Principles of Environmental

Hygiene and Sanitation

Dr. Elijah Kakande

08/31/2020
 Sanitation
• Sanitation refers to the provision of facilities and services for the safe
management of human excreta from the toilet to containment and
storage and treatment onsite or conveyance, treatment and eventual
safe end use or disposal. (World Health Organization)

Hygiene
The set of human behaviors related to
maintaining health, and preventing
disease e.g. washing hands with soap at
appropriate times, the safe disposal of
child feces etc.
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 Types of Sanitation
• Basic sanitation: The management of human faeces at the household level. It
means access to a toilet or latrine.
• Onsite sanitation: The collection and treatment of waste at the place where it is
deposited.
• Food sanitation: The hygienic measures for ensuring food safety. Food hygiene is
similar to food sanitation.
• Housing sanitation: Safeguarding the home environment (the dwelling and its
immediate environment).
• Environmental sanitation: The control of environmental factors that form links in
disease transmission. Includes solid waste management, water and wastewater
treatment, industrial waste treatment and noise and pollution control.
• Ecological sanitation: the concept of recycling the nutrients from human and
animal wastes to the environment.
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 Definitions continued

Environment
• The surroundings, conditions, or influences that affect
human beings and their health at any given time.

Environmental health 
• The control of all the factors in a person’s physical
environment that have, or can have, a damaging effect on
their physical, mental or social wellbeing

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Some Facts
• Approx. 2.6 - 3 billion people living without proper sanitation.
• Over 2 million people die annually only to diarrhoea, most are under five.
• Every day approximately 6000 children die to diarrhea related diseases. 2/3 of the costs of
medical care used to nurse diarrhea related diseases.
• 300 million people in developed countries are using the same amount of water used to
flush once for their daily water requirements.
• According to WHO and UNICEF safeguarding access to clean water and sanitation to all people
would cost approximately 9 billion USD annually from 2005 to 2015 (including only building
costs).
• If you compare this cost to the cost of global armament (780 billion USD annually), to the
cost of alcohol and cigarette consumption in Europe (155 billion USD annually) or even to
the cost of ice-cream consumption in Europe (11 billion USD) it can be considered as a
rather small cost.
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 Components of Environmental health
Description Concerns
Personal hygiene Hygiene of body and clothing
Water supply Adequacy, safety (chemical, bacteriological, physical) of
water for domestic, drinking and recreational use
Human waste disposal Proper excreta disposal and liquid waste management
Solid waste management Proper application of storage, collection, disposal of waste.
Waste production and recycling
Vector control Control of mammals (such as rats) and arthropods (insects
such as flies and other creatures such as mites) that
transmit disease
Food hygiene Food safety and wholesomeness in its production, storage,
preparation, distribution and sale, until consumption
Healthful housing Physiological needs, protection against disease and
accidents, psychological and social comforts in residential
and recreational areas
Institutional hygiene Communal hygiene in schools, prisons, health facilities,
refugee camps, detention homes and settlement areas
Water pollution Sources, characteristics, impact and mitigation
Occupational hygiene Hygiene and safety in the workplace
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 Environmental health hazards
► Land and climate related hazards
► Atmospheric hazards –
► Water related hazards-
► Food Borne hazards
► Vector Borne Hazards
► Domestic Hazards
► Occupational Hazards
► Infrastructural hazards
► Others

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Land and climate related hazards
► Floods : Common in both lowland coastal and inland areas,
especially in Tropics and monsoon areas
► Storms
► Hurricanes
► Volcanic activity
► Earthquakes
► Soil erosion
► Drought

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Atmospheric hazards

Out Door/Air Pollution

►Increasing problem in many urban areas due to
road traffic

►Also associated with old, heavy and manufacturing

industries and mining wind- blown dust also a
significant problem in some areas
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 Outdoor pollution- sources

►Industry
►Cars and trucks
►Other sources such as gasoline stations, farm
equipments, fires, and outdoor pesticide use.

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Primary Outdoor Air Pollutants
Pollutants of concern are;
• Ozone (O3)
• Particulate Matter (PM)
• Carbon Monoxide (CO)
• Nitrogen Oxides (NOx)
• Sulfur Dioxide (SO2)
• Lead (Pb)

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 Water related hazards
Surface water
► In urban areas, primarily from industrial and domestic
wastes
► In rural related pollution areas with co-use of waters for
humans and livestock
Drinking water
► Especially in areas without access to treated/piped
water contamination
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Water pollution
Common pollutants of area rivers, streams, bayous, lakes, ponds,
estuaries and bays include:
fertilizers from home lawns and gardens, as well as agriculture
mercury from power plants and industrial waste
herbicides and insecticides;
oil and other chemicals from roadway runoff;
prescription medications, paint and other toxic substances disposed
down household sinks and toilets;
trash and sediment from construction sites;
faulty septic systems;
run-off from industrial sources or sewage treatment
plants; and hormone and prescription medications in
human waste
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Health risks associated with water pollution

► Drinking or washing with contaminated

water;
► Eating seafood from polluted rivers or bays;
► Eating crops watered with polluted water;
and/or
► Swimming in polluted waterways.

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 Workplace Hazards

Many jobs expose workers to environmental toxins

Exposure to
► Lead,
► solvents,
► Asbestos,
► Pesticides,
► Inks,
► Dry cleaning chemicals
► Molds and other substances in the workplace.
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Infrastructural hazards
► Traffic : Accidents and noise pollution, Growing
problem in major cities
► Industrial Accidents : Associated mainly with poorly
regulated chemical industries
► Contaminated land : Old industrial sites and waste-
dumps

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 Noise Pollution

►Traffic, trains, buses, lawn mowers, leaf blowers,

helicopters, construction noise, low-flying recreational
planes, jet skis, air-conditioning units

►Exposure to noise levels higher than 85 decibels

for long
periods of time can cause permanent hearing damage
►Lower levels have been shown to cause stress,
increase blood pressure, cause sleep disturbances
which affect sleep quality as well as mood and
performance
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 Hazards from Waste
► Municipal solid waste includes residential and
industrial waste. Solid waste is usually disposed of in
landfills or recycled
► Hazardous waste, defined as that which is toxic,
corrosive, flammable, or ignitable needs to be disposed
of properly.
► Nuclear waste raise concerns about potential radiation
exposure.
► Sources are commercial power plants, hospitals, and
non-military sources nuclear power plants
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 Socioeconomic Factors

►Income
►Ethnicity,
►Sense of community and other such factors.
►Studies have shown that certain segments of
society are disproportionately exposed to
environmental hazards, and may be more
vulnerable to such hazards than other populations

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Other Environmental Health Hazards
►Heat and Humidity
►High humidity impedes the body's ability to cool
itself.
►This is a particular problem for the elderly.
►Stress
Excessive stress is associated with decreased immune
function and an increased risk of environmentally
related illness.
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 Summary
►The big 3 are;
• physical
• chemical
• Biological

► Physical- noise, lighting, vibration, temperature, electricity

► Chemical-solvents, acids, metals, dust, pesticides
► Biological- bacteria, virus, fungus/molds

► The fourth is probably the occupational side of

environmental health
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Challenges of Environmental Health in developing
countries
• 35% of the burden of disease in developing countries is due to
environmental factors
• Waste water is treated in less than 35% of cities in the developing world
• 1/3 of solid waste generated in third world countries is not collected
• Most developing countries have no control over noise generated by traffic,
industry, public address systems, loud music
-Noise interferes with ciincentration and sleep and causes psychological stress
• Most environmental threats to health are aggravated by persistent
poverty, political conflicts, natural and man made disasters
• Environmental health hazards such as clean household water for
consumption and hygiene, poor sanitation, air pollution, vector borne
diseases, chemical injuries are not given priority
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Promoting environmental health
• A multi-sectoral approach (health, housing, energy, environment,
water, industry, planning)
• Using eco friendly health approaches such as ecosan toilets,
environmentally friendly fuel
• Focus on policies that promote population control, alleviation of
poverty, improved attitude towards nature e.t.c
• Improved consolidation and sharing of information between global
partnerships, research organizations, NGOs to influence policy
• Empowering and training of health practitioners on environmental
health

08/31/2020