A Model of Intermittent Water Supply Simulating the Inequitable Distribution of Water

Abstract

Over one billion people worldwide with access to piped water experience Intermittent Water Supply (IWS), where consumers receive water for only a fraction of the day or week. A widely observed problem associated with IWS is the inequitable distribution of water across the network. This results in different consumers in the network receiving different volumes of water. Modelling the inequity within IWS systems remains an open research field. To date, simulations have often adapted hydraulic modelling software to understand the distribution of water with little attention to the consumer interaction with the network. This paper proposes a conceptual model based on a more holistic understanding of water distribution in IWS systems. Understanding the spatial and temporal variation in received volumes, as well as the variation in consumer access within the network, enables a more representative simulation of the inequitable quantity of water received by consumers.