Voluntary Management of Residential Water Demand in Low and Middle-Low Income Homes: A Pilot Study of Soacha (Colombia)

Rocío Acosta Alarcón,Juan Rodríguez,Harn Kua

doi:10.3390/w11020216

Abstract

The efficient use of water in urban contexts becomes a priority in the face of population growth and the potential vulnerability of water supply as a result of the impacts of climate change. This pilot study focuses on the use of educational strategies to promote the voluntary management of residential water demand. Three schools in the municipality of Soacha (Colombia) were involved, where students from 12 to 15 years old participated as promoters of water consumption educational campaigns within their families, covering a total of 120 low and middle-income families. Three intervention strategies (that is, a virtual platform, learning activities, and graphical tools) were carried out. The effects of these intervention strategies on changes in the water consumption were analyzed to establish the dependence of this variable with socio-demographic, economic, environmental and quality of life factors. Different information gathering tools were used, such as validated local water utility bills, surveys and self-reports. The graphical tools reduced consumption by 14%, but other strategies did not show significant reductions. However, according to self-reported data, all educational campaigns did have positive outcomes on the participants’ behavior. It was found that socioeconomic factors, such as type of housing, socioeconomic strata, living in a rented home, and quality of life variables (such as enjoying nature and culture, good and fluid family relationships, and material possessions) significantly affected the changes in water consumption behavior.

Highlights

Efficient water use is an essential factor in mitigating global and local water scarcity [1]
Colombia is a rich country in terms of water resources, competition for water resources can be intense in areas with a large population and a high level of economic activity [3]
The results showed an average of 7.6% reduction in water consumption per household, which indicates the significant effectiveness of educational campaigns in the context of scarcity of resources, at least in the short term

Summary

Introduction

Efficient water use is an essential factor in mitigating global and local water scarcity [1]. Water 2019, 11, 216 deficit between availability and demand for water [5,6,7,8] These initiatives, which have been primarily tested in developed cities, invite water users, regulators and managers to develop recognition and respect for the roles and perspectives of various stakeholders in the development of a participatory water management program [9]. With this approach, educational campaigns implement strategies designed to encourage voluntary water conservation, seeking to change users’ behavior. Educational programs are often developed with little information on water consumption in homes [10], and so the resulting approaches to water-saving strategies can be inefficient [11]

Methods

Results

Conclusion