Maximizing aid benefits after urban disasters through partnerships with local water sector utilities

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this article is to review the status of current research on how disaster response can best adapt to the urban environment. It looks specifically at water supply assistance, analysing the role and interaction of the various stakeholders and, in particular, the relationship between aid agencies and water utilities.Design/methodology/approachThe review is based on published and unpublished documents produced on the response to emergencies having taken place in developing countries in the last 30 years.FindingsThe article reproduces statistical data on the rising trends in the incidence of disasters in cities, which emphasizes the relevance of the subject. It also shows that the experience accumulated in the last decade on the response to urban disasters suggests that partnerships between water utilities and aid agencies are beneficial. But the means to achieve this partnership require a more in‐depth analysis.Research limitations/implicationsThis review is based only on the literature and should be completed by a case study research in order to support and further develop its theses.Originality/valueWhile the level of access to urban services in the developing countries has been extensively researched in “normal times”, there has been little exploration of its role in crisis situations. This article points out the value of such research and recommends that more analysis is carried out.

Water quality changes after Kraljevo earthquake in 2010

“…Earthquakes may affect water systems in various ways. According to the literature review, earthquakes have impaired and destroyed hydrological and sewage constructions (Durukal and Erdik 2008;Pinera and Reed 2007), which causes an increase in sewage discharge and, further, oxygen depletion and ammonia toxicity. Another way an earthquake can impact a water system is liquefaction (Antonijević et al 2013;Altinok et al 2012;Anbazhagan et al 2012;Lamontagne 2002).…”

Disaster and poverty : the differential impacts of disaster on the poor in the Gulf Coast region.

“…This transition will result in a disorganized urban landscape, as many poor people relocate to cities in search of employment , resulting in illegal and unplanned dense settlements absent of basic public infrastructure (Patel & Burke, 2009). The rapid expansion of urban centers has created large areas of poverty, where in which people are extremely vulnerable to calamities (Pinera & Reed, 2007). Since the vast number of future generations will be at significant risk of catastrophes, sustainable disaster planning incorporating the special needs of socially disadvantaged population for minimizing expected devastation is required (Rendall, 2011).…”

“…An inefficient land management encourages the poor to form scattered settlements in hazardous places without adequate forms of protection and make them prone to the uneven exposure to hazards (Alam & Collins, 2010;Klinenberg, 1999;Levine, Esnard, & Sapat, 2007;Marshall, Picou, & Bevc, 2005;Myers, Slack, & Singelmann, 2008;Parr, Boyd, Harriott, & Torrence, 2009;Pinera & Reed, 2007;Plyer, Bonaguro, & Hodges, 2010;Taylor, 2006). The poor are more likely to occupy property on the most hazardous inexpensive lands, such as hillsides, floodplains, floodways, and to live and work in structures that are unlikely to endure the shock, experience damage, and temporary, and possibly permanent relocation (Briceño, 2004;Cutter, 2001;Gerber, 2007;Loucks, Stedinger, & Stakhiv, 2006;Lucchi, 2012;ManuelNavarrete, Gómez, & Gallopín, 2007;J.…”