Factors Affecting Domestic Water Consumption in Rural Households upon Access to Improved Water Supply: Insights from the Wei River Basin, China

Liangxin Fan,Coen J Ritsema,Violette Geissen,Fei Wang,Guobin Liu,Matteo Convertino

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0071977

Abstract

Comprehensively understanding water consumption behavior is necessary to design efficient and effective water use strategies. Despite global efforts to identify the factors that affect domestic water consumption, those related to domestic water use in rural regions have not been sufficiently studied, particularly in villages that have gained access to improved water supply. To address this gap, we investigated 247 households in eight villages in the Wei River Basin where three types of improved water supply systems are implemented. Results show that domestic water consumption in liters per capita per day was significantly correlated with water supply pattern and vegetable garden area, and significantly negatively correlated with family size and age of household head. Traditional hygiene habits, use of water appliances, and preference for vegetable gardening remain dominant behaviors in the villages with access to improved water supply. Future studies on rural domestic water consumption should pay more attention to user lifestyles (water appliance usage habits, outdoor water use) and cultural backgrounds (age, education).

Highlights

Water is the most important natural resource for sustainable development and quality of life, yet it is unevenly distributed; almost one-fifth of the world’s population lives in regions where water is scarce and one-quarter suffer from severe water shortage [1]
Profiles of Chinese Water and Sanitation Programs Given the efforts of the Chinese government to improve the safety of drinking water supply since the 1960s (Table 2), household access to improved water supply and sources has significantly increased in rural China, over the past two decades
The water supply systems in the region are continuous piped water supply, intermittent piped water supply, and public tap access, which provide for the water consumption needs of more than 57% of the rural population

Summary

Introduction

Water is the most important natural resource for sustainable development and quality of life, yet it is unevenly distributed; almost one-fifth of the world’s population lives in regions where water is scarce and one-quarter suffer from severe water shortage [1]. To resolve these problems, WHO, UNICEF, and other international organizations have exerted tremendous effort into ensuring secure domestic water supply around the world. The rural populations that are afforded access to safe water supply have considerably increased from 36% in 1990 to 56% in 2010 [3]. An urgent requirement is the development of effective strategies and public policies on water management in villages with access to improved water supply

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion