Physical and non-physical factors associated with water consumption at the household level in a region using multiple water sources

Abstract

Study regionKathmandu Valley, Nepal. Study focusWater scarcity affects more than 40 % of the global population. Households in low- and middle-income countries typically use alternative water sources to piped water such as groundwater, tanker water and jar water and various coping strategies to deal with water scarcity. This study quantitatively examines the association between using multiple water sources and individual water consumption. In addition, we investigated the relationship between individual water consumption and physical (i.e. water source, supply time) and non-physical (wealth status, education for household head, house ownership, participation in local community, water treatment) factors before and after the 2015 Gorkha earthquake. A survey about socio-demographics, domestic water use behavior, and community involvement was conducted three times and the data collected from 992 households were used for analysis. New hydrological insights for the regionIt was confirmed that use of additional water sources is associated with greater individual water consumption. This was especially the case in households using both groundwater and tanker water. In addition, wealth status, education for household head, and house ownership were associated with increased individual water consumption but this association was not apparent after the earthquake. Participation in the local community was also associated with increased individual water consumption except for the period impacted by the earthquake. Households using treated water consumed less water across all periods surveyed.