ABSTRACT
Visual environmental problem is one form of pollution capable of causing severe damage to human, societal and environmental wellbeing as well as being a potential threat to sustainable development. It is one of the unpleasant outcomes of uncontrolled development. The study therefore assesses the Visual Environmental Quality (VEQ) of Ore, Ondo State.
Stratified and simple random techniques provided the sampling framework used in the administration of semi-structure questionnaires to 399 respondents across the town. Data were analyzed and presentation using descriptive statistics and five-point Likert scale while analysis of variance (ANOVA), students’ T-Tests and factor analysis were deployed in hypotheses testing at 95% confidence level.
The results show that untarred road, prevalence of makeshift structures and street littering were ranked 1st, 2nd and 3rd based on their Likert Weighted Mean Square (WMS) of 4.28, 4.1 and 4.09 as most contributing factors to poor VEQ in Ore Town. Also, indiscriminate waste disposal and poor hygiene/ filthiness each with WMS of 4.04 occupied the 4th position while absence of drainages, poor evacuation of waste and presence of old buildings, with WMS of 3.97, 3.93 and 3.92 were ranked 5th, 6th and 7th respectively. The 8th, 9th and 10th most contributing factors to poor VEQ in Ore Town include crowded buildings (3.91), narrow road network (3.88) and absence of walkway (3.87). Similarly, lack of basic amenities, lack of awareness creation and poor development control/enforcement of standards were ranked 1st, 2nd and 3rd respectively as the most serious underlying factors responsible for negative visual appearance in the study area based on the WMS of 4.47, 4.4 and 4.39 in that order. Further, poverty, government policies and poor hygiene with WMS of 4.34, 4.31 and 4.28 assumed the 4th, 5th and 6th positions in that order. Correspondingly, unplanned migration, ignorance on the part of residents and economic needs were ranked 7th, 8th and 9th respectively based on their WMS of 3.83, 3.33 and 3.19 in that order. The study then established that there is significant variation in 46 out of 50 aesthetic variables/factors of visual environmental quality with exception of potholes on road, street littering, loitering of streets by animals, pest infestation, communication masts, and flooding. Findings also indicated that all the underlying factors responsible for the visual environmental problems in Ore Town were statistically significant. About 58.4% of the combined effects of 14 factors could possibly explain the variations in visual environmental problems in Ore Town with 41.6% error margin.
It was concluded that Visual Environmental Quality (VEQ) is one of the many socio-economic, political, cultural and ecological challenges confronting many urban areas especially in sub-Saharan Africa including Nigeria. It is recommended that attitudes, policies, programmes and interventions need not only to be adequately prioritized but properly articulated and tailored in desirable direction to achieve a serene and aesthetically pleasing environments for the family, society and nation in general.
