Environmental Justice Analysis of Industrial Facility Siting and Community Health Outcomes in Ogun State

Environmental justice scholarship examines whether the burdens of environmental hazards are inequitably distributed across populations stratified by socio-economic status or ethnicity, a question with significant empirical relevance in Nigeria's rapidly industrialising South West corridor. This study conducts an environmental justice analysis of industrial facility siting and associated community health outcomes in Ogun State, examining whether lower-income communities bear disproportionate proximity to hazardous industrial installations. Geographic information systems analysis integrates the locations of 143 registered industrial facilities, household socio-economic indicator data from the 2021 Nigeria Living Standards Survey, and community-level disease incidence data from Ogun State Ministry of Health records. Logistic regression analysis tests for statistically significant associations between community poverty rates, proximity to industrial facilities, and incidence of respiratory disease, dermatological conditions, and childhood growth stunting. Findings indicate a statistically significant pattern in which communities in the lowest income tertile are 2.4 times more likely to be located within two kilometres of major industrial installations than communities in the highest income tertile. This proximity differential is associated with significantly elevated odds of respiratory disease incidence at the community level. The study contributes the first systematic environmental justice analysis for an Ogun State context and discusses the distributional implications of existing industrial zoning policy. Recommendations address environmental justice impact screening requirements for new industrial facility permits, enhanced health monitoring in disproportionately burdened communities, and community right-to-know legislation. Keywords: environmental justice, industrial siting, community health, Ogun State, spatial equity.