Abstract
Drinking water loss or Non-Revenue Water (NRW) threatens the financial viability of water utilities and sustainable natural water resource management. However, little attention has been paid to quantitative assessment of the spatial distribution of water losses in Rwanda. Therefore, this study focused on the magnitude of water losses, the associated environmental and socio-economic consequences, as well as the potential benefits from water loss reduction in Rwanda. Based on water usage records from the Water and Sanitation Corporation (WASAC) of Rwanda, NRW was calculated for 15 WASAC branches and Provinces, from July 2013 to June 2014, by using the International Water Association (IWA) standard water balance approach. The results highlight an annual NRW of 16,502,198 or 41% of the total water produced, inducing a revenue loss of US$ 8,713,156. In 14 of the 15 WASAC water branches and all Rwandan provinces, the NRW ratios exceed the NRW threshold (10%) recommended by the American Water Works Association (AWWA). Because of the lost revenue, the water facilities may not expand quickly enough to meet the demands of the rapidly growing population. The suggested 50% reduction in NRW would provide additional 8,251,100 m3 of treated water yearly, enough to serve extra 41,925 households or irrigate 661 ha of cropland and save US$ 4,356,579, which would reduce the financial gap in Rwanda’s National Water Improvement Project by more than 24%.
Highlights
Water is an indispensable natural resource which directly affects economic and social development [1]
Based on water usage records from the Water and Sanitation Corporation (WASAC) of Rwanda, Non-Revenue Water (NRW) was calculated for 15 WASAC branches and Provinces, from July 2013 to June 2014, by using the International Water Association (IWA) standard water balance approach
The water loss ratio in the Eastern Province exceeded 50%, while Kigali City that had a water loss ratio of 35% is responsible for 47% of the total National water loss (Figure 3(a)), meaning that water loss reduction could significantly improve the efficiency in drinking water supply in Rwanda
Summary
Water is an indispensable natural resource which directly affects economic and social development [1]. Drinking water demands are tremendously increasing with galloping demographic pressure and economic development [2]. In the middle of this century, water shortage will affect 2 to 7 billion people [3]. The total cost of water utilities caused by Non-Revenue Water (NRW) worldwide was estimated at US$ 141 billion per year, with one third of it occurring in the developing countries where about 45 million cubic meters, enough to serve nearly 200 million people, are lost through daily leakage in water distribution networks. The worldwide water loss average is estimated at 30%, resulting in the same portion of energy loss [5] [6]. Meeting the rapidly growing water demands in megacities often means sacrificing the environment, leading to water quality degradation, ecosystem damage, and/or unsustainable water use such as groundwater depletion and salt water intrusion [9] [10]
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