CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background of the study
Poverty is a social phenomenon that has eaten deep
into the fabrics of every society ranging from its political, social and
economic organizations. It is therefore a social problem that has affected the productive
sector of every economy such as agricultural and industrial sector to mention
but a few. According to Aluk (2011) poverty is defined as lack of command over
basic consumption needs such as clothing, food and shelter. World Band (2005),
define poverty as inability to attain a minimum standard of living.
Environmental degradation on the other hand is defined as how the environment
is affected through certain forces such as flood, deforestation, overgrazing,
and the use of harmful chemicals as well as environmental pollution in the
environment.
Poverty is most pervasive in rural than urban areas.
This assessment can be justified by the examination of the level of
concentration of economic institutions and activities. It is indisputable that
economic institutions are only concentrated in urban centres, creating more opportunities
for job, good living and what can be obtained in the rural areas (Ahmed, 2010).
When comparative analysis of the level of income as
it affects the quality of life and standard of living of both rural and urban settlements
is made, a variation of the difference in the social relationship in art of
production, allocation of scarce resources and distribution, what comes to mind
is the question of those who benefit more as a wide gap exist among the rural
and urban dwellers as it affects the circulation and control of goods and
services and of prices (Maxwell, 2006).
Many studies have established that there exists a
strong social relationship between poverty and environmental degradation. This
is because factors like level of income, quality and prices of goods and services
affects the living standard of people in rural areas thereby affecting their
activities towards the environment. Also, most of the poor people particularly
in developing countries rely on natural resources for their livelihood, and
these people are very vulnerable to causing environmental problems.
Apa local government area is predominantly a rural
based society with 75% of her population depending on agriculture as their main
occupation. Base on the agrarian nature of her economy, crops, and tubers are
highly produced with more than half percent of the population of women and
children constituting the chunk of the labour force. For some time now efforts
have been made by the government, corporate bodies and irrigation organizations
to curb the incidence of environmental degradation in the area through
deliberate policies and programmes aimed at poverty alleviation among the rural
people yet, poverty remain the major constrain militating against the
development of the rural people. It is for this reason that this study is
design to investigate the effects of poverty on environmental degradation with
reference to Apa local government area of Benue State.
Statement of
the Problem
Nwagbara, (2012) in his assessment of poverty,
environmental degradation and sustainable development assets that the poor have
traditionally taken the brunt of the blame for causing society’s many problems.
Anijah-Obi (2001), observes that poverty, a
deplorable state of human welfare, is closely linked to environmental
degradation. The poor are both victims and agents of environmental damage.
Poverty may be created by negative and unjust social conditions such as
structural inequality. Those who are poor and hungry will often destroy their immediate
environments in order to survive. They are responsible for cultivating tired
soil and cutting down forests. They throw waste into gutters and streams,
because they lack the basic necessities of life. They lack resources and
materials necessary for living within a minimum standard conducive to human
dignity and well-being.
In Apa local government, the poor depend extensively
on firewood for cooking which requires the falling of trees without
replacement.
There are two major streams in the local government that serves as
a source of both industrial and domestic water supply to its inhabitants this are
the Ochi-Chi and Okpeje streams. Activities of fishing with chemicals,
dumping of refuse in stream and water channels, open deification, and mining of
the soil for lime stone and granite constitute some of the major environmental
problems propel by human activities. All this in no small measure have
continued to cause the outbreak of cholera disease and other health challenges
of its inhabitants which mostly affect the poor due to their inability to find
alternative to both source of water that is already contaminated and
environmental pollution caused by indiscriminate waste disposal.
Hence, the need for this study to examine the
effects of poverty on environmental degradation in Apa local government area of
Benue State.
Research
Questions
The following research questions are advanced to
guide this study:
1. How does poverty cause environmental degradation?
2. What are the effects of poverty on environmental
degradation in Apa local government?
3. What measures can be employed to ameliorate the
problem of poverty on environmental degradation in Apa local government?
Objectives of
the Study
The general objective of this study is to examine
the effects of poverty on environmental degradation in Apa local government
area of Benue State. The specific objectives are to;
1. Ascertain how poverty cause environmental degradation
2. Find out the effects of poverty on environmental
degradation in Apa local government
3. Suggest measures that can be employed to ameliorate
the problem of poverty on environmental degradation in Apa local
government.
Significance of
the Study
This study will be significant in the following
ways; firsts and foremost, the
findings of this study will serve as a policy document to the government,
policy makers and environmentalist in curbing the effects of environmental
degradation on rural poor dwellers.
Secondly, it will be of importance to the academic
environment as it can be use as a reference point in giving out information on
poverty and environmental issues in the society.
Thirdly, the study will add to the already existing
body of literatures in the area of poverty and environmental degradation.
Last but not the least, the study will aid further
researchers who intend to carryout similar studies on the same topic to have a background
situation of what they intend to study.
Research
Assumptions
The following research assumptions are to guide this
study:
Ho. There is no significant relationship between
poverty on environmental degradation in Apa local government.
Scope of the
Study
The scope of this study shall be delimitated to
Ogantelle towns of Apa local government where there are higher levels of
farming and degredation. The major areas of Apa such as, Auke, Iga-Okpaya,
Oiji, Igoro, Ikobi, Ojope, Ogantele, Oba, Edikwu 1 and Edikwu II ward were covered
with a time span ranging from 2010 to 2013.
Definition
of Terms
Poverty: According to Sachs (2009), poverty can be defined
in terms of three distinguishable degrees. These are: Extreme poverty, moderate
poverty and relative poverty. Extreme poverty means the household cannot meet
basic needs for survival. Moderate poverty on the other hand generally refers
to conditions of life in which basic needs are met, but just at the base level
while, relative poverty is construed as a household income level below a given
proportion of average national income. Put differently, poverty can be defined
as the inability of one to provide for his or her basic needs of life such as food,
clothing and sheathe.
Environmental Degradation:
Environmental degradation implies a gradual reduction in environmental quality
to the extent that its ability to meet the environmental needs of the present
generation is reduced and that of the future generation is in jeopardy.
According to Fritsch et al. (1990), environmental degradation is defined as a
man-made environmental change having negative impact on human society. It can also
be defined as processes induced by human behaviour and activities (sometimes
combined with natural hazards) that damage the natural resource base or
adversely alter natural processes or ecosystems.
