Outbreak of Infectious Diseases and Their Implications for Environmental Health; Lessons from the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Background: Towards the end of 2019, communities in Wuhan City, China, began noticing the spread of a mysterious disease with pneumonia-like symptoms. Many of those infected had visited the Wuhan food market, which was later linked to the early outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. The disease initially spread rapidly among market stall owners, shoppers, and workers. However, as individuals without any travel history to the market began showing symptoms, it became evident that community transmission had begun. This research investigates the environmental implications of the COVID-19 outbreak. Materials and Methods: To achieve the research objective, a mixed method approach was adopted using a questionnaire survey with 36 participants drawn from five states affected by the COVID-19 outbreak. The sample was purposively selected to include only participants at the forefront of managing COVID-19 waste. Participants were drawn from various fields and organizations. The breakdown of participants (n = 36) included 24 workers and managers of waste management companies, 7 senior staff members of ministries and waste management agencies, 3 environmental health officers working in hospitals and 2 laboratory scientists. Results: The research found that outbreaks of infectious diseases act as a catalyst for increased waste generation. The study showed that COVID-19 waste is generated in three phases: home treatment and observation phase, diagnostic phase, and hospital treatment phase. The study revealed that waste management practices varied across these phases. For instance, waste generated in laboratories during diagnosis and treatment are often autoclaved and disposed of in landfills, incinerated, or subjected to open burning, while waste generated during home observation are collected and managed as domestic waste. Conclusion: The study concluded that the current infectious waste management process in Nigeria have a negative implication for the environment with the potential to degrade overall environmental quality.