Policy driven water sector and energy dependencies in Texas border colonias

Uribe, Monica Guerra; Faust, Kasey M.; Charnitski, Jonathan

doi:10.1016/j.scs.2019.101568

Cited by 11 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 35 publications

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“…It is also recognized that, in qualitative research concerning equity, often a smaller sample size is warranted . In addition, this sample size exceeds those of previous studies utilizing similar data and methods (e.g., n = 12, n = 10, and n = 6).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 93%

“…Although the federal government expanded U.S. water systems through the 1974 Clean Water Act, water infrastructure investments were not distributed in an equitable manner . For instance, cities such as Zanesville, OH, and Roanoke, VA, did not extend water infrastructure to majority African-American neighborhoods, such as Hollins in Roanoke. , Similar decisions and outcomes are rampant in unincorporated lands (e.g., colonias) that are predominantly Hispanic in central California and Texas. − Notably, in 2020, the Clean Water Act still does not explicitly mention equity. However, federal investment in water and wastewater infrastructure has dropped from 63% of total capital spending in 1974 to 9% in 2014. , This reduced investment in water infrastructure systems has shifted the burden to local governments, with cascading consequences on lower-income neighborhoods, often communities of color, that received significantly decreased budgets to maintain and operate existing infrastructure.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Toward Operationalizing Equity in Water Infrastructure Services: Developing a Definition of Water Equity

Osman

Faust

2021

ACS EST Water

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Access to clean, reliable water services is not a guarantee for all U.S. communities. The challenges related to such service failures have inequitable impacts on low-income neighborhoods and communities of color. How equity is defined and operationalized in water-sector infrastructure is inconsistent across the literature and in practice. This inconsistency can make it challenging to hold utilities accountable for unequal distributions of burden (e.g., lack of affordability and poor water quality). As such, this study seeks (1) to determine how equity is currently defined and used in the water sector, (2) to develop a definition that can be used to incorporate equity into water-sector infrastructure, and (3) to understand attitudes toward equity of water-sector professionals. We conduct a qualitative analysis of relevant media articles, survey responses, and semi-structured interviews with water-sector professionals. We propose a definition of equity in water that is informed by the results of this analysis. Categories emerge that can be leveraged to create vertical equity solutions, such as addressing intermittent supply and water-quality issues in vulnerable communities. The definition may be used to operationalize, metricize, and benchmark equitable water policy and practices at all levels of decision making (e.g., federal, state, and local) to ensure an equitable water future.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 93%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Toward Operationalizing Equity in Water Infrastructure Services: Developing a Definition of Water Equity

Osman

Faust

2021

ACS EST Water

Self Cite

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“…In the contiguous United States, high capital costs also hinder access to in-home water services in the Navajo Nation, 39 Appalachia region, 40,41 and the Colonias in Texas. 42 The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the disproportionate health impacts in Tribal communities throughout the United States owing to lack of access to in-home water services. 43 In 2019, 12.5% of Tribal homes 44 and 30% of the Navajo population 45 lacked access to in-home water services.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In these communities, funding an in-home reuse system could be more affordable than traditional systems. In the contiguous United States, high capital costs also hinder access to in-home water services in the Navajo Nation, Appalachia region, , and the Colonias in Texas . The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the disproportionate health impacts in Tribal communities throughout the United States owing to lack of access to in-home water services .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Tale of Two Communities: Adopting and Paying for an In-Home Non-Potable Water Reuse System in Rural Alaska

et al. 2021

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Several rural communities in Alaska lack piped water and sewer services (“unserved”), leading to residents self-hauling drinking water and manually disposing of waste. Being time and labor intensive, these practices result in extremely low household water use and detrimental health impacts, leading to wash disease rates that are higher than those of communities with piped water and sewer systems. This study reports on results from community meetings and surveys held in two unserved rural Alaska communities to evaluate perceptions of water reuse and the willingness to pay for an in-home water reuse system to identify possible price points they are willing to accept. The survey was designed to iteratively understand which water fixtures households desired and at what cost. Survey results showed that in-home water/sewer infrastructure may cost more than community members are willing or able to pay. There are also regional differences in acceptable costs and preferences for specific water fixtures. The results also suggest myriad local factors that may impact acceptance, desire, and willingness to pay for in-home water reuse. Overall, this work highlights the importance of community input and engagement as well as assessment of community needs and readiness while developing technological solutions for rural communities in Alaska and beyond.

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“…Además, la experiencia da lugar a la comparación de estas opiniones las de otros stakeholders relacionados a los sistemas de drenaje urbano que futuros estudios podrían realizar. Otra limitación de esta investigación radica en el tamaño de la muestra, que consta de un total de 11 entrevistados, la cual podría ser considerada pequeña, no obstante, estudios que han analizado la opinión de expertos para el desarrollo de sistemas de infraestructura han utilizado muestras comparables a las de este (e.g., n=7 [El Hattab, Theodoropoulos, Rong y Mijic, 2020]; n=6 [Hacker, Kaminsky, Faust y Rauch, 2020]; n=12 [Uribe, Faust y Charnitski, 2019]; n=15 [Araya y Vásquez, 2022]).…”

Section: Limitacionesunclassified

Análisis cualitativo de sostenibilidad social de sistemas de drenaje urbano en Chile

Hidalgo-Monroy

Vasquez-Avila

Araya

2022

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Moving towards sustainable urban development leads to applying new forms of drainage, which provide multiple technical and social benefits to the community. However, in countries like Chile, there is still a large gap regarding methodologies to assess the social sustainability of projects in this area. Using a qualitative content analysis applied to experts’ interviews (n = 11), this study aims at (1) identifying metrics to assess the social sustainability of urban drainage systems; (2) identifying challenges for the implementation of such metrics, and (3) proposing changes to the current system, to assess urban drainage systems that enhance the integration of social sustainability within these systems. The results show that experts proposed metrics that may assess social sustainability, but in practice, these metrics are difficult to quantify. In terms of challenges, the fragmentation of responsibilities from organizations that are involved in managing urban drainage systems may complicate the use of new social sustainability metrics. Ultimately, it is suggested that an institution is created that can manage urban drainage systems using an integrative approach, to account for the benefits of social sustainability of urban drainage systems. These results can be used by authorities and decision-makers who work with urban drainage systems, to move towards methodologies that consider the benefits of social sustainability.

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Policy driven water sector and energy dependencies in Texas border colonias

Cited by 11 publications

References 35 publications

Toward Operationalizing Equity in Water Infrastructure Services: Developing a Definition of Water Equity

Toward Operationalizing Equity in Water Infrastructure Services: Developing a Definition of Water Equity

A Tale of Two Communities: Adopting and Paying for an In-Home Non-Potable Water Reuse System in Rural Alaska

Análisis cualitativo de sostenibilidad social de sistemas de drenaje urbano en Chile

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