CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background to the Study
Environmental degradation in Nigeria can be attributed to the reckless use of its rich natural resources as a result of poverty, population growth, illiteracy, greed, corruption, ignorance amongst others. Some of the manifestation of this rate of degradation in the society includes problems emanating from improper waste disposal, urban decay, erosion, flooding, prevalence of pest and diseases, desertification, deforestation, drought, conflict and others. Thus, these various environmental problems pose negative impact on the health and wellbeing of the human populace and other living organisms in the society. However, for the purpose of this study, European Scientific Journal July 2017 the health, social and psychological impact on women would be of great priority.
Women are said to be the hardest hit by the various negative aftermath of environmental degradation (natural disasters) because they are considered as more vulnerable than their male counterpart in the society. Also, their physiological make up which is more fragile than those of males, is one of the reasons attributed for women being considered as a vulnerable group to the aftermath of environmental disasters or issues. Hence, they tend to be more susceptible to the hazardous effects of environmental pollution especially through the use of persistent organic pollutant. These pollutants can enter women fragile body tissues and breastmilk through which they pass onto infants, causing reproductive and immunological disorders (Ndaruzaniye, 2013).
Although United Nations Environmental Program UNEP (2010) asserted that women are not just vulnerable because they are naturally weaker but their vulnerability can be explained because the conditions in the environment faced by men and women are different due to their gender. Like in developing countries, women especially the rural women form the largest group of the world poorest and most vulnerable people due to their outstanding duty as primary providers of food, water, fuel for their families thereby making them susceptible to the harsh reality of climate change and other environmental crisis. Thus, their livelihood is negatively affected as their income, food source, water and so on are usually lost. Also, their male counterpart contributes to the women woes in the environment as they cut down trees and pollute nearby water source without replacing the trees and finding solutions to the polluted water or locate alternate for their women to harvest from. These scenarios increase the time women spend searching for wood fuel and harvesting water instead of engaging in other more profitable activities in the society.
Consequently, other reasons women are seen as vulnerable to the negative consequences of environmental degradation are that they tend to have limited access to physical, financial, human, social and natural capital or assets; lack of opportunity to have or possess adequate knowledge and awareness on environmental issues; climate change tend to affect the education of the girl child especially due to the fact that they are more likely to drop out of school and help out in the family (Ndaruzaniye, 2019).
They are more susceptible to indoors air pollutants as they spend more time their cooking, cleaning and generally taking care of the family thereby making them exposed to the various pollutants found in the indoor environment. Meanwhile, women are not only seen as victims of environmental degradation but also have a pertinent role to play in building active responses to direct environmental issues faced in the society. Accordingly, some of the pivotal roles women engage in protecting and conserving the environment European Scientific Journal July 2017 starts from the home scene. As Okukpon (2008) highlighted, women are the hub of the home in both rural and urban communities as they cater and
