Environment and Ecology Research 9(6): 426-446, 2021 http://www.hrpub.org
DOI: 10.13189/eer.2021.090609
Geospatial Assessment of Ambient Air Quality
Footprints in Relation to Urban Landuses in Nigeria
Josiah Nwabueze Obiefuna
1,*
, Ebin Okah Inah
1
, Joy William Undie Atsa
2
, Emmanuel Asuquo Etim
3
1
Department of Geography and Environmental Science, Faculty of Environmental Sciences, University of Calabar, P.M.B. 1115,
Calabar, Nigeria
2
Department of Environmental Resource Management, Faculty of Environmental Sciences, University of Calabar, P.M.B. 1115,
Calabar, Nigeria
3
Department of Geography, School of Arts and Social Sciences, Cross River State College of Education, Akamkpa, CRS, Nigeria
*
Corresponding Author: JoeObiefuna@Gmail.com
Received November 5, 2021; Revised December 8, 2021; Accepted December 29, 2021
Cite This Paper in the following Citation Styles
(a): [1] Josiah Nwabueze Obiefuna, Ebin Okah Inah, Joy William Undie Atsa, Emmanuel Asuquo Etim , "Geospatial
Assessment of Ambient Air Quality Footprints in Relation to Urban Landuses in Nigeria," Environment and Ecology
Research, Vol. 9, No. 6, pp. 426 - 446, 2021. DOI: 10.13189/eer.2021.090609.
(b): Josiah Nwabueze Obiefuna, Ebin Okah Inah, Joy William Undie Atsa, Emmanuel Asuquo Etim (2021). Geospatial
Assessment of Ambient Air Quality Footprints in Relation to Urban Landuses in Nigeria. Environment and Ecology
Research, 9(6), 426 - 446. DOI: 10.13189/eer.2021.090609.
Copyright©2021 by authors, all rights reserved. Authors agree that this article remains permanently open access under the
terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0 International License
Abstract Ambient air pollution is a global concern. It
accounts for an estimated 4.2 million deaths yearly as a
result of its ability to cause stroke, lung cancer, heart
disease and chronic respiratory diseases. It has also been
estimated that about 91 percent of the world’s population
lives in places, mostly urban centres, where air quality
levels exceed World Health Organization (WHO) limits.
Fortunately, efforts are regularly made in most developed
countries to monitor and reduce the level of air pollution
and ameliorate its negative consequences. Unfortunately,
the case is not the same in most developing countries of
which Nigeria is a member, as air pollution status is rarely
monitored religiously. This study geospatially assessed
ambient air quality footprints vis-à-vis urban land uses in
Calabar Metropolis, Nigeria. Data on emission level of CO,
NO
2
, SO
2
, H
2
S, and SPM
2.5
were collected for 6 months in
both dry and wet seasons in the year 2020, using Crowcon
Gasman, while point coordinates were collected using
Garmin GPSMap 60CSx device. Geographic Information
Systems (GIS) infrastructure was deployed to generate the
ambient air quality maps for the metropolis. Descriptive
and parametric analytical techniques were also deployed,
based on the objectives of the study. From findings, F-ratio
is significant for both season and land use for all the tested
parameters (F-ratio for season is F(1,3224)=574.516, at
p<0.05, while for land use, F(3,3224)=429.946, at p<0.05).
The interaction between seasons and land use (season *
land use) for all the parameters is also significant. It was
concluded that there is a significant variation in air quality
(CO, NO
2,
SO
2,
H
2
S, and SPM
2.5
) in Calabar Metropolis in
relation to either land use types or seasons of the year. It
was therefore recommended that there should be protection
of residential land uses to avoid encroachment by
incompatible uses that cause pollution.
Keywords Geospatial, Air Quality, Footprints, Urban
Land Uses, Environmental Pollution
1. Introduction
Every piece of land has a use to which it must be put
depending on its natural endowment and profitability. This
is termed landuse. Again, land use is the ordered
arrangement of socio-economic activities and inputs on a
certain land cover type to produce change or maintain it [1].
In a broad perspective, land use is the classification and
location of physical structures and conforming activities
within a defined region [2]. Land use provides a more
livable community to the residents and the work force in a
defined urban area. A well organised land use enhances, on
a long-term basis, the economic climate as well as green
and clean urban areas. It also preserves natural heritage,
optimizes recreation and eliminates congestion occasioned
by vehicular activities.