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Water Security and Public Health in Small Remote Communities

A special issue of Water (ISSN 2073-4441). This special issue belongs to the section "Water and One Health".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 September 2022) | Viewed by 3412

Special Issue Editors

Faculty of Applied Science, School of Engineering, The University of British Columbia, Okanagan Campus, 1137 Alumni Avenue, Kelowna, BC V1V 1V7, Canada
Interests: water-related public health; drinking water quality assessment; risk analysis; environmental modelling; sustainable water supply system; oily waste and wastewater treatment

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Guest Editor
Environmental Engineering Program, University of Northern British Columbia, 3333 University Way, Prince George, BC V2N 4Z9, Canada
Interests: environmental modelling and decision analysis; environmental risk assessment; environmental pollution control; petroleum waste management; oil spill response; soil and groundwater remediation

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Guest Editor
Faculty of Applied Science, School of Engineering, The University of British Columbia, Okanagan Campus, 1137 Alumni Avenue, Kelowna, BC V1V 1V7, Canada
Interests: water supply systems; infrastructure management; environmental risk analysis; lifecycle thinking; water-energy nexus of built environment
Department of Civil Engineering, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON L8S 4L8, Canada
Interests: uncertainty analysis; risk management; stochastic modelling; water resources management; climate change impacts; environmental systems analysis
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Faculty of Applied Science, School of Engineering, The University of British Columbia, Okanagan Campus, 1137 Alumni Avenue, Kelowna, BC V1V 1V7, Canada
Interests: water quality management; sustainable water supplies; environmental risk analysis; life cycle thinking
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Faculty of Applied Science, School of Engineering, The University of British Columbia, Okanagan Campus, 1137 Alumni Avenue, Kelowna, BC V1V 1V7 Canada
Interests: sustainable water supply; human health and ecological risk assessment; climate change impacts; source water protection; water–energy nexus; environmental modelling; decision analysis
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Lack of access to clean and safe drinking water (i.e., water insecurity) has been a crisis in many small, remote communities (SRCs) around the globe. The 2015 Millennium Development Goal Report by the WHO and UNICEF pointed out that 663 million people in SRCs worldwide use unprotected sources of drinking water. Several challenges are responsible for the water insecurity in SRCs, such as the deterioration of source water quality, rapid climate change, aging water infrastructure, limited financial support, and lack of trained water operators. Water insecurity not only results in the need for increasing governmental investment in water infrastructure but also poses a great threat to public health.

In the past few years, many efforts have been made to find effective technical solutions to improve water security in SRCs. The efforts include developing artificial-intelligence-based water quality monitoring programs, identifying contaminants of emerging concern in water, assessing the associated health risks, as well as developing fit-for-purpose, cost-effective water treatment processes, smart water quality management strategies, and resilient water supply infrastructure. This Special Issue aims to provide an overview of the recently developed technical solutions for addressing water insecurity in SRCs. Topics will cover new findings and developments in water supply and public health protection in SRCs, including resilient water infrastructure and risk assessment, contaminants of emerging concerns in water, innovative cost-effective water treatment processes, sustainable water supply, source water protection, water-related health risk assessment, and water quality/supply management under external stresses (e.g., natural disasters, pandemic).

Dr. Guangji Hu
Prof. Dr. Jianbing Li
Prof. Dr. Rehan Sadiq
Dr. Zoe Li
Dr. Haroon R. Mian
Dr. Gyan Chhipi Shrestha
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Water is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • water security
  • small remote communities
  • water contamination
  • public health protection
  • risk assessment
  • water infrastructure
  • sustainable water supply

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

12 pages, 2629 KiB  
Article
Feasibility Assessment of the Application of Groundwater Remediation Techniques in Rural Areas: A Case Study of Rural Areas in the Soutpansberg Region, Limpopo Province, South Africa
by Lindelani Lalumbe, Paul Johan Oberholster and Thokozani Kanyerere
Water 2022, 14(15), 2365; https://doi.org/10.3390/w14152365 - 30 Jul 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2696
Abstract
Groundwater contribution towards human health and livelihood depends on the contaminants level in groundwater. Many people in rural communities are being exposed to waterborne diseases resulting from drinking untreated contaminated groundwater. This study argues that the lack of implementation of available groundwater remediation [...] Read more.
Groundwater contribution towards human health and livelihood depends on the contaminants level in groundwater. Many people in rural communities are being exposed to waterborne diseases resulting from drinking untreated contaminated groundwater. This study argues that the lack of implementation of available groundwater remediation methods and associated high costs are exposing rural communities to health risks. This study assessed 22 years of groundwater quality data from 12 boreholes and 2 springs to understand the contaminants level in the Soutpansberg region. A feasibility assessment of the application and design of a sustainable groundwater remediation technique was carried out based on individual- and community-based groundwater remediation types. The assessment considered groundwater management, cost and risk of theft and damage to infrastructure model for rural settings. This study determined that groundwater was not suitable for drinking purposes in some parts due to high concentration levels of NO3 and F. The feasibility assessment indicated that community-based groundwater remediation schemes are more sustainable in rural areas when compared to individual household remediation. In this study, it is recommended that groundwater remediation plans must be included in any proposed water supply or drought intervention project in rural communities. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Water Security and Public Health in Small Remote Communities)
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