Phosphate mining pollution in southern Tunisia: environmental, epidemiological, and socioeconomic investigation

• Published in: Environment, development and sustainability Vol. 25; no. 11; pp. 13619 - 13636
• Main Authors: Hamed, Younes, Khelifi, Faten, Houda, Besser, Sâad, Amina Ben, Ncibi, Kaouther, Hadji, Riheb, Melki, Achraf, Hamad, Amor
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Dordrecht Springer Netherlands 01-11-2023; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Breast cancer; Case Study; Consistency; Dental fluorosis; Earth and Environmental Science; Ecology; Economic Geology; Economic Growth; Environment; Environmental Economics; Environmental Management; Epidemiology; Hospitals; Households; Kidney diseases; Mining industry; Morbidity; Pollution; Prostate; Prostate cancer; Proximity; Questionnaires; Sustainable Development; Mining area; Questionnaire; Environmental pollution; Gafsa-Tunisia; Health risks
• ISSN: 1387-585X; 1573-2975
• DOI: 10.1007/s10668-022-02606-x

The present study tends to close this gap of knowledge by introducing new data based on cross-sectional surveys operated through two steps, a specific questionnaire at local hospitals involving mainly cancer patients (
n
 = 315) and a general households questionnaire concerning firstly the population of Gafsa region and secondly its surroundings (
n
 = 103). Results showed that most subjects are females suffering from breast cancer attaining 67.74% of the respondents. About 17.46% of the male subjects suffer from prostate cancer which is the second most frequent type among both sexes. Our findings concerning breast cancer are in consistency with the data of the Tunisian cancer centers and the worldwide data confirm that it is the most frequent type of cancer with the highest rates of annual new incidences. Approximately half of Gafsa residents declared to have at least one family member working in the mining industry which is in consistency with the percentage of respondents with dental fluorosis and/or kidney dysfunction. Proximity of mine areas, also, has been identified as an exacerbating factor of cancer morbidity in the studied area.