Broadening the water affordability approach to monitor the human right to water

Pérez-Foguet, Agustí

doi:10.1016/j.cities.2023.104573

Cited by 4 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 87 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The concept of water poverty achieved international recognition when the United Nations declared access to water and sanitation a human right [1]. Individuals, communities, regions, and countries could be defined as water-poor if they failed to comply with at least one of the five dimensions of the human right to water and sanitation, namely that water must be safe, acceptable, sufficient, physically accessible, and affordable [2][3][4]. Safe, sufficient, and physically accessible water represents a major problem in many developing countries [5].…”

Section: Introduction 1theoretical Frameworkmentioning

confidence: 99%

Socio-Spatial Analysis of Water Affordability at Small Scales: A Needs-Based Approach

Romero-Gomez,

Domene,

Garcia

et al. 2024

Water

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Water affordability as a dimension of water poverty is becoming an increasing source of concern in cities of the Global North. Studies on water affordability are either based on water wants and not needs or tend to use spatial scales too large for effective analyses of local inequities that can truly guide policy actions. In this contribution, we calculate and map a Water Affordability Index (WAI) based on the minimum water requirement of 100 litres/person/day at the scale of the census tract for the Metropolitan Area of Barcelona. We also apply global and local spatial autocorrelation analyses to investigate spatial relationships between the WAI and poverty-related sociodemographic variables. Results show that, even though average WAI values are moderate, the distribution pattern of higher and lower values tends to be clustered in some districts and neighbourhoods of the study area. Bivariate correlations indicate that water affordability is not only related to poverty variables but also to the diversity of water prices. Findings exemplify how the constructed index can complement existing affordability indicators, revealing and mapping important risk groups struggling to meet the costs of essential water needs. Water affordability could be mitigated by supportive water pricing policies for vulnerable households in water poverty hotspots.

show abstract

Section: Introduction 1theoretical Frameworkmentioning

confidence: 99%