Dimensioning Environmental Indicators: A Principal Component Analysis of Auchi Region, Edo State

Abstract

The environment is a multidimensional system and its components are interrelated and fuzzy. The environment is of concern to humans because of its growing deterioration which has prompted the need to improve its quality. Hence environmental quality assessment has become a means of determining quality. The study is on dimensioning the 66 variables that affect the quality of Auchi Region. Principal component Analysis was used to select the underlying factor structure of the variables. The result is an 8-factor solution of housing, erosion, distance, solid waste, natural environment, flooding, land use and erosion effects that explain 46.26 per cent of the variance in environmental quality of Auchi Region. The technique is recommended as an effective means of dimensioning the complex system of environment in less developed countries where data input is difficult to obtain.

Keywords: Environmental Indicators, Principal Components, Dimensionality, Auchi