Urban growth and environmental degradation in the municipality of Kalamu, Kinshasa

Abstract

The aim of this study is to improve the living conditions of the people of Kinshasa, in particular those of the commune of Kalamu, by providing a space management plan for its urban environment. The city of Kinshasa is experiencing demographic growth. The latter is felt in all the city's communes in general, and particularly in the commune of Kalamu, due to the availability of land and the potential for tourism and recreation. This phenomenon has given rise to an urban dynamic characterized by an increase in the built-up area, densification of the urban fabric and occupation of marshland. This has led to the development of precarious settlements and environmental repercussions (air, water and soil pollution).Visits, physico-chemical analyses of the Funa river, surveys of the population and comparison of satellite images revealed a clear regression and/or disappearance of green spaces due to habitat pressure. The physico-chemical characterization of the waters of the Funa in the Kalamu commune revealed that they are high in dissolved solids (TDS 306 mg/L), electrical conductivity (455 µS/cm), with an average pH of 6.33. Average nitrate, sulfate and orthophosphate levels were 394.2 mg/L, 16.7 mg/L and 29.1 mg/L respectively. Kawaya J.M. & al. / Larhyss Journal, 29 (2017), 121-136 122. These values are very worrying, as they exceed WHO standards, representing a definite risk to public health and the environment. Pollution is significant, as the waters of the River Funa also receive effluent, household waste and other uncontrolled dumps. A local development plan needs to be put in place here, and the public authorities need to get involved in the comprehensive management of effluents and other waste, in order to protect freshwater resources, a national heritage in decline.