Intermittent water supplies: challenges and opportunities for residential water users in Jordan

Abstract

Intermittent access to improved urban water supplies is a large and expanding global problem. This paper describes 16 supply enhancement and 23 demand management actions available to urban residential water users in Jordan to cope with intermittent supplies. We characterize actions by implementation, costs, and water quantities and qualities acquired or conserved. This effort systematically identifies potential options prior to detailed study and shows that water users have significant capacity to affect demand. We suggest several methods to evaluate options and highlight the need to include local water management decisions in integrated water resources management and planning at utility and regional scales.

Intermittent Domestic Water Supply: A Critical Review and Analysis of Causal-Consequential Pathways

“…Water rationing by utility Local Governance -Intermittent supply [2,7,21,99] Water utility has insufficient funds to perform job Capacity Constraint -Poor utility data management (assumed) -Poor system conditions [20,87,111,120] -Poor water utility services [23,47,48] For example, in the first row of Table 2, the condition access inequality is in the category Capacity Constraint. The literature suggests that, when present, access inequality has three consequences: consumers invest in private water infrastructure, consumers experience suffering and interpersonal conflict, and there is low consumer confidence or satisfaction with the water supply system.…”

Decision Making for Capacity Expansion of Water Supply Systems

“…Despite this progress, a staggering population of 884 million still live without access to improved sources. Inadequate water supply in some developing countries (in South Asia, Latin America, and Africa) makes many water utility managers employ intermittent water supply (IWS) as an alternative to continuous supply despite its serious water quality challenges [4]- [6]. Given the limitations on the water resources availability and the increasing demand for water, capacity expansion of the existing systems is unavoidable.…”

Modeling Residential Water Consumption in Amman: The Role of Intermittency, Storage, and Pricing for Piped and Tanker Water

“…This leads households to adopt a variety of coping strategies, such as collecting water in in-house storage tanks or using alternative water sources, depending on their socio-economic and geographic situation. Alternative water sources mainly include filling the in-house storage with water from private tanker operators, buying 10-20 L bottles from water stores filtering piped or tanker water, or buying 1-2 L water bottles from retail stores [1]. Since bottled and store water is "used exclusively for drinking and cooking" [1], piped and tanker water are by far the most quantitatively significant residential water sources in urban areas.…”

“…Alternative water sources mainly include filling the in-house storage with water from private tanker operators, buying 10-20 L bottles from water stores filtering piped or tanker water, or buying 1-2 L water bottles from retail stores [1]. Since bottled and store water is "used exclusively for drinking and cooking" [1], piped and tanker water are by far the most quantitatively significant residential water sources in urban areas. In rural areas, many households additionally have access to private wells [1].…”

“…Since bottled and store water is "used exclusively for drinking and cooking" [1], piped and tanker water are by far the most quantitatively significant residential water sources in urban areas. In rural areas, many households additionally have access to private wells [1].…”