Rising infertility in Kaduna village

Rido is a sparsely populated rural settlement located in Chikun local government area of Kaduna state. The deplorable state of road networks has worsened  communications, and reduced the socio-economic status of the village, while lack of safe drinking water in the area, had increased the chances of contacting water related  diseases.With the establishment of the […]

Rido is a sparsely populated rural settlement located in Chikun local government area of Kaduna state. The deplorable state of road networks has worsened  communications, and reduced the socio-economic status of the village, while lack of safe drinking water in the area, had increased the chances of contacting water related  diseases.
With the establishment of the Kaduna Refining & Petrochemical Company (KRPC) Limited close to the village over thirty years ago, it was expected that that the problems of infrastructure and social services facing the area, would be addressed at least by the company  in the context of its corporate social responsibilities, but nothing was done commensurate with the expectations of the people. The Kaduna Refinery occupies  an area of 2.89 Square Kilometers and has an installed capacity of 110 barrels per stream day (BPSD). Products from the Refinery according to its website include fuels for use as Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), Automotive Gas Oil (AGO) or Diesel oil, Kerosene, Fuel Oil, Sulphur and those from the lubricating oils complex are Base Oils, Asphalt (Bitumen) and Waxes. The refinery flares waste gases and chemicals, and releases emissions in the processes.
Noise and heat are the most apparent undesirable effects of flare operations, and so  flares are usually located away from populated areas, or are sufficiently isolated, thus minimizing their effects on populations. In the case of Rido, waste substances resulting from flares by the KRPC often settle in river, food  items and plants due to the proximity of the community.  
Rebecca Yakubu is an indigene of Rido and lives there with her husband and children. She said the village is facing an  acute deficit of safe water,  and people rely on the  nearby stream and wells, to satisfy their domestic needs. She said the KRPC had recently drilled about five   bore-holes to serve the community,  including one very close to her house,  but three of the boreholes have dried up,  because they were sited outside water-bearing formations.
Yusuf Auta corroborated what Yakubu said,  adding  “even the stream and well water could not be safe for consumption because of pollution resulting from waste and gases emitted from the refinery.” He said there were no road networks in the village,  and that community members had to clear the bush path and dig drainage channels to mitigate the effect of erosion.”
Alhaji AbdulRazak Gwarjo who also resides in the village, said black pigment discharged into the air from the refinery frequently settles  in wells, roofs and streams,  making the water unpleasant for drinking and causing health problems. He said  in addition to  a  large army of unemployed youth in the village, parents are facing the growing problem of drug addiction among the youths.   

The nearby KRPC stated   on its internet portal   “its Raw Water Intake facilities are located beside Kaduna River, about 13 kilometers from the complex. The river water is pre-treated at the Intake before being pumped through a 13km water pipeline into two large storage tanks on site. Each of the raw water tanks has a storage capacity of 75,000 cubic meters. The stored water can meet the demands of the refinery and petrochemical complex for a period of 10 days.” There isn’t any arrangement for the supply of water to Rido village from the refinery.”   
Governor Mukhtar Ramalan Yero said recently that 20 boreholes were drilled in each ward in the state to cushion the effect of water shortages.    
Most of the married women and men in the village interviewed admitted having one form of reproductive health problem or the other, allegedly linked to the toxic waste from the refinery. The men complained of weak erection and infertility, while the women complained of frequent abortions and lack of ovulation. Most of the complaints could be associated to secondary infertility,  because victims have in the past given birth to children before they suddenly stopped. There was widespread belief that smoke and poisonous gases emitted from the refinery have reproductive health effect on people living  in the area , but no medical report has confirmed the allegation due to inability of villagers to seek comprehensive medical tests, perhaps owing to  lack of awareness and poverty.
Also, villagers claim that   infants and children suffer heath effects that sometimes lead to disability or death.
Jummai Isaac, 27 said she got married in the year 2000 and suffers from infertility. “I haven’t conceived since I got married in the last fourteen years, and doctors have on several occasions confirmed to me of the absence of any known cause of my inability to get pregnant. Initially doctors thought  I have fibroid in my womb, but after scanning and some medical tests, they dispelled that notion.”
Hadiza Hassan, 20 said there were several instances of early miscarriages, prenatal deaths and child disabilities in the village. She said though many people believed that the cases could be linked to toxic waste and smoke from the refinery, but “we haven’t got the means to commission an independent inquiry into the allegation or even undergo medical tests. I was crippled in the right leg at the age of three years,  and when I was taken to hospital, doctors told my parents that we should look for traditional medicine to treat the condition, because they could not find the exact cause.”
Hassan got married at 15 and gave birth to a baby boy a year after. “Two years  after, I had a baby girl, but it died few hours after the delivery,  and since then I could not get pregnant after several efforts.”
Laure Shuaibu is 25 years old and got married at 15. She said she gave birth to two children,  but stopped without taking any birth control pills. She could not release ovaries for the past six years,  and thus found it difficult to get pregnant. “I stopped giving birth after developing some reproductive complications. I haven’t conceived in the last six years, and I am not taking any child spacing drugs.”
Several other women suffer from primary infertility in the village, and due to lack of awareness and poverty; they could not access healthcare services to confirm the cause and remedy. A 17-year-old housewife, Fatima Abubakar hasn’t  been delivered of a child  since her wedding two years ago. “I don’t know the cause. It may  be due to the effect of toxic substances in the area.”
Sahura Inusa 25 suffers from occasional chest pain and cough,  often presenting  with mucus. She has visited hospitals and  been given medication. She identifies  the  smoke often emitted from the refinery as  the cause.

Women leader Maryam Sha’aibu Rido said the refinery often discharges irritating gasses with unpleasant odour which are perceptible all over the village . The odour tended to be sharp and suffocating,  and is suspected to be harmful to the humans and plants, she said. “We complained about the odour to the management of KRPC, but nothing was done to stop it. They later distributed three small tins of milk to some households about two times, and that was all they could do.”
According to her, some children had permanent deformities,  while a number of them have encountered some genetic variation that resulted in a speech defect, identified as ‘nasal voices.’ “There were tens of children whose speaking voice is characterized with a nasal quality. In some cases, parents find it difficult to grasp what the  children are saying when they speak.”
She said residents believe that “smoke and chemicals from flares in the refinery could be connected to health problems in the area. We have channelled our complaints collectively to the Company, yet there was  no response. The Company had drilled 5 boreholes, three of which are not functioning.They  built a toilet block at the primary school and employed only seven people from the village; these are the only benefits we derived from the Company.”
The leader said Rido residents have been visiting hospitals occasionally, as a result of various complications mostly related to environmental pollution, and many more prefer to  stay at home,  because they could not afford the hospital bills.  
Eleven year old Isiya, is one of the children that developed ‘nasal voice’ who said his parents  once took  him to a nearby hospital for examination, but there was no improvement on his condition since the visit.
Another woman, Maryam Ibrahim, said “if a pregnant woman inhales the pungent odour of the gases emitted from the Company, she will certainly develop some complication. Again, most of the married men have developed inability to maintain an erection, and we are suspecting substances from the refinery to be the major cause. My husband is one of them and I can stay for up to two months without sleeping with him,  and I have to be patient after realizing the problem. Otherwise, we should have separated or quarreled over it. I am 35 years old and stopped conceiving   over 10 years ago.”
Tani Ayuba Rido said her husband developed reproductive disorders about eight years ago,  and since then she couldn’t get pregnant “The sexual strength of my husband reduced suddenly, and that makes it difficult for me have more children. I am now 40 years old.”

Zainab Ayuba said she had two children but stopped giving birth seven years ago, shortly after her husband developed erectile disorders.
Safinatu Musa and Lubabatu Yusuf mentioned similar problems as Ayuba, but Musa added that she also suffers from frequent vomiting and waist pains.
A 43-year-old man who would not want to be named, said “it’s true there were occasional outbreak of diseases including some with cholera-like symptoms while miscarriages, caesarean  births  as well as infant mortality, are occurring. Children develop paediatric bone deformities, while male adults  including me have encountered sexual arousal problems.”
He said there were few instances of divorce in the community, partly as a result of the growing reproductive problems “but the causes are never mentioned.”
He said the village had a primary health center which could not cater for the needs of the residents, thus  patients travel to Kaduna city to get medical attention in specialist hospitals such as Barau Dikko, Yusuf Dan Tsoho and St. Gerard hospitals, apart from private clinics.  

Yusuf Auta said ‘horrendous blanket of smoke’ from the refinery was often experienced in the area ,as well as the  unpleasant smell of chemicals which  causes vomiting. He added  that the Company had in 2012 dumped waste very close to a river in the village, which led to the death of five children and an adult. He said the toxic waste also killed all the birds and animals in a nearby poultry farm,  before it was evacuated by the Company a  few days later, adding that “the effect of the chemicals has not been reduced, because no expert has tested the soil to confirm its safety.”
He said the Company had neglected its corporate social responsibility for not doing enough to raise the wellbeing of the villagers, explaining that  the Company had distributed milk to residents twice, when some chemicals were emitted and built   toilets  in a primary school. The toilets are blocked and were yet to be unclogged, he said.
Nalado Mailambu said  the federal government officials, including a renowned  general met the villagers in 1976 before the Company was established. “They even met us in my orchard where the Company is now located. They told us that the Company, when established will address some of our challenges, including  the provision of free safe drinking water, electricity, employment and roads. None of these promises was accomplished. Rather; they recently dumped toxic substances in my farm which killed some children who were there scavenging for  rubber items and aluminum for recycling. When they realized their mistake they  packed the refuse and failed to compensate the victims. They shared three tins of peak  milk per household, as remedy for  the odour from the chemicals inhaled by the people which are really not enough. I have about forty people in my family.”

He called on the federal government to come to the aid of the  villagers, saying “most of the health complications, including reproductive problems in the area,  are either directly or indirectly related to substances originating from the Company.”
KRPC Manager, Public Affairs, Abdullahi Idris, could not be reached for comments, and text messages sent to his phone were not answered.
When contacted, the acting medical director of Yusuf Dan Tsoho hospital, Dr. Dangaru M. Saleh, said health workers have noticed the emergence of reproductive cases including infertility in males and females  as well as erectile dysfunction recently. He said there were various medical issues that can lead to the blockage of the female genital tract  or weakness in the male organ, and prevent births  such as fungal, bacterial and viral infections, but chemicals or toxic gases from industries,  are sources of reproductive problems too. “Some chemical companies and refineries radiate substances in solid, liquid and gaseous forms that are toxic to humans and plants. These substances such as hydrocarbons  can combine with others to cause serious health complications, such as infertility and people working there must use protective clothing.  Sometimes the problem of lack of proper waste management by the companies can cause widespread infections, if toxic chemicals are deposited in rivers, foods or inhaled in the air.
He said the hospital had assigned one specialist to attend to the cases infertility and other reproductive matters, as well as report the frequency of occurrence in Rido community.
“We see cases of infertility and erectile dysfunctions frequently,  and we have assigned a doctor to handle them. The doctor will record all the cases we received.”