ENVIRONMENTAL SANITATION AND AWARENESS

ENVIRONMENTAL SANITATION AND AWARENESS

Introduction

Environmental sanitation aims to protect and promote human health and well-being by providing a clean environment and breaking the cycle of disease. Environmental sanitation is more than just building latrines; it covers a wider scope. It takes a broader glance at the community and addresses different but interconnected aspects, including human and animal excreta management, solid waste management, vector control, domestic wastewater management and storm water drainage.

What is Environment?

The environment is the natural world, as a whole or in a particular geographical area, especially as affected by human activity.

What is Sanitation?

Sanitation refers to public health conditions which include clean drinking water, and adequate treatment and disposal of human excreta and sewage. Preventing human contact with feces is part of sanitation, as is hand washing with soap.

Sanitation system aims to protect human health by providing a clean environment that will stop the transmission of disease, especially through the fecal-oral route. Example, diarrhea, a main cause of malnutrion and stunted growth in children, can be reduced through adequate sanitation. There are many other diseases which are easily transmitted in communities that have low levels of sanitation, such as ascariasis (a type of intestinal worm infection, or helminthiasis), cholera, hepatitis, polio, schistosomiasis and trachoma, to name just a few.

Sanitation includes all of these technical and non-technical systems: excreta management systems, waste managements (wastewater treatment plants), solid waste management system, as well as drainage systems for rainwater (also called storm water drainage).

Sanitation covers both personal hygiene practice and public hygiene practice. Personal hygiene practice includes handling menstrual waste, cleaning of household toilets, and managing household garbage. Public hygiene practice or public sanitation practice include: garbage collection, transfer and treatment (municipal solid waste management); cleaning of drainage, streets, school environment, public spaces, sewers; community or public toilet; operating sewage treatment plants, etc. Workers who provide this services are called sanitation workers.

Components of Environmental Sanitation

1. Personal hygiene: This is hygiene of the body.
2. Water supply: Safe and clean water for domestic use, drinking and recreational activities.
3. Human waste disposal: Proper disposal of excreta, and liquid waste management.
4. Solid waste management: Proper collection, storage and disposal of solid waste also solid waste recycling.
5. Vector control: Control of rodents such as rats, and arthropods such as flies and mites that transmit diseases.
6. Food hygiene: Food safety and cleanliness from storage, processing, distribution, sales and consumption.
7. Institutional hygiene: Practice of good hygiene in schools, prisons, health facilities, refugee camps, public and private institutions, etc.
8. Water pollution: Avoidance of stagnant water, maintenance of clean sources of water, disinfection of drainages or stagnant water, clean drainages or water ways, avoidance of waste dumping into water ways, etc.
9. Occupational hygiene: Hygiene at place of work.

Aim and objectives of Environmental Sanitation

The overall purpose of sanitation is to provide a healthy living environment for everyone, to protect the natural resources (such as surface water, ground water, soil, etc) and to provide safety lifestyle for dwellers.

Importance of Environmental Sanitation

1. It stops the transmission of diseases.
2. Environmental Sanitation promotes good hygiene practice for better, safe and quality lifestyle.
3. It creates pleasant and safe environment.
4. It breaks the cycle of disease.
5. It promotes healthy individual.
6. It Increases, promotes and prolongs life.

Conclusion

In conclusion, environmental hygiene is an essential aspect of health, and also the very best way of protecting yourself, your family and everyone in the community from diseases. Most diseases can be prevented with good environmental hygiene practice - even the diseases without cure.

References

• Cillings English Dictionary 2023. Environmental Definition and meaning 
• Suphie budge, Argaw Ambule and Paul Hutchins 2023. Environmental sanitation and the evolution of water.
• Science direct topic 2021. Arth and planetary science/environmental Sanitation