Environmental sanitation

Dr Messmate Gemeay

Objectives

After completion of this session the students

should be able to:
Discuss health threats can arise from a
number of indoor environmental factors
Mention different types of sanitation
Correlate between Sanitation and public
health
Discuss Impacts of solid waste on health

Outlines
Housing

health threats can arise from a number of

indoor environmental factors
different types of sanitation
Sanitation and public health
Impacts of solid waste on health

Introduction
It

is estimated that up to 5 million

people die each year from
preventable water-borne disease,
as a result of inadequate
sanitation and hygiene practices.

The environmental health

administration directs
environmental sanitation, food
sanitation, milk and meat
sanitation, water and waste
disposal programs in various
areas, and is deeply involved in the
daily life of prefectural citizens.

 With

changes in socio-economic
conditions, there has been a trend
toward increased household and
industrial waste.
The situation is becoming difficult to
cope with using the present
incineration facilities and landfills. For
these reasons, a resource recovery
and recycling policy is being promoted
as an important measure.

Sanitation

is the hygienic means of preventing

human contact from the hazards of wastes
to promote health

Housing

Housing and the indoor environment can

therefore have significant effects on
physical, mental and social health and
wellbeing. Furthermore, an unsafe
household can cause unintentional injuries
such as falls, drowning, poisoning, fires
and choking.

Health threats can arise from a

number of indoor environmental
factors
such as indoor air quality (polluted for
example by use of solid fuels),noise
humidity and mould growth, temperature,
presence of hazardous substances, for
example asbestos, lead, radon and
volatile organic compounds (VOC)
hygiene and sanitation, and overcrowding.

Some examples of substandard

housing are:
inadequate sanitation
lack of water
lack of heating
inappropriate ventilation
the presence of insects or vermin
structural hazards
faulty weather protection
fire hazards

The term "sanitation" can be applied to

a specific aspect, concept, location, or
strategy, such as:

Basic sanitation
Refers to the management of human feces
at the household level.

 On-site

sanitation - the
collection and treatment of waste
is done where it is deposited.
Examples are the use of pit
latrines(w. c), septic tanks
Food sanitation
Refers to the hygienic measures
for ensuring food safety.

Environmental sanitation
The control of environmental factors that form
links in disease transmission.
Subsets of this category are solid waste
management, water and wastewater treatment,
industrial waste treatment and noise and
pollution control.
Ecological sanitation
a concept and an approach of recycling to nature
the nutrients from human and animal wastes.

Water and health are related in a

number of ways

Firstly

There is the direct impact of

consuming contaminated water
this is known as 'waterborne
disease' and includes diarrhea ,
typhoid, viral hepatitis A, cholera,
dysentery.

Secondly,
There

is the effect of inadequate

quantities of water being available for
personal hygiene
or the of un-hygienic practices which
contaminate water and cause diseases.

Cont.
Without

enough water, skin and eye

infections (including trachoma) are
easily spread, as are the faecaloral
diseases. These diseases are known
as 'water-washed diseases'.

Thirdly
There

are 'water based diseases'

and "water-related vector-borne
diseases" in which the aquatic
environment provides an essential
habitat for the mosquito vectors
and intermediate snail hosts of
parasites that cause human
diseases.

Fourthly
There is chemically contaminated water
such as water containing excessive
amounts of arsenic or floride
Some contaminants are added to
drinking water as a result of natural
processes and some due to human
activities such as industry and mining.

Water supply and sanitation in Saudi

Arabia

Water supply and sanitation in

Saudi Arabia differs from most other
countries in three significant aspects.
First
It relies almost exclusively on two
sources that are absent in most other
countries:
1-desalination
2-groundwater.

Second
Given the substantial oil wealth of the
country, water is provided almost for
free.
Third
There is no separation between
institutions in charge of
policy and regulation on the one hand,
and those in charge of
providing services on the other.

Some definitions
Garbage
Garbage is putrescible animal and
vegetable wastes resulting from
the handling, storage, sale,
preparation, cooking, and serving

Recyclable material
Recyclable material is solid waste that is
processed and returned to the economic
mainstream in the form of raw materials or
products, as determined by the State of
Nevada Environmental Commission.
Such as Newspaper; Aluminum; Yard debris
(material generated from plants, including
trees, bushes, sod, and grass clippings on
residential or business

Hazardous waste
Hazardous waste is a waste
with properties that make it
dangerous or potentially
harmful to human health or the
environment.

Wastes that can cause health

problems are
human and animal feces, solid wastes
domestic wastewater (sewage, sullage,
greywater)
industrial wastes, and agricultural
wastes
and now appliances in disuse wastes like
cars, computers, household appliances,
electronic appliances(bulbs, regulators)

 Types

of health hazards
Hazards can be either
physical
microbiological
biological or chemical agents
of disease.

Impacts of solid waste on health

The group at risk from the unscientific
disposal of solid waste include
the population in areas where there is
no proper waste disposal method,
especially the pre-school children
waste workers;
workers in facilities producing toxic
and infectious material..

Other high-risk group include

population living close to a waste
dump and those, whose water supply
has become contaminated either due to
waste dumping or leakage from landfill
sites.
Uncollected solid waste also increases
risk of injury, and infection

 Occupational

hazards associated
with waste handling
Infections

Skin and blood infections resulting from

direct contact with waste, and from
infected wounds.
Eye and respiratory infections resulting
from exposure to infected dust, especially
during landfill operations.
Different diseases that results from the
bites of animals feeding on the waste.
Intestinal infections that are transmitted by
flies feeding on the waste.

Chronic diseases
Incineration operators are at risk of chronic
respiratory diseases, including cancers resulting
from exposure to dust and hazardous
compounds.
Accidents
Bone and muscle disorders resulting from the
handling of heavy containers.
Infecting wounds resulting from contact with
sharp objects.Poisoning and chemical burns
resulting from contact with small amounts of
hazardous chemical waste mixed with general
waste.
Burns and other injuries resulting from
occupational accidents at waste disposal sites or
from methane gas explosion at landfill sites.

Vector control
The principal objective of vector
control is:
The reduction of malaria morbidity and
mortality by reducing the levels of
transmission.
WHO recommends a systematic approach
to vector control based on evidence and
knowledge of the local situation. This
approach is called Integrated vector
management (IVM).

View the report of a WHO Study Group

on , that reviews the current vector
control strategies and their
effectiveness in various operational and
eco-epidemiological settings and
identified challenges for implementation
in different health systems

Indoor air pollution

can

be defined as chemical, physical, or

biological contaminants in the
breathable air inside a habitable
structure or conveyance, including
workplaces, schools, offices, homes,
and vehicles (the indoor environment).

Indoor residual spraying (IRS)

Indoor residual spraying remains a
valuable intervention in malaria control
when the following conditions are met:
High percentage of the structures in an
operational area have adequate sprayable
surfaces, and can be expected to be well
sprayed

 Majority

of the vector population is

endophilic, i.e. rests indoors;
Vector is susceptible to the
insecticide in use.The main
purpose of indoor residual
spraying is to reduce transmission
by reducing the survival of malaria
vectors entering houses or
sleeping units.