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Displaying 15 of about 339 resultsDrain and sewer flooding is said to occur when sewage or foul water leaks from the sewerage system (through pipes, drains or manholes) or floods up through toilets, sinks or showers inside a building (Priestly, 2016).
Healthcare waste includes waste generated within healthcare facilities, research centres and laboratories related to medical procedures and medical equipment. It also includes waste originating from minor and scattered healthcare sources, including waste produced in the course of emergency medical treatment or health care undertaken in the home (e.g., h…
Wastewater is regarded as a combination of one or more of the following materials: domestic effluent consisting of ‘blackwater’ (excreta, urine and faecal sludge, contaminants from pharmaceutical and personal care products) and ‘greywater’ (used water from washing and bathing); water from commercial establishments and institutions, including hospitals;…
Mining hazards can be defined as having major environmental impacts including the production of waste, release of toxic and hazardous waste, air pollution and emissions, water pollution and depletion, and the loss of productive land and ecosystems (adapted from UNDP and UN Environment, 2018).
A leak or a spill is an incident involving the uncontrolled release of a toxic substance, potentially resulting in harm to public health and the environment. Chemical incidents can occur as a result of natural events, or as a result of accidental or intentional events. These incidents can be sudden and acute or have a slow onset when there is a ‘silent’…
Pollution is defined as the presence of substances and/or heat in environmental media (air, water, land) whose nature, location, or quantity produces undesirable environmental effects (UN data, no date). Alternative definition: Pollution is defined as activity that generates pollutants (UN data, no date).
Cyberbullying is bullying that takes place using digital devices such as cell/mobile phones, computers, and tablets. Cyberbullying can occur through SMS, e-mail, apps, social media, forums, or gaming when people view, participate in, or share content. Cyberbullying includes the deliberate sending, posting, or sharing of negative, harmful, false, or mean…
Vector borne diseases encompass a variety of illnesses that are caused via the spread of pathogens by living organisms known as vectors. These infectious diseases can be transmitted via vectors among humans (e.g., malaria, dengue), among animals (e.g., African swine fever, East Coast fever), or from animals to humans (e.g., Nipah virus disease). Many of…
Neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) are a diverse group of communicable diseases caused by bacteria, viruses or parasites that prevail in tropical and subtropical conditions (WHO, no date). Twenty diseases and disease groups are addressed in the global roadmap for NTDs 2021–2030 (WHO, 2020).
Foodborne diseases are transmitted by consumption of contaminated biological food and drink (WHO, 2012). These diseases are caused by eating food contaminated with bacteria, viruses, parasites or chemical substances (WHO, no date).
Airborne transmission of infectious agents refers to the transmission of disease caused by dissemination of very small droplets that remain infectious when suspended in air over long distance and time (WHO, 2020).
Viral, mycoplasma and viroid plant disease epidemics are the occurrence of plant diseases caused by viruses, mycoplasma (syn. phytoplasma, mycoplasma-like organisms ) and viroids over large areas with significant impact on crop productivity or natural habitats (adapted from Nakashima and Murata, 1993; Hammond and Owens, 2006; FAO and IPPC, 2016; Rubio e…
A bacterial plant disease is the occurrence of plant diseases caused by bacterial microorganisms over large areas with significant impacts on crop and forest productivity or natural habitat (adapted from FAO, 2018).
Subsidence is a lowering or collapse of the ground, caused by various factors, including groundwater lowering, sub-surface mining or tunnelling, consolidation, sinkholes, or changes in moisture content in expansive soils. Shrink-swell is the term applied to the behaviour of expansive soils, which are a group of soils that exhibit volumetric change in re…
Induced seismic ground shaking comprises non-tectonic (i.e., nonnatural) earthquakes which result from human activities that alter the stresses and strains on the Earth’s crust. Most induced seismicity is of a low magnitude and higher frequency than larger magnitude events with longer wavelengths and lower frequencies (USGS, 2016).