Health
ultimately depends on the ability to manage successfully the interaction
between the physical, spiritual, biological and economic/social
environment. This section
examines some of the aspects of the physical environment of the
North East Health Region, which may directly or indirectly affect
health outcomes.
Climate
The
climate of the three parishes in the region is in general similar
and can be described as humid tropical.
Temperature records (30 year mean, 1951 – 1980) were available
for various stations throughout the Region.
Records for selected stations between zero and three meters
above sea level shows an annual range of 31.3oC – 18.9oC,
a matter of 12.4oC difference. The highest temperatures were recorded in St. Ann and the lowest in Portland. Temperatures
generally rise gradually from February to July or August and fall
thereafter.
Mean
monthly rainfall data by parish for the period 1951 – 1980 and
2001 – 2005 shows that the parishes experienced rain every month
of the year. The drier periods were around February and March
for all three parishes as well as for Jamaica. The parishes recorded rainfall above 400mm during
the months of July and October; the same trend was seen for Jamaica. In 2005
these were seen as the rainiest months when compared to the Month
of October for 2000. In some cases the rain persists into January
(National Meteorological Service, 2005).
Portland experiences the most rainfall in the region and also in the island
with 4692mm recorded for 2005 when compared to 3081mm in 1996.
St. Ann experiences the least rainfall of the three parishes with
2084mm an increase of 838 mm over 1996 (National Meteorological
Service, 2005). The trend seen for the parishes in the region
was comparable to that of the island.
Natural Hazards
The
Region suffers mostly from the effects of rainstorms, which most
frequently affects the parishes of St. Mary and Portland. These events can periodically have a profound
influence in the Region.
These
storms caused downstream flooding, trigger landslides and can
even cause major diversions of river courses.
The rains of January 3 – 4, 1998 caused intense flooding
to depths of 2 – 14 feet and landslides in many communities in
Portland. Severe flooding
affected the entire Port Antonio area. During March to May 1986 following a period of
very heavy and sustained rainfall, slope movements destroyed the
village of Preston in the parish of St. Mary.
These slope movements are controlled by the geological
and geomorphic framework of the area, which is characteristic
of much of the parish of St. Mary. The slope movements, which affected Preston,
are therefore likely to be repeated in other communities in St.
Mary (Ahmad et al, 1993).
Coastal
areas are also vulnerable to storm surges in major storms and
the Region has many rivers, many of which are fast flowing and
prone to flash floods.
Industrial Hazards
The
economy of St. Mary and Portland
is primarily dependent on tourism and agriculture. In St.
Ann, mining is also an important economic
activity in addition to tourism and agriculture.
Other
than mining activities, there are no major visible industries
with implications for environmental health in the Region.
While bauxite is the most important economic mineral in
St. Ann, limestone is also mined for use as
whiting and for the production of blocks.
The major potential environmental health impact from these
mining activities is the creation of dust and noise nuisance. Illegal sand mining is the primary mining activity
occurring at present in Portland. This activity has significant impact on the integrity
of drainage regimes and also in altering the sand balance on some
beaches.
Environmental Health Services
The
responsibility for Environmental Health Services in the North
East Health region is shared by the NERHA and a number of other
public, quasi-public and private agencies such as the National
Water Commission and National Solid Waste Management Authority.
Examples of these services include water quality control,
excreta and solid waste disposal, vector control and institutional
health. The local Health Departments conduct inspection and certification
of food handling, tourist establishments and swimming pools.
They also conduct training and certification of all food
handlers.
Excreta
and Solid waste disposal and Water Supply
Two
of the most important indicators of the condition of the housing
stock are the adequacy of water and sanitary services (PIOJ, 2000). These in turn have implications for the diseases
burden of the population, as inadequacy in these services can
result in the contamination of food or water which may result
in disease outbreaks.
Excreta and Solid waste disposal
National
Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA) has responsibility for
the sweeping and collection of household and domestic waste in
the Region. In 2005, throughout the region 24.5% of the population
is served by public solid waste collection system and a mere 0.6%
by private company. The remaining 74.9% of the population utilized
various forms of garbage disposal including burning and burying.
There
is no sanitary landfill, but three officially recognised dumpsites
in the North East Health Region.
There are two in St. Ann: Haddon and Tobolski and one in Portland
at Buff
Bay. Crude
tipping is practised at two of these sites, this and other undesirable
practices pollute air, water and land, fostering the proliferation
of disease-carrying vectors that directly or indirectly may have
an adverse effect on public health, sanitation personnel, and
those who scavenge the refuse to salvage saleable or other materials
considered to be of some use (Pinnock, 1998).
Region-wide
in 2001, the pit toilet was the dominant toilet facility, with
48.5% of households utilizing this type of facility. This was
however, a significant decrease from the 70.9% that was recorded
in 1991. Approximately 45.5% used water closets, the remainder
6% accounted for those that use other types of facilities, those
without and those that no data was available. (STATIN, 2001). St Mary had the highest proportion (55.9%) of
households utilising the pit latrine (Table
1).
Table 1: Percentage household
distribution by type of toilet facility in the NE Region
| |
WATER CLOSET |
PIT |
OTHER/NONE/NR |
| REGION |
45.5 |
48.5 |
6 |
| ST. ANN |
52.1 |
41.5 |
6.4 |
| ST.
MARY |
38.5 |
55.9 |
5.6 |
| PORTLAND |
42.2 |
52 |
5.8 |
Source: Statistical Institute of Jamaica, 2001.
NR:
not reported
There
are thirty-one sewage treatment plants in the region, thirty of
which are operational, with twenty-four being privately managed. A number suffer from frequent malfunctions.
St. Ann is the only parish in the region with
a modern sewer and sewage treatment and disposal system.
In
Portland, the condition
of critical coastal and marine habitat is under severe stress
due to discharge of sewage and effluent from ineffective treatment
systems along and close to the shoreline (Easton et
al, 2000)
Water Supply
The
Region has a total of 241 water supplies; The Parish Council monitors
the majority of the supplies in general and also the majority
of the untreated supplies (Table 2). The quality of the Parish Council water supply
systems is currently one of the most serious public health issues
in the Region. A number
of sources are not properly secured, and are subject to contamination. In addition the purification procedures are inconsistent,
resulting in biological contamination and unacceptable levels
of residual chlorine in some of the treated water supplies.
Table 2: Distribution of
water supplies in the NE Region by Monitoring Agency
| |
National Water Commission |
Parish Council |
Other |
| Region |
69 |
137 |
35 |
| St. Ann |
33 |
70 |
21 |
| St.
Mary |
16 |
47 |
13 |
| Portland |
20 |
20 |
1 |
Source: St. Ann, St. Mary and Portland Health Departments,
2005.
The
availability of piped water is considered to be perhaps the most
valuable indicator of sanitary conditions within a country. In 2001, fifty nine percent (42%) of households
in the NE Region reporting source were connected to a public piped
water supply system; this is a seventeen percent (17%) increase
over 1991. Seven percent (7%) received water from a private source
piped into dwelling. St. Ann reported the lowest
percentages in of the population with piped and standpipe water
supply from public source (Table).
Catchments and other sources was
an important source of water for the proportion of the population
not receiving water from a piped source (STATIN, 2001).
Table 3: Percentage household
distribution by source of water supply in the NE Region
| |
Public Piped Supply |
Public Standpipe or Tank |
OTHER/NR |
| REGION |
45.2 |
14 |
40.8 |
| ST. ANN |
41 |
11 |
48 |
| ST.
MARY |
48.3 |
16 |
36 |
| PORTLAND |
48 |
16.8 |
35 |
Source: Statistical Institute of Jamaica, 2001.
NR- not reported
Vector Control
Vectors
are arthropods capable of transmitting pathogens. These can be
found throughout the region and include rats, mosquitoes, roaches,
flies and other arthropods. The continuing increase in world-wide
travel has led to an increased threats and risk factors that are
of public health concern. Foreign travel often gives rise to problems
associated with food safety, water safety, vector borne infections
and exposure to certain foreign communicable diseases and occupational
hazards. Ocho Rios as a renowned tourist destination has a cruise
ship port that brings in thousands of visitors annually. A small
port located in Portland
also brings in visitors from time to time.
The management of port of entry
is critical to prevent transmission of diseases spread by insects
and rodents. The local health department conduct
monitoring and treatment of breeding sites and implement control
programmes in collaboration with communities.
References
1.
Ahmad, R., Carby, B.E., and Saunders, P.H.
The impact of slope movements on a rural community: lessons
from Jamaica. In:
Telford, T. (ed), Natural Disasters,
1993, 447 – 460.
2.
National Meteorological Service, Kingston,
Jamaica,
January 2005.
3.
The Planning Institute
of Jamaica and the Statistical Institute of Jamaica.
Jamaica
Survey of Living Conditions: Report 2001.
4.
Pinnock, M. Solid Waste:Its
Implications for Health. In: Thomas-Hope, E (ed), Solid Waste Management: Critical Issues in
Developing Countries, 1998, 44 – 56.
5.
The Statistical Institute
of Jamaica.
Population Census 2001: Parish of Portland
6.
The Statistical Institute
of Jamaica.
Population Census 2001: Parish of St.
Ann
7.
The Statistical Institute
of Jamaica.
Population Census 2001: Parish of St. Mary
8.
Easton, C., Massa,
A. K. and Spence, T. 2000. A Sustainable Development Profile for
the Parish of Portland.