Particulate pollution, house location, gravel road, and associated respiratory health effects among the residents of Rehoboth metropolis, Namibia

Abstract

Elsewhere, the risk of poor respiratory health outcomes due to particulate pollution among urban dwellers has been well documented. However, there is limited evidence to link urban air quality to population health among residents of Rehoboth metropolis, Namibians where the dominance of gravel roads in residential areas threaten dust pollution on daily basis. The study was conducted to establish the association between particulate pollution, house location and presence of gravel roads and the prevalence of self-reported respiratory ailments among residents of Rehoboth metropolis, Namibia. Data on residents’ self-reported respiratory ailments, house location and environmental exposure were collected using structured questionnaires, while particulate dust levels were monitored using the ASTM D1739 reference method. The study found high particulate concentration and high self-reported respiratory ailments (> 66%) in Rehoboth metropolis. While respondents’ location was associated with respiratory symptoms that include usual cough (p-value=0.009) and usual phlegm (p-value=0.04); distance of respondents’ houses to gravel road location were not significantly associated with the self-reported respiratory ailments. However, high vehicle traffics on the gravel roads near homes was significantly associated with episode of cough, phlegm, and breathlessness (p-value=0.01). This study revealed that self-reported respiratory ailments, namely cough, phlegm and breathlessness are associated with high vehicle traffics on the gravel roads near homes. This may be due to increased dust pollution emanating from the high vehicle traffics on the gravel roads and suggests residents’ allergic reactions to dust. Thus, it is recommended that as a short term mitigation measure, the town council should frequently sprinkle water on the gravel road to suppress dust emissions from vehicle traffics flow while long term control measure should include asphalting the road.

Keywords: particulate, pollution, self-report, respiratory health, Rehoboth