Intermittent Domestic Water Supply: A Critical Review and Analysis of Causal-Consequential Pathways

Abstract

Communities in many parts of the world, especially in developing countries, face obstacles in supplying continuous water to household consumers. Authorities often cite water scarcity as the cause, but we demonstrate that environmental constraints constitute only one aspect of a multi-dimensional problem. By asking what causes intermittent domestic water supply, this literature review (129 articles) identifies 47 conditions of intermittent systems and the causal-consequential pathways between them that can reinforce intermittency. These pathways span several disciplines including engineering, government administration and anthropology, and when viewed together they (1) emphasize the human drivers of intermittency; (2) suggest generalized interventions; and (3) reveal a gap in the literature in terms of meaningful categorizations of the reliability of intermittent supplies. Based on the reliability of consumers' water access, we propose three categories of intermittency-predictable, irregular, and unreliable-to facilitate comparisons between case studies and transfers of solutions.

From intermittent to continuous service: Costs, benefits, equity and sustainability of water system reforms in Hubli-Dharwad, India

“…Proponents argue that decreased coping costs will help all residents, especially the poor, while critics voice concern that increased prices will put up barriers to access, especially for the poor (Dasgupta & Dasgupta, 2004;Saleth & Sastry, 2004;Sangameswaran, Madhav, & D'Rozario, 2008;World Bank & Ministry of Finance, Government of India, 2013). Proponents have also argued that water quality will deteriorate less in a continuously pressurized piped system, and that less water will be wasted because, in an intermittent regime, water is stored between supply days and then thrown away in favor of fresh water (McIntosh, 2003;Galaitsi et al, 2016). Other studies have argued that consumption will increase with higher water availability (Andey & Kelkar, 2009), and that under supplyconstrained circumstances very little water, in fact, is thrown away (Kumpel, Woelfle-Erskine, Ray, & Nelson, 2017).…”

Flows, leaks and blockages in informational interventions: A field experimental study of Bangalore's water sector

“…The causes and consequences of intermittent and unreliable water supplies have been more the domain of engineering and public health research than of the social sciences (Galaitsi et al, 2016). The water policy literature on intermittency has analyzed the effects and coping costs of intermittent water (e.g., Burt & Ray, 2014;Kumpel, Woelfle-Erskine, Ray, & Nelson, 2017;Kumpel & Nelson, 2016) but has not examined interventions that improve predictability within intermittent systems.…”

Fuzzy Comprehensive Assessment Method Based on the Entropy Weight Method and Its Application in the Water Environmental Safety Evaluation of the Heshangshan Drinking Water Source Area, Three Gorges Reservoir Area, China

“…Drinking water is the most important natural resource necessary for human life and economic prosperity [1,2]. The reservoirs of drinking water are important areas for the people who depend on them.…”