Assessment of Public Awareness, Knowledge, Attitude and Perception on Microplastics Pollution in Kaduna Metropolis, Kaduna.

Abstract

This study aims to assess public awareness, knowledge, attitude, and perception of microplastic pollution in the Kaduna Metropolis, Kaduna. Three hundred and eighty-four (384) copies of structured questionnaires were distributed to respondents using random sampling. Descriptive and inferential statistics, and Relative Importance Index were applied using Microsoft Excel and Statistical Packages for Social Sciences (SPSS v28). The results revealed that 37.1% of the respondents are students, 28.25% of the respondents are traders, 17.51% are civil servants, and 17.23% are from academia. The study revealed that 68.4% of the respondents are aware of microplastic pollution. For the knowledge of plastic pollution, 48% believe plastic aquatic debris eventually becomes microplastics. The majority of the respondents 45.87% got information about plastic pollution from seminars and workshops.  For the relationship between education and awareness of microplastic pollution, the correlation coefficient revealed a moderate positive relationship (r = 0.467), while linear regression revealed low influence of education of awareness of microplastic pollution (R²= 0.218). Regarding the attitudes of the respondents about microplastic pollution, the majority of the residents were willing to take part in community efforts to clean up microplastics (RII=0.80), and they are mostly curious to find out more about microplastics. The study concluded that most of the respondents are aware of microplastic pollution, even though the awareness varies with level of education and occupation. The study therefore recommends that there is a need for more public education about the dangers of microplastic pollution and illegal dumping of plastics should be discouraged.