptive statistic and ANOVA. From the results obtained, the mean responses of the residents with regard to the wastewater generated from bathing, washing, food preparation and others, Maisandari has the highest values: 2.1583a, 1.3417a, 1.1250a and 1.1250a at 0.05 significant levels. This implies that most of the wastewater generated in the study area came from Maisandari ward. As a result of the serious environmental and health implication of this indiscriminate wastewater disposal in the study area, it is therefore recommended, that Borno State government should ensure effective/efficient maintenance of the existing waste disposal system and those areas without adequate drainage system should be provided by the government. The State government should provide drainages in the urban which are channelized in to central outlet system where it can be easily treated before final disposal for other uses.