Ecosystems’ Health and Diarrhoea Transmission Pathways; A Case Study of Selected Coastal Communities in Ghana

Abstract

Diarrhoea is the passage of three or more loose stools per day mainly caused by the ingestion of bacteria-contaminated water or food. Its prevalence in Ghana transcends to the coastal communities which are vulnerable to contracting it due to poor coastal sanitation concurrently in the wake of climate change impacts. This study aimed to investigate sediments, water and biota in low-lying, climate-impacted coastal marine ecosystems along the Central and Eastern coasts of Ghana as potential diarrhoea transmission pathways. Sediments (n = 234); water (n = 234); biota (n = 78) samples were collected monthly from January to June. Physicochemical and bacteriological analyses of the samples were conducted. The total coliform in water samples ranged from 3.3 x 102 to 4.2 x 107 CFU/100ml while Escherichia coli (E. coli) was up to 1.5 x 107 CFU/100ml. With the exception of Anyanui, the E. coli levels in all the water samples exceeded the USEPA recreational water quality limit. Likewise, the E. coli levels in oysters, fish and sediments exceeded their acceptable limits. Target bacteria present in the samples included Salmonella and Vibrio species. The sediment samples were the most laden with pathogens. The highest coliform counts and pathogens isolated were observed during the rainy season (April to June). Principal component analysis revealed increasing biological oxygen demand, phosphate, sulphate, nitrate, total dissolved solids and decreasing dissolved oxygen correlated with the increasing bacteria count. The findings of this study demonstrate that marine ecosystems may serve as diarrhoea transmission pathways. Further recommended, is the need for a prospective cohort study. The residents did not view the marine ecosystems as diarrhoea transmission pathways making pronounced the need for awareness campaigns and management practices to mitigate coastal pollution and safeguard community health.