Abstract

There had been an increase in the number of quarries in Nigeria in the 19th centuries. The activities of the quarries have detrimental effects on the environment and more importantly on permanent crops; most especially cocoa which is a major commercial crop in the study area. Therefore, this study determined the perceived effects of quarry activities on cocoa production in Yewa north local government area of Ogun State, Nigeria. A multistage sampling procedure was used in selecting 120 cocoa farmers in the study area. Data collected were analyzed using descriptive statistical tools like mean, percentage, frequency counts, standard deviation and inferential statistics like Chi-square, PPMC and t-test. All (100%) of the farmers were married, with mean age of 53 ?8.4years. However, 42.5% of the cocoa farmers have a household size of between 5 and 6, while 86.7% of them had formal education with majority finishing secondary school. Environmental problems identified as being severe by respondents were soil erosion, air pollution and massive deforestation, while problems associated with quarry activities were rock blasting, rock powdering and transportation. There is significant difference in the yield of cocoa production before and after the establishment of the cement industry in 2011 in the study area (t=-20.851, p=0.0000). Environmental mitigation measures should be promulgated among communities and quarry industries

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