Water Essentials

The Untapped Potential of Decentralized Solutions to Provide Safe, Sustainable Drinking Water at Large Scale

Dalberg
Jan. 2017
This report argues that new approaches are needed to achieve the U.N. Sustainable Development Goal 6.1 by 2030. Through the analysis of 14 different small water enterprises, the report uncovers bottlenecks to scale and sustainability.
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Upgrading a Piped Water Supply from Intermittent to Continuous Delivery and Association with Waterborne Illness: A Matched Cohort Study in Urban India

Ercumen, A., Arnold, B., Kumpel, E., Burt, Z., Ray, I., Nelson, K., Colford Jr., J.
PLOS Medicine
Oct. 2015

This study proves that intermittent delivery of piped water compared to continuous delivery can lead to waterborne diseases because of pipe contamination, during household storage, use of alternative water which is unsafe, and limited water availability for hygiene.

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Sustainable Supply of Safe Drinking Water for Underserved Households in Kenya: Investigating the Viability of Decentralized Solutions

Cherunya, P., Janezic, C., Leuchner, M.
Open Access Water, Vol 7, 5437-5457
Oct. 2015

This study compares user preference and perception of water quality and water provision services in underserved communities in Kenya. Most households consume water from multiple sources and perceive their drinking water to be unclean. They are aware of water treatment methods, but treat irregularly.

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Microbiological Contamination of Drinking Water Associated with Subsequent Child Diarrhea

Luby, S., Halder, A., Huda, T., Unicomb, L., Islam, M., Arnold, B., Johnston, R.
The American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene Vol. 93 904-911
Oct. 2015

The study assesses the relationship between microbiological contamination of drinking water and incidence of child diarrhea. Increase in E.coli contamination shows an increase in prevalence of child diarrhea, showing the importance of improved microbiological quality of drinking water for health.

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Analysis of Accessibility to Water Supply and Sanitation Services in the Awutu-Senya East Municipality, Ghana

Peprah, C., Oduro-Ofori, E., Asante-Wusu, I.
Kwame Nkrumah University of Science & Technology,
Sep. 2015

Awutu-Senya East Municipality receives the  majority of their water from private suppliers, and some from public systems. Most of this water is salty, and contaminated. Private suppliers have unregulated prices. Additionally, sanitation is poor across the municipality with no regulation.

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Does Poor Water Quality Cause Diarrheal Disease?

Levy, K.
Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University
Sep. 2015

It is very difficult to assess what contributes the  largest burden to diarrhea: food-borne, water-borne, or other transmission routes. Incidence of diarrhea and water quality in the house were assessed, and concluded that water is not the largest contributor to diarrhea.

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Water at the BOP: India and East Africa

Beyond Capital Fund
Sep. 2015

One in six people live in water-stressed conditions due to poor water availability and accessibility, high water tariffs, poor water quality, over extraction of sources, etc. Governments, corporations, NGOs and agencies have taken action  to reduce the number of underserved populations.

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Interventions to Improve Water Quality for Preventing Diarrhea (Review)

Arienzo, A., Sobze, M., Wadoum, R., Losito, F., Colizzi, V., Antonini, G.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
Sep. 2015

This study tests  the effectiveness of the microbiological survey for accuracy in testing the microbiological quality of water. The evaluation of total coliforms in 1mL of water was used as a parameter. Field tests were done in Cameroon in different wells, confirming MBS as an accurate measure.

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Ecosystem Investing: Achieving Impact at Scale

Edmondson, J., Mohan, K., and Stewart, S.
Stanford Social Innovation Review
Aug. 2015

Impact at scale requires working within the context of a broader ecosystem and adjusting behaviors in response to change within that system. Six lessons from a large-scale, cross-sector initiative to improve education show the differences between traditional programmatic and ecosystem investing.  

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The Doer and the Payer: A Simple Approach to Scale

Starr, K., and Hattendorf, L.
Stanford Social Innovation Review
Aug. 2015

Impact at scale requires working within the context of a broader ecosystem and adjusting behaviors in response to change within that system. Six lessons from a large-scale, cross-sector initiative to improve education show the differences between traditional programmatic and ecosystem investing.  

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Impact Assessment Report: Bhandara, India

Safe Water Network
Safe Water Network
Aug. 2015

This impact assessment report, created by Safe Water Network and the Tata Institute of Social Sciences on behalf of Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd. (BHEL), evaluates the impact of BHEL-funded iJal Safe Water Stations (using reverse osmosis treatment technology and equipped with a remote monitoring system) built in ten villages in the Bhandara district of Maharashtra, India.

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