TY - JOUR
T1 - Domestic water supply in rural Greenland - sufficiency, affordability and accessibility
AU - Maréchal, Judith Y. A.
AU - Hendriksen, Kåre
AU - Hansen, Lisbeth Truelstrup
AU - Gundelund, Casper
AU - Jensen, Pernille Erland
PY - 2022
Y1 - 2022
N2 - Global efforts are still under way to ensure sustainable development goal 6 of providing enough clean water to sustain public health in many regions, and especially in the Arctic where the remoteness of communities and the harsh climate make water provision especially challenging. This study aimed to examine the sufficiency, accessibility, and affordability of water supplies in rural Greenland. The state of the water supply was investigated using quantitative data on infrastructure and demographics. Qualitative data on water-related practices and perceptions were collected through fieldwork and interviews in a selection of settlements. Generally, the supply of drinking water was found to be sufficient and affordable for most. However, access was severely constrained by the lack of piping to rural homes (20% were piped). The daily water consumption of residents from un-piped households was between 13 and 23 L/d/cap, i.e. within the basic access level according to WHO, which is in theory not sufficient to sustain public health. Several health risks could be caused by the low daily consumption in un-piped homes, and water saving practices induced by it - i.e. the use of shared handwashing basins, and household water storage, which could lead to degradation of water quality at the point-of-use.
AB - Global efforts are still under way to ensure sustainable development goal 6 of providing enough clean water to sustain public health in many regions, and especially in the Arctic where the remoteness of communities and the harsh climate make water provision especially challenging. This study aimed to examine the sufficiency, accessibility, and affordability of water supplies in rural Greenland. The state of the water supply was investigated using quantitative data on infrastructure and demographics. Qualitative data on water-related practices and perceptions were collected through fieldwork and interviews in a selection of settlements. Generally, the supply of drinking water was found to be sufficient and affordable for most. However, access was severely constrained by the lack of piping to rural homes (20% were piped). The daily water consumption of residents from un-piped households was between 13 and 23 L/d/cap, i.e. within the basic access level according to WHO, which is in theory not sufficient to sustain public health. Several health risks could be caused by the low daily consumption in un-piped homes, and water saving practices induced by it - i.e. the use of shared handwashing basins, and household water storage, which could lead to degradation of water quality at the point-of-use.
KW - Arctic
KW - Drinking water
KW - Remote communities
KW - Water access
KW - Water consumption
U2 - 10.1080/22423982.2022.2138095
DO - 10.1080/22423982.2022.2138095
M3 - Journal article
C2 - 36309983
SN - 1239-9736
VL - 81
JO - International Journal of Circumpolar Health
JF - International Journal of Circumpolar Health
IS - 1
M1 - 2138095
ER -