Global assessment of exposure to faecal contamination through drinking water based on a systematic review

Bain, Robert; Cronk, Ryan; Hossain, Rakib; Bonjour, Sophie; Onda, Kyle; Wright, Jim A.; Yang, Hong; Slaymaker, Tom; Hunter, Paul R.; Prüss‐Üstün, Annette; Bartram, Jamie

doi:10.1111/tmi.12334

Cited by 357 publications

(266 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…A lack of awareness about health Evaluation based on Nepalese context: A proper sanitary system is as crucial as having a toilet facility because, in the absence of a proper sewage system, there is a possibility for wastewater to leach into and pollute groundwater systems or nearby water sources. A recent household survey in 2014 determined that more than 70% of household drinking water sources in Nepal were contaminated with Escherichia coli (E. coli), indicating fecal contamination of drinking water sources [123,124]. A number of past studies in the Terai and mountain regions found similar results, raising doubts about the drinking water quality of Nepal [125,126].…”

Section: Target 7c Halve the Proportion Of People Without Sustainablsupporting

confidence: 52%

Critical Review of the Millennium Project in Nepal

Vaidya

Mayer

2016

Sustainability

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"Our Common Future" harmonized development policies around a new sustainable development (SD) paradigm, and experts also emphasize the importance of a democratic and equitable approach to define and achieve sustainable development. However, SD targets and indicators are often defined by a suite of experts or a few stakeholder groups, far removed from on-the-ground conditions. The most common expert-led development framework, the United Nations' Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), promoted one set of targets and indicators for all developing countries. While progress towards these targets was routinely reported at the national scale, these targets may not reflect context-specific sustainable development. We evaluated the relevance and comprehensiveness of MDG 7 (environmental sustainability) for Nepal. Although Nepal has met most of the MDG 7 (e.g., forest cover, protected areas coverage, water and sanitation), on closer inspection these indicators do not provide adequate context for ensuring that these targets provide the intended levels of development. Simple forest cover and protected area indicators belie the dearth of ecological conservation on the ground, and water and sanitation indicators do not reflect the inequality of access based on poverty and regions. While the Millennium Development Goals align with broad sustainability concerns in Nepal, these indicators do not reveal its true development conditions.

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Section: Target 7c Halve the Proportion Of People Without Sustainablsupporting

confidence: 52%

Critical Review of the Millennium Project in Nepal

Vaidya

Mayer

2016

Sustainability

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“…Several studies used binary categorization of water sources as on-or off-plot and included surface water and unimproved sources in the referent off-plot group, which aggregates improved and unimproved source types that can vary in contamination (Bain et al, 2012) and accessibility. However, leaking pipes and intermittent service can compromise the quality of piped water (Kumpel and Nelson, 2014), and fecal contamination of piped water is frequent in low-and middle-income countries, particularly in rural areas (Bain et al, 2014a;Christenson et al, 2014). Additionally, several included studies reported that water obtained on plot was stored in containers and subsequently contaminated; this was reported in a recent study in Cambodia, which also found that water collected on-plot was frequently stored in the same container with water from unimproved sources (Shaheed et al, 2014).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

On-plot drinking water supplies and health: A systematic review

Overbo

Williams

Evans

et al. 2016

International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health

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Many studies have found that household access to water supplies near or within the household plot can reduce the probability of diarrhea, trachoma, and other water-related diseases, and it is generally accepted that on-plot water supplies produce health benefits for households. However, the body of research literature has not been analyzed to weigh the evidence supporting this. A systematic review was conducted to investigate the impacts of on-plot water supplies on diarrhea, trachoma, child growth, and water-related diseases, to further examine the relationship between household health and distance to water source and to assess whether on-plot water supplies generate health gains for households. Studies provide evidence that households with on-plot water supplies experience fewer diarrheal and helminth infections and greater child height. Findings suggest that water-washed (hygiene associated) diseases are more strongly impacted by on-plot water access than waterborne diseases. Few studies analyzed the effects of on-plot water access on quantity of domestic water used, hygiene behavior, and use of multiple water sources, and the lack of evidence for these relationships reveals an important gap in current literature. The review findings indicate that on-plot water access is a useful health indicator and benchmark for the progressive realization of the Sustainable Development Goal target of universal safe water access as well as the human right to safe water.

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“…1 Ingestion of pathogens in water contaminated with feces represents the greatest water-related health risk and is a major cause of diarrheal disease. 2,3 The Millennium Development Goal (MDG) Target 7.C of halving the number of people without access to safe drinking water has already been reached, but it is widely recognized that this achievement overstates access because the indicator of progress-use of an "improved" source-is not an adequate proxy for safety.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“Improved” But Not Necessarily Safe: An Assessment of Fecal Contamination of Household Drinking Water in Rural Peru

Heitzinger¹,

Rocha²,

Quick³

et al. 2015

The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene

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Abstract. The indicator used to measure progress toward the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) for water is access to an improved water supply. However, improved supplies are frequently fecally contaminated in developing countries. We examined factors associated with Escherichia coli contamination of improved water supplies in rural Pisco province, Peru. A random sample of 207 households with at least one child less than 5 years old was surveyed, and water samples from the source and storage container were tested for E. coli contamination. Although over 90% of households used an improved water source, 47% of source and 43% of stored water samples were contaminated with E. coli. Pouring or using a spigot to obtain water from the storage container instead of dipping a hand or object was associated with decreased risk of contamination of stored water (adjusted prevalence ratio [aPR] = 0.58, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.42, 0.80). Container cleanliness (aPR = 0.67, 95% CI = 0.45, 1.00) and correct handwashing technique (aPR = 0.62, 95% CI = 0.42, 0.90) were also associated with decreased contamination risk. These findings highlighted the limitations of improved water supplies as an indicator of safe water access. To ensure water safety in the home, household water treatment and improved hygiene, water handling, and storage practices should be promoted.

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Global assessment of exposure to faecal contamination through drinking water based on a systematic review

Cited by 357 publications

References 25 publications

Critical Review of the Millennium Project in Nepal

Critical Review of the Millennium Project in Nepal

On-plot drinking water supplies and health: A systematic review

“Improved” But Not Necessarily Safe: An Assessment of Fecal Contamination of Household Drinking Water in Rural Peru

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