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Comparing hybrid urbanisms in the global south : water delivery configurations in Peru and Ghana
(2023)
Urban development processes in the Global South (and North) are often described as characterized by formal and informal practices of different actors and their respective material realities. In critical urban studies, the disposition for this binary conception of formal and informal urbanisms has been discussed for many years. To a certain extent, these sometimes align rather problematically with contrasting notions of the “structural” versus the “everyday.” In this article, we explore an understanding of formal and informal urban practices (and respectively “structure” and “everyday”) as always interrelated, and we develop a methodology for a comparative examination of such hybrid urbanisms. In doing so, we address a missing link in the surging theoretical debate on comparative/southern urbanisms, which has rarely been substantiated by methodological explorations. The adapted concept of “delivery configurations” combines analyses of actor networks, material realities, rules and regulations, discourses, and heterogenous arrays of urban practices of negotiating these. However, bringing together local particularities and structural commonalities and exploring their interrelation only provides a basis for understanding case‐specific complexities. We argue that embedding the analysis in a multi‐scalar comparative framework can further its analytical rather than descriptive attributes and provide deeper insights into issues such as social inequality. To illustrate our methodological contribution, we provide first insights from a comparative research
project of water delivery in different neighbourhoods in the secondary cities of Sunyani (Ghana) and Arequipa (Peru). We highlight the practical challenges of comparing diverse urban contexts and examining the rather complex relationships between infrastructure delivery, urban development, and social inequality.
Approaches to restore post-mining areas should provide sustainable solutions for recovering biodiversity and ecosystem services in regions experiencing massive deforestation. Key components that are impacted by surface mining activities and that restoration intervention should therefore target are biodiversity attributes and ecosystem service provisioning. The consequences of restoration decisions in post-mining areas in the Afrotropical region (here Ghana) remain understudied. To this end, l assessed levels of soil properties, biodiversity and ecosystem service in a post-mining area after two decades of active forest restoration by comparing them to attributes of the surrounding dominant land-use types. l hypothesized that (i) the interventions applied to restore and manage a post-mining area improve ecosystem attributes beyond conditions observed in the alternative dominant land-use types and even reaching levels comparable to reference forest (Chapter III), (ii) soil conditions and the functional structure of tree communities drive ecosystem functions and multifunctionality, with highest multifunctionality levels in the restored and natural forests (Chapter IV), (iii) the structure of tree communities coupled with pronounced climatic seasonality support a higher number of arthropods and arthropod functional groups particularly in the wet season and in structurally heterogeneous land-use types (Chapter V), and (iv) active forest restoration enhances the levels of ecosystem service provision similar to the reference forest with possible trade-offs or synergies among individual ecosystem services across forest types (Chapter VI). Chapter I provides an introduction to deforestation, and further highlights global and national initiatives, including active forest restoration, to reverse or minimize the impacts of tropical deforestation. Chapter II details the methodological approaches applied for sampling. Chapter III focussed on soil properties in addition to below and above-ground biomass of trees. The characteristic soil attributes for the restored forest were not significantly different from those in the reference forest, except for bulk density and base saturation, but differed significantly from attributes in all other land-use types. Chapter IV focussed on how the functional structure of tree communities affects the provision of ecosystem services. For functional composition, both the leaf economic spectrum and the seed mass dimensions separated different land-use types. Chapter V addresses the research question on how post-mining restoration affects arthropod communities. Communities of ground-active arthropods differed significantly between land-use types depending on the season. By quantifying the various ecosystem attributes in the field and transforming them into ecosystem service proxies, l could primarily identify synergies with no apparent trade-off between ecosystem services across the forest land-use types (Chapter VI).
Accra and Kumasi are the two major cities in Ghana. Spatial urban expansion has been experienced in transforming different non-urban Land Use Land Cover (LULC) types into urban/built-up areas with a potential direct relationship to temperature rise in the cities. Thus, this dissertation aims to establish the relationship between urban spatial expansion and temperature in Accra and Kumasi metropolis. Multi-source datasets such as remote sensing images, different GIS vector layers, reference maps and historical temperature datasets were used for this retrospective study. This research was grouped under three components: environmental science, environmental technology, as well as environmental management and planning. From the environmental science component, LULC maps were produced for different years to assess the trend of temporal change in the various LULC classes in the two metropolises. Remote sensing indices and land surface temperature were retrieved from the remote sensing images to determine their correlations. Temperature time series was analysed by calculating temperature indices and determining temporal trends to reveal changes in air temperature to detect urban warming and its impacts. From the environmental technology, the novel random forest algorithm was utilised to classify the satellite images of both cities since previous works have utilised other traditional classifiers. The satellite imageries were used for point-based estimation of temperature to determine Urban Heat Islands (UHIs) hotspots. For environmental management and planning, spatial urban expansion techniques were utilised to ascertain trends in urban/built-up areas, especially in both cities' sub-metropolitan zones. For prescient purposes, future LULC modelling was implemented to provide insights into the proportions of the various LULC changes in 2025. The analysis identified two salient findings: increased urban/built-up areas at the expense of agricultural and forestlands throughout the study period and the positive correlation between spatial urban expansion and temperature. This indicated warming up of urban temperature in both cities. The major findings in this dissertation provided evidence of how integrated datasets and research techniques can be utilised for LULC changes to determine the relationship between spatial urban expansion and temperature at local scales. Institutions such as metropolitan assemblies and policymakers may adopt the concepts demonstrated in this work to rapidly assess urban environments and investigate the relationship between spatial urban expansion and temperature.
Wetlands have gained tremendous importance since the 1970s, both in scientific discussion and in government policy discourse. The Ramsar Convention provided some clarity in definitions of wetlands and their natural and social significance. However, the current scientific understanding of wetlands was constructed in the centers of knowledge production in the West. One of the consequences has been that local knowledge of wetlands has been obscured or ignored altogether. This research uses methods of historical archaeology, ethnography, and archival work to explore the Anlo's local knowledge of wetlands in Ghana. Anlo local knowledge includes unique forms of wetland ownership arrangements, appropriate management approaches, and so-called atsidza are used as epistemic tools. Bryan Norton's conceptual framework of adaptive management gives an important role to local experimentation and is therefore seen as a key tool for sustainable management. Adaptive management is understood as anlo-style consensus-building management to appropriately incorporate local knowledge and western science into wetland management. The concept of adaptive management is modified accordingly to integrate postcolonial studies of knowledge production and thus can also contribute to the critical analysis of the integration of local knowledge, which has tended to be underestimated or even ignored in postcolonial theories.
Designing and implementing comprehensive reclamation programme during mine operations can minimize environmental damage and decrease potential legal liability. Although Regulation (23) of the Ghana Environmental Assessment Regulation (1999) requires mine proponents to have plans for reclamation, it has been revealed most degraded mine-sites have not been reclaimed. Even in cases where some mining companies made reclamation attempts, such efforts could not produce any favourable outcome due to the failure in adopting such best reclamation management practices as slope stabilization and substrate amendment to promote vegetation establishment. Subsequently, this study was undertaken to (a) investigate the role of biological geotextiles in erosion control and (b) examine effects of organic amendments with stockpiled subsoil on tree growth and on ground vegetation cover. A waste-rock dump was graded to 33% slope and covered with a 70 cm layer of subsoil at the Amoma Pit of Newmont Ghana Gold Limited Ahafo-South project. To achieve the first objective, two kinds of biological geotextiles; Elephant-grass mat and “York” mat, were used with bare ground as control, in a randomized block design with two replications each. Mat performance against erosion was expressed as a percentage from the total sediment yield. Results showed both the Elephant-grass mat and the York mat significantly (p < 0.05) reduced soil loss by 56.6% and 97.3%, respectively, compared to the control. The mats acted as cover and protected the graded mine-slope against erosion and allowed vegetation to establish and grow through them.
Two experimental plots (24 × 15 m) were established on a different portion of the waste-rock dump for the second objective. The treatments, manure (23 t ha-1) and control (no manure), were applied, followed by seeding of Cowpea (Vigna unguiculata) and planting of potted-seedlings of five forest-tree species. The Laser-point-quadrat method was used to estimate ground vegetation cover, whereas erosion was visually observed. Diameter and height data of the planted trees were collected. The results indicated the manure had significant positive influence on tree growth and on ground vegetation cover which facilitated superior soil stabilization, compared to the control. Manure supplied sufficient N to overcome N deficiency of the subsoil and additionally increased soil organic matter that boosted microbial activity and mineralization. The findings of the study highlight the urgent need of implementing best reclamation management practices in protecting the environment and securing successful reclamation during mine operations in Ghana. The achievement of this will promote responsible mining and further contribute to Ghanaians’ acceptability of mining as a sustainable developmental land use activity, rather than as a curse.
Groundwater samples were collected from 63 community wells and boreholes within south-western part of Ashanti Region of Ghana to examine their hydrogeochemical characteristics and elemental features to better understand the sources and mobilization processes responsible for arsenic (As) enrichment as well as the suitability of the groundwater for domestic and agricultural purposes. In addition, gold mine tailings dams were also investigated to ascertain the potential source of As and other trace metals (Fe, Cu, Mn, and Zn) contamination and their dissolution into the adjoining environmental media. Further, two point-of-use As removal technologies were evaluated for their effectiveness and appropriateness. A transparent small volume flow-through cell coupled with a calibrated hand held YSI® Multi-Parameter Water Quality Meter (Model YSI 6 l0-DM/600XL) was used simultaneously to measure indicator field parameters. Anions and cations were determined simultaneously in groundwater samples using Metrohm 761 Compact IC and Dionex 4500i IC system, respectively. Total As and trace metals analysis of the groundwater samples and gold mine tailings were performed on electrothermal and flame atomic absorption spectrometry. As speciation were performed using disposable cartridges. Spatial distribution maps were produced for hydrogen ion concentration (pH), total dissolved solids (TDS), total hardness (TH), electrical conductivity (EC), sodium adsorption ratio (SAR), residual sodium carbonate (RSC) and percentage sodium (% Na) using the geographic information system (GIS). Results for the analysis of groundwater samples from 63 boreholes and wells (depth 1.5-100 m) within the study area demonstrate that the groundwater composition varies from Ca–Mg–HCO3 to Na–K–HCO3 and anoxic in nature. As concentrations ranged from <0.1-72 µg/L and <0.1-83 µg/L during the dry and the wet seasons, respectively. High As concentrations were generally present in the shallow to medium depth (20-70 m) of the aquifer along with high Fe ranging from <0.01-12.3 mg/L and <0.01-16.3 mg/L during the dry and the wet seasons, respectively and relatively low Mn (1.8-498.0 µg/L during the dry season and 2.3-583.8 µg/L during the wet season). The data demonstrated that 59 % of the groundwater samples contained no detectable level of As, 17 and 22 % of the samples gave results with levels of As above the World Health Organization (WHO) guideline value for drinking water standard of 10.0 µg/L, while 24 and 19 % of the samples showed results below the WHO drinking water guideline value during the dry and the wet seasons, respectively. Dissolved inorganic As species predominate with arsenite (As-III) as the main form. It appears that high As concentrations in the study area result from the contribution of different mechanisms which can be grouped into two namely aquifers under oxidizing conditions (aided by sulphide alteration) and aquifers under reducing conditions resulting from the reduction dissolution of arseniferous iron oxyhydroxide that exist as a dispersed phase on the sedimentary grains of the aquifer. In addition, water residence time and different water use practices also influence As concentrations in the groundwater. The results of the gold mine tailings dam revealed elemental concentrations ranging up to 1752 mg/kg As, 75.16 wt.% Fe, 1848.12 mg/kg Mn, 92.17 mg/kg Cu and 177.56 mg/kg Zn. Sulphate was the dominant anion throughout the leachate, reaching a maximum dissolved concentration of 58.43 mg/L. The As concentration levels of the mine tailings were very much higher than the Netherlands soil protection guideline value of 55 mg/kg. A higher amount of the total As content in the mine tailings registered leaching levels in a range of 0.04–0.56 %. It was observed from the study that the groundwater was predominantly soft in nature and its pH in desirable range which is within safe limits for domestic use during the dry season while 82.8 % of the analyzed groundwater samples registered a non-desirable pH range (acidic) during the wet season. The results for the spatial distribution of pH, TDS, TH, EC, SAR, % Na and RSC of the groundwater samples analyzed generally appear to be within safe limits. The two point-of-use As removal technologies evaluated shown that the Three-earthen pot system is the most effective and appropriate technology. Moving forward, it is my anticipation that the findings of this study will serve as a master piece to advice policy makers, well and borehole owners about the dangers or potential risks associated with As and other trace metals in drinking water supplies sourced from groundwater and how these can be managed. In addition, this research has identified high-risk As-contaminated areas, potential health issues, methodology for assessing As in groundwater, and a broad outline of two point-of-use As treatment options which can target risk populations to protect public health and help shape the national, regional, municipal and districts water monitoring policies.
Rural electrification has been one of the challenges faced by the government of Ghana due to extremely high cost of electricity extension to the rural areas. In order to meet up this challenge, the government of Ghana has been keen with the introduction of renewable energy programs as a solution for rural electrification. However, most of programs are also faced with the problem of being sustainable. After government and sponsors hand-over completed project to local users, they usually last only few years of their life span and are abandoned. This challenge has inspired this study to identify the potential barriers to the sustainability of rural electrification programs through technical and socio-economic evaluation of a solar PV rural electrification project in Ghana.
The approach of this study selected an on-going solar PV project (community solar system-CSS), that has been introduced on a pilot base across the whole of Ghana, which is to be adopted as a standard system for electrification solutions in rural areas in Ghana. This project was subjected to both technical and socio-economic evaluations covering 13 rural communities across the southern part of the country. Stakeholder interviews and review of literature were additional methodologies employed to gather information pertinent to the theme of the study.
The results of the study show that technically, the CSS project has simple design and operational technologies, which gives it high integration potential. However, the project faces the problem of technology misuse by the rural users and frequent failure of its components. The socio-economic barriers identified are: (1) ineffective management of the project due to a long chain of bureaucratic administrative management system, inadequate monitoring and supervision, and inconsistency in standardizing the cash flow of the project, and (2) low electricity capacity of the CSS project and other similar small scale renewable projects to meet the electricity requirements of the rural populates. These problems lead to gradual decline of users’ interest for such small scale renewable energy projects and subsequently result in project abandonment. It was concluded that small scale renewable energy programs lack the capacity to fully meet the energy requirement of rural populates; however, they are crucial as intervening solutions and play key role in rural development.
Groundwater is an important resource in Sub-Saharan Africa to supply water for domestic, industrial, mining and irrigation for agricultural purposes. In Ghana, groundwater supply program is mostly pragmatic to give people drinking water, however to ensure sustainability a long term groundwater management system is essential. One such approach is the use source protection (well protection) with the declaration and installation of protection zones. To achieve the goal of this research three hypothetical questions were asked which relates to the Availability and Vulnerability of groundwater, and the use of an analytical model to estimate source protection zones (SPZ). The regions of Adansi, Lawra, Sunyani and Sekyere West were chosen as study areas to test the hypothesis of this research with detailed investigation concentrating on Adansi area. The overall aim from the study areas was to estimate SPZ for Granite, Phyllite, Schist, Sandstone and weathered materials and give recommendations as to which activity should be permitted or otherwise within each of these zones. The available groundwater for a particular well or location was determined based on its hydraulic conductivity and specific capacity of a well. Regionalization of the available groundwater was achieved by comparing the results of the hydraulic conductivity and specific capacity with the regional structural map. To determine the vulnerability of the available groundwater, the radius of influence (ROI) for the different boreholes was determined using Sichard and Dupuits formula whilst for Source protection zones, Darcy and the volumetric equation was used. Results of hydraulic conductivity estimated from pumping test data for the five major rock types showed a trimodal distribution (E-5, E-6 and E-7 m/s). There was a general trend of decreasing hydraulic conductivity to decreasing transmissivity. Results of plots of specific capacity verses hydraulic conductivity shows that only rock types with hydraulic conductivity greater than E-5 m/s yields sustainable groundwater supply. Three aquifer types were encountered in the study areas which were pore aquifers in shallow or alluvial, regolith and fracture aquifers in bedrocks. High hydraulic conductivity from the different rock types corresponds to higher ROI. The results of hydraulic conductivity, specific capacity, ROI and SPZ are used as input parameters for the estimation of the suitability of a groundwater source. A ranking matrix was developed for easy interpretation of hydrogeological data by combining the results of the input parameters into a single score. Results from the ranking matrix were used to determine specific regulations for the various aquifers in the study areas. Within the fractured crystalline rocks with k ≥E-5m/s siting of wells should target fracture zones whilst pumping during abstraction phase can exceed 15m3/s/m. The intermediate source protection zone should be at least 150m. Conclusions from the study could be applied in other areas of Ghana and be implemented during the initial development, abstraction and groundwater policy phases of other groundwater projects.
Sustainable forest management in 1992 was recognized by the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development as the most important contribution the forestry sector can inject into any sustainable development initiative. The author’s extensive literature review established this as the premise on which Ghana‘s quest for sustainable economic growth and development strategies is being implemented. Since embarking on this endeavour, conscious efforts have been made to define essential components of forest resources against which sustainability assessments could be performed in Ghana. The conceptual framework of the present research rests on FAO’s concept on criteria and indicators as useful tools in monitoring progress towards sustainable forest management and resource-use. In addition, an empirical approach seeks to elicit answers from staffs involved in the management of natural resources as well as from other stakeholder groups in order to address four pertinent questions as; i. the specifics of forest management practices and policies that exist in Ghana‘s high forest zone, ii. interactive forces that come into play with the identification and development of national level criteria and indicators for sustainable forest management, iii. who constitute the stakeholders and lastly, iv. the extent to which progress towards sustainable forest management has been achieved and in which direction it is moving. First a quantum of forest management policy documents were reviewed out of which applicable criteria and measurable indicators, specific to the high forest zone of Ghana, were identified. Together with stakeholder's involvement, performance scores were established for indicators identified within the trio-sectors (forest ecosystem, forest communities and the economy) for sustainability assessments. Based on actual performance scores, measures of successes towards sustainable forest management operations were quantitatively performed with estimated maximum and minimum thresholds levels at which resource-use would be sustainable using the measure of forest resource-use sustainable scale-MoFRUSS. Outcomes of these measurement operations, as depicted on the scale, revealed the actual extent to which stakeholder’s initiatives, towards sustainable forest management have progressed and in which direction they are moving. The study also offers optional policy baskets for resource management interventions from which the Socio-eco-Economy bundle is the most recommendable if the environmental aspect of Ghana‘s Vision 2015 (sustainable development) is to be achieved; with improved societal well-being, improved environmental health and vitality and improved economic growth and development. The study concludes with recommendations to both policy makers and the other vested stakeholders a viable opportunity which could be harnessed to improve on management‘s performance through avoided deforestation.
The ever-increasing price of fossil diesel oil, its availability and affordability has prompted the search for cheaper sources of diesel fuel especially in rural Ghana where it could be used by small to medium scale processors. The aims of this project were to provide a readily available and renewable fuel that will serve as a diesel substitute: to power diesel engines running equipment in a shea butter extraction unit at Gbimsi, to provide a readily available fuel to serve as a kerosene substitute for lighting local lanterns, to evaluate the economic viability of the use of the bio-fuel as both diesel and kerosene substitutes. in Ghana. A pilot Jatropha plantation was established for the Gbimsi women’s group. A pilot processing unit was also established. The women were taken through series of training which included the extraction and utilization of Jatropha biofuel and soap making using the Jatropha oil. The Jatropha biofuel extracted by the women mixed with various amounts of mineral diesel oil was tested on lister-type diesel engines and in lanterns to ascertain its performance. A combination of 30% mineral diesel oil: 70% Jatropha bio-fuel was found to be appropriate for running the diesel engines. Local lanterns were found to give smokeless light and were found to last four times longer than kerosene when the Jatropha oil was used. In conclusion, the Jatropha biofuel helps in achieving energy security in communities that are otherwise inaccessible and constantly in search of regular supply of mineral fuels like diesel and kerosene. The press cake obtained after the oil extraction could be used as an organic fertilizer for improving soil fertility. Questionnaires were administered to ninety (90) shea butter producers and ten (10) exporters selected at random from the Northern, Upper East, Upper West and Greater Accra regions of Ghana in order to gather information from the producers/users as well as exporters on the Knowledge, Attitude, Beliefs and Practices (KABP) of shea butter production, consumption and export. The outcome of the study suggested that shea butter export has increased tremendously over the past decade as a result of very high demand for the product from both the local and international markets. The existing and potential export maket for shea butter were identified to be Japan, United Kingdom, Netherlands and United States of America. In addition, the shea butter produced were evaluated for the quality characteristics as well as their storability in different storage (packaging) materials. These were conducted using standard analytical methods. The minimum quality requirement of shea butter for export are : Moisture (0.01-1.0%), Free fatty acid (3.5-4.0), acid value (1.0-10.0) and the product should not be dark in colour. The best packaging material used for the export of the product are metal drums and card boxes and the only constraint faced by the exporters is the cost of the packaging materials which is considered to be expensive. The producers in the studied communities treated shea butter as their main farming activity. In an attempt to investigate the changes in chemical and physical properties of shea butter during storage, various chemical and physical quality indices were monitored. A 3 x 4 x 4 factorial experimental design with storage condition [open air (28-34°C), tropical ambient (26-31°C) and refrigeration (4-7°C) conditions], packaging material (metal cans, polyethylene bags, plastic containers and calabash), storage time (0,1,2 and 3 months) as variables was performed. Changes in the chemical and physical properties of the butter were observed during storage of the product under the different storage conditions and packaging materials. Storage caused slight increases in moisture content (0.01-0.07%), free fatty acid (3.29-4.38%), acid value 6.55-8.20%), iodine value (59.86-60.06) and peroxide value (8.24-10.64 mEq/kg) within the three months storage period. Products stored under open air (28-34°C) conditions generally significantly (p<0.05) affected the chemical properties of the butter during storage whilst those stored under ambient (26-31°C) and refrigeration (4-7°C) conditions did not have significant (p<0.05) effect on the chemical properties. No wide variations in physical properties were noted for the products during storage under the different storage conditions and packaging materials. Shea butter can be stored using all the four different packaging materials studied. However, it is highly recommended that the products are kept under tropical ambient (26-31°C) and refrigeration conditions (4-7°C) during storage. The best condition for the storage of shea butter is refrigeration which maintains the quality of the product during prolonged stored periods. Storage of the shea butter under open air (28-34°C) conditions allows for oxidative and hydrolytic rancidity rendering the products unsuitable for consumption after long storage periods.