THE IMPACT OF THE CONSTRUCTION OF GEN. M.I. WUSHISHI HOUSING ESTATE ON THE KAFFIN TELA COMMUNITY

¹Idris Abdulrahman Baba, ¹Salihu Suleiman and ²Usman Aliyu

¹Department of Architecture, Federal Polytechnic Bida

² IBB University Lapai

E-mail: drsabdu120007@gmail.com

ABSTRACT

Human being requires shelter from adverse effect of weather, and this shelter is being provided mostly through construction. As human population increase so as increase in the rate at which buildings are constructed. This construction leads to the extensive exploitation of natural occurring vegetation which later result to; global warming, greenhouse effect, reduced soil cohesion, soil erosion and reduced biodiversity. The building industry is faced with the challenge of designing and construction of buildings which exploit the natural resources without destroying the ecological balance of the area. This paper examines the impact of the construction of Gen. M.I. Wushishi  housing estate to Kaffin Tela community by sampling considerable hectare of land adjacent to the estate to know the nature of the vegetation at the site before construction and the extend of re-vegetation carried out by the resident after the completion of the project. The result shows that, apart from loss of species, there is significant increase in heat level and little has been done to revive the vegetation. It has been observed that an alternative approach to building construction that has positive impact to the environment is all about suitable practice, in terms of choice of material, their source, construction methodologies as well as design philosophy.