Wet-Season Co-Occurrence of Ambient Air Pollutants and Environmental Noise in Ughelli, Nigeria: A Spatial Screening Study
Abstract
Urban residents may experience air pollution and environmental noise together, but co-occurrence does not establish a statistical interaction or a health effect. This study screens wet-season air quality and sound levels at 17 activity-centred sites and one background reference point in Ughelli, Delta State, Nigeria. The source project reports single-site readings for carbon monoxide (CO), carbon dioxide (CO₂), formaldehyde (HCHO), total volatile organic compounds (TVOCs), PM₂.₅, PM₁₀, A-weighted sound level, temperature, relative humidity, wind and elevation. We reconstructed descriptive statistics from the tabulated observations and recalculated Pearson correlations for the 17 urban sites, retaining the control point as a contextual reference. Urban-site means were 93.99 dBA for sound, 154.0 µg m⁻³ for PM₂.₅ and 204.35 µg m⁻³ for PM₁₀; the corresponding ranges were 85.3–104.2 dBA, 26–602 µg m⁻³ and 30–797 µg m⁻³. Correlations between sound and the measured pollutants were weak and statistically non-significant (|r| ≤ 0.33; p ≥ .198). The results identify locations for follow-up monitoring but do not support causal attribution, seasonal comparison, formal health-risk estimates or claims of a demonstrated air–noise interaction. A key contribution is a transparent reanalysis that separates the background point, corrects inconsistencies in the source narrative and specifies the evidence needed for a defensible long-term exposure assessment.
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