Socio-Economic and Environmental Impacts of Poor Liquid Waste Management in the Municipality of Seme-Podji in Southeast Benin

Abstract

Poor practices in the disposal of wastewater, excreta, and rainwater constitute a major environmental problem. The methodological approach used consisted first of data collection, then data processing, and finally analysis of the results. The data were processed using Excel, SPSS, and ArcView software. The disposal method is autonomous (individual), with significant gaps in collective systems. Household liquid waste is very often discharged directly into the yard, into the street (42%), or into gutters (often designed for rainwater). The population disposes of sewage through ventilated pit latrines (45% of respondents), unventilated pit latrines (32%), suspended latrines (7%), and flush toilets (16%). The environmental impacts of poor liquid waste management include ecosystem degradation (45% of respondents), groundwater and surface water pollution (36%), and inadequate drainage and flooding (19%). Pollution threatens the biodiversity of wetlands (marshes, lagoons) and receiving water bodies (Lake Nokoué), which can affect local flora and fauna. The types of diseases linked to poor liquid waste management are malaria (39% of respondents), diarrheal diseases (23%), acute respiratory infections (16%), typhoid fever (10%), dermatoses (7%), and anemia (5%).