Global Journal of Earth and Environmental Science
Volume 10(1), pages 8-18, February 2025
Article Number: 4722ED252
ISSN: 2636-6002
https://doi.org/10.31248/GJEES2024.174
https://integrityresjournals.org/journal/GJEES
Full Length Research
Comparative studies of changing temperatures on
buildings structures in Asaba and Okwe
OGBOGO, Rosemary
1
, OJOH, C. Oghenekome
2
and BOYITIE, Paul Odiyin
3
*
1
Department of Estate Management, Dennis Osadebay University, Asaba, Delta State, Nigeria.
2
Department of Urban and Regional Planning, Dennis Osadebay University, Asaba, Delta State, Nigeria.
3
Department of Meteorology and Climate Change, Nigeria Maritime University, Okerenkoko, Delta State, Nigeria.
*Corresponding author. Email: paul.boyitie@nmu.edu.ng
Copyright © 2025 Ogbogo et al. This article remains permanently open access under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0,
which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Received 11th December 2024; Accepted 6th February 2025
ABSTRACT: This study investigates the impact of changing temperatures on building structures in Asaba and Okwe,
Nigeria. Utilizing primary data from temperature readings and secondary meteorological records spanning 30 years, the
study reveals a clear trend of rising temperatures in both areas, with Asaba experiencing consistently higher temperatures
than Okwe, largely due to the urban heat island effect. The research highlights the vulnerability of building materials,
particularly zinc roofs and walls, to temperature-induced stresses such as thermal expansion and contraction, leading to
cracks and structural degradation. Statistical analysis, including regression and ANOVA tests, demonstrates a moderate
positive relationship between temperature fluctuations and the extent of building damage. These results highlight how
urgently better building techniques, environmentally friendly urban design, and climate-adaptive measures are needed.
To ensure long-term resilience and sustainability, this study offers Asaba and Okwe's urban planners and policymakers
some important insights on how to effectively adapt to the difficulties presented by urbanisation and climate change.
Keywords: Building structure, Nigeria, Okwe, structure integrity, temperatures.
INTRODUCTION
Climate change research is a complex and contentious
field due to system complexities and modelling
uncertainties (Malla et al., 2022). Future changes to
weather patterns include warmer and drier summers,
milder and wetter winters, rising sea levels, and extreme
events such as increased hot days (Met Office, 2021),
more intense periods of rain, and greater frequency of
storms. Buildings are systemic structures with many
interacting systems and subsystems. In Nigeria, many
structural failures have occurred in recent years, almost in
all areas of the built environment owing to the vagaries of
weather and climate (Ede, 2010; Akinyemi et al., 2016).
Regular one-day non-stop rainfall held the entire Lagos
State in Nigeria to a standstill due to failed drainages and
flooded-potholed roads (Kalu, 2024). Of the 65 cases of
building collapse around Lagos and its environs, 384
human casualties were reported, while the number of
injured was numerous (Windapo and Rotimi, 2012; Aliyu,
2024). Climate factors, including temperature, wind speed,
solar radiation, and daylight hours, significantly influence
building energy performance in the Nigerian built
environment (Bett and Thornton, 2015).
Building performance and structures can be influenced
in direct and indirect ways, and to make an effective
estimation of the impact of climate on overall energy
(Ahmadian et al., 2023), the selection of climate element
collection should be based on the combined integrated
impacts of the climatic elements (Radhi, 2008; Lutz et al.,
2016). The lifecycle cost of a building is about 60 to 85
percent, with design and construction accounting for five
to ten percent (Lewis et al., 2011; Sanodiya and Rathore,
2024). Nigerian buildings often lack climate adjustment,