Search Results (234)

Microplastics (MPs) have emerged as pervasive environmental contaminants due to their widespread presence across various ecosystems, including their use in single-use plastic food ware and table salt dispensers. This issue coincides with the presence of heavy metals in water sources in Doha, Qatar. Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) analysis revealed that the plastic plate and spoon were composed of polyolefin, with the spoon exhibiting additional peaks that indicated oxidation or the presence of additives. Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA) revealed that the spoon exhibited higher thermal stability, retaining approximately 10% of its mass at 700 °C, than the plate, which retained 2%, indicating the presence of complex additives or contamination. MPs in food-grade salt samples were verified through filtration and Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) Spectroscopy, identifying polymers such as polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), and polyethylene terephthalate (PET). These MPs likely stem from exposure to packaging or environmental contaminants. FTIR spectra confirmed the integrity of the polymers after treatment. Inductively Coupled Plasma–Optical Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-OES) analysis revealed varying levels of heavy metals in bottled and tap water, with notable findings including detectable arsenic and lead in both, higher calcium and magnesium in bottled water, and the presence of copper present in tap water only, highlighting potential health and infrastructure-related concerns. These results highlight the possible risks associated with exposure to MPs and heavy metals from everyday products and water sources, underscoring the need for enhanced regulatory oversight and safer material choices to ensure protection. Full article

The Roma population is one of Europe’s largest ethnic minorities, often living in inadequate living conditions, worse than those of the majority population. They frequently lack access to essential services, even in high-income countries. This lack of basic services—particularly in combination with proximity to (stray) animals and human and solid waste—significantly increases environmental health risks, and leads to a higher rate of endoparasitic infections. Our study sheds light on the living conditions and health situation in Roma communities in Slovakia, focusing on the prevalence of intestinal endoparasitic infections across various settlement localisations. It highlights disparities and challenges in access to safe drinking water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) and other potentially disease-exposing factors among these marginalised populations. This study combines a comprehensive review of living conditions as per national data provided through the Atlas of Roma communities with an analysis of empirical data on parasitological infection rates in humans, animals, and the environment in settlements, applying descriptive statistical methods. It is the first study in Europe to provide detailed insights into how living conditions vary and cause health risks across Roma settlements, ranging from those integrated within villages (inside, urban), to those isolated on the outskirts (edge, sub-urban) or outside villages (natural/rural). Our study shows clear disparities in access to services, and in health outcomes, based on where people live. Our findings underscore the fact that (i) place—geographical centrality in particular—in an already challenged population group plays a major role in health inequalities and disease exposure, as well as (ii) the urgent need for more current and comprehensive data. Our study highlights persistent disparities in living conditions within high-income countries and stresses the need for greater attention and more sensitive targeted health-promoting approaches with marginalised communities in Europe that take into consideration any and all of the humans, ecology, and animals affected (=One Health). Full article

Mineral scaling and corrosion pose significant challenges in groundwater distribution, increasing hydraulic resistance, reducing flow rates, and raising operational costs. Magnetic water treatment (MWT) has gained attention as a non-chemical method to mitigate scale formation by promoting the transformation of calcite, a hard and adherent CaCO₃ polymorph, into aragonite, a softer and less adherent form. In Chihuahua, Mexico, mineral scaling has disrupted the drinking water distribution system, reducing flow and impairing service. This study evaluates MWT’s potential to mitigate scaling by analyzing magnetized water treated under various MWT configurations. Comparative analyses were conducted via XRD and SEM to assess changes in calcium carbonate polymorphs. Finite element method (FEM) simulations in COMSOL Multiphysics 6.0 were used to evaluate the magnetic field distribution. The results show no systematic trend in CaCO₃ polymorph transformation following MWT exposure, and FEM simulations indicate negligible magnetic field gradients in certain configurations. These findings highlight the critical role of optimizing magnetic field alignment and gradient strength. Future research should refine MWT configurations and incorporate real-time monitoring to enhance its effectiveness in scale prevention. Full article

This innovative study focuses on identifying the primary trends in citizens’ decision-making regarding sustainable and healthy water use and the promotion of tap water options. The primary objective of this study was to investigate whether there was a connection between citizen-consumer choices of tap water versus bottled water and their socio-demographic attributes or environmental awareness and consciousness, which both influence the access to and quality of drinking water. The availability, safety and quality of drinking water is a basic human right and an important public health issue. Water plays a crucial role in terms of increasing geo-political and socio-economic importance. Several researchers have examined the multiple elements influencing customers’ opinions about the quality of water and services, finding that a variety of internal and external factors play a role. To accomplish the study goals, a variety of research methodologies were applied to the use case of Kilkis city, Region of Central Macedonia, Greece. Gaining insight was first facilitated via communication with a focus group of local professionals and policy-makers. Then, a social survey of 407 randomly chosen citizens was conducted to collect the data. The key determinants influencing citizens’ drinking water choices were investigated using multivariate data analysis. Specifically, cluster analysis was employed to group customers exhibiting similar water usage patterns, resulting in the identification of two groups: (a) individuals who favored bottled water and (b) individuals who favored tap water with no filtration. The comparison of the distribution of water consumers between these two clusters, via a Chi-Square test with cross tabulation analysis, showed that customers’ drinking water buying habits were not influenced by their socio-demographic traits. On the other hand, the choice of tap water was found to be positively connected to citizens’ increased level of environmental consciousness. The outcomes of this study can help the stakeholders involved to assist in making improvements to customer service programs for encouraging tap water use, as a more sustainable and healthy water option. Moreover, the population could potentially be motivated to adopt updated technologies for recycling water down the line, moving towards sustainable water resource management. Full article

Groundwater is a critical drinking water source in arid regions globally, where reliance on groundwater is highest. However, disparities in groundwater availability, access, and quality pose challenges to water security. This case study employs geostatistical tools, multivariate regression, and clustering analysis to examine the intersection of groundwater level changes (availability), socioeconomic and regulatory factors (access), and nitrate and arsenic contamination (quality) across 1881 groundwater-supplied drinking water service areas in Arizona. Groundwater availability declined over 20-year and 10-year periods, particularly outside designated management areas, with mean annual decline rates ranging from −15.97 to −0.003 m/year. In contrast, increases (0.003 to 13.41 m/year) were concentrated in urban and managed areas. Karst aquifers show long-term resilience but short-term vulnerability. Non-designated areas exhibit mixed effects, reflecting variable management effectiveness. Disparities in groundwater access emerge along various socioeconomic and regulatory lines. Communities with higher Black populations are twice as likely (OR = 2.01, p < 0.001) to experience groundwater declines, while Hispanic/Latino communities have lower depletion risks (OR = 0.92, p < 0.001). Tribal oversight significantly reduces groundwater decline risk (OR = 0.62, p < 0.001), whereas state–primacy areas show mixed effects. Higher female populations correlate with increased groundwater declines, while older populations (65+) experience greater stability. Married-family households and institutional housing are associated with greater declines. Migrant worker housing shows protective effects in long-term models. Rising groundwater levels are associated with higher nitrate and arsenic detection, reinforcing recharge-driven contaminant mobilization. Nitrate exceedance (OR = 1.05) responds more to short-term groundwater changes, while arsenic exceedance persists over longer timescales (OR = 1.01–1.05), reflecting their distinct hydrogeochemical behaviors. Community water systems show higher pollutant detection rates than domestic well areas, suggesting monitoring and infrastructure differences influence contamination patterns. Tribal primacy areas experience lower groundwater declines but show mixed effects on water quality, with reduced nitrate exceedance probabilities; yet they show variable arsenic contamination patterns, suggesting that governance influences availability and contamination dynamics. These findings advance groundwater sustainability research by quantifying disparities across multiple timescales and socio-hydrogeological drivers of groundwater vulnerability. The results underscore the need for expanded managed aquifer recharge, targeted regulatory interventions, and strengthened Tribal water governance to reduce inequities in availability, access, and contamination risk to support equitable and sustainable groundwater management. Full article

Arsenic contamination poses a severe health risk in regions with high water vulnerability and limited treatment infrastructure. This study evaluates a photovoltaic-powered water treatment system for arsenic removal in La Yarada Los Palos District, Tacna, Peru, where arsenic concentrations reached up to 0.0417 mg/L, significantly surpassing the World Health Organization (WHO) limit of 10 µg/L (0.01 mg/L) for drinking water. The system integrates a natural sedimentation pretreatment stage in a geomembrane-lined reservoir, followed by oxidation with sodium hypochlorite, coagulation, and adsorption. Arsenic removal efficiencies ranged from 99.72% to 99.85%, reducing residual concentrations below WHO guidelines. Pretreatment significantly improved performance, reducing turbidity by up to 66.67% and TSS by up to 70.37%, optimizing subsequent treatment stages. Operationally, pretreatment decreased cleaning frequency from six to four cleanings per month, while backwashing energy consumption dropped by 33% (from 45.72 kWh to 30.48 kWh). The photovoltaic system leveraged the region’s high solar radiation, achieving an average daily generation of 20.31 kWh and an energy surplus of 33.08%. The system’s performance was evaluated within the context of existing arsenic removal technologies, demonstrating that the integration of natural sedimentation and renewable energy constitutes a viable operational alternative. Given the regulatory framework in Peru, where arsenic limits align with WHO standards, conventional water treatment systems are normatively and technically unfeasible under national legislation. Furthermore, La Yarada Los Palos District faces challenges due to its limited infrastructure for conventional electrification via power grid, as identified in national reports on rural electrification and gaps in access to basic services. Beyond its performance in the study area, the system’s modular design allows adaptation to diverse water sources with varying arsenic concentrations, turbidity levels, and other physicochemical characteristics. In remote regions with limited access to the power grid, such as the study site, photovoltaic energy provides a self-sustaining and replicable alternative, particularly in arid and semi-arid areas with high solar radiation. These conditions are not exclusive to Latin America but are also prevalent in remote regions of Africa, the Middle East, Asia, and Oceania, where groundwater arsenic contamination is a significant issue and renewable energy availability can enhance water treatment sustainability. These findings underscore the potential of using sustainable energy solutions to address water contamination challenges in remote areas. The modular and scalable design of this system enables its replication in regions with adverse hydrogeological conditions, integrating renewable energy and pretreatment strategies to enhance water treatment performance. The framework presented in this study offers a replicable and efficient approach for implementing eco-friendly water treatment systems in regions with similar environmental and resource constraints. Full article

Most people in the world now live in urban areas and their shared quest for better cities is embodied in several Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations. These indicate that successful cities need jobs, adequate housing stock, effective governance, and other support systems. At the most basic level, they need a basket of core public works services like clean water and efficient transit, among others. These must be provided to improve public trust in government by addressing equity and affordability while also improving operational and cost efficiency. These targets are moving as transitions are occurring from stove-piped to integrated services, even while social contracts between government and the private sector are also shifting. Essential tools to improve cities include urban planning and infrastructure development, but applying them effectively faces challenges like climate change, inequality, social disorder, and even armed conflicts. This paper focuses on seven core public works services for drinking water, wastewater, stormwater, trash collection, mass transit, streets and traffic control, and disaster management. It reviews how these have evolved in the US, how they are organized under the federalism system, and how the goal of integrated management is being pursued. Challenges to integrated approaches include increasing responsibilities but lack of funding, political stress, and rule-driven and internally oriented management. Methods for performance assessment are explained under legacy systems based on methods like indicators and benchmarking applied to public works systems. Current methods focus on regulatory targets and the details; information has been shallow and not always timely. This paper projects how the performance assessment of core public works systems can be broadened to address goals like those of the SDGs and assesses why it is difficult to rate major systems. Examples of the activities of NGOs are given and an example of how progress toward SDG6 is included to show why performance management of integrated management applied to linked systems is needed. Performance dashboards with open government are currently the most common pathways, but emerging methods based on data analytics and visualization offer new possibilities. Reviewing the status of public works management shows that it is an important branch of the field of public administration, and it can be presented as a professional field with its own identity. The findings will support educators and researchers as well as provide policy insights into public works and stakeholder engagement. Full article

This study assessed the status of water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) services at (49) selected primary schools in uMfolozi Local Municipality, which is situated in the province of Kwa-Zulu Natal in South Africa. Data were collected using an observational checklist tool and by conducting a walk-through survey to inspect the conditions of sanitary facilities, observe the hand-washing practices of the school learners, and analyse the accessibility to safe drinking water in school premises. The data were analysed with the Statistical Package for Social Science Version 29. This study revealed that there is easy access to safe drinking water in all but one school. The dependability of the water supply seemed to be one of the most urgent problems in every school, even though all of them have some kind of drinking water infrastructure on their grounds. Municipal water (n = 25, 36%) and rainwater (n = 25, 36%) were the most common type of water used in schools compared to borehole (n = 15, 22%) and tanker truck water (n = 4, 6%). Schools must have a reserved water supply because of the inconsistent supply of municipal water, and because rainwater is a seasonal harvest while borehole water may be affected by factors like load-shedding. The UNICEF-described ratio of one tap or disperser per fifty learners suggests that the water taps in the schoolyard were insufficient in some schools (n = 25, 36%). Rainwater is collected through a gutter system in the school building roofs and stored in 5000–10,000 Jojo tanks. Borehole water is pumped into Jojo tanks at an elevated position where it is stored, and learners receive the water through taps connected to the borehole tanks. During an emergency when there is no water supply from other sources, tanker trucks are hired to fill tanks that are also used to store rainwater. The borehole and rainwater quality appeared to be clear, but water treatment had not been performed, and the microbial quality was unknown. This shows that the Sustainable Development Goal (SGD) 6, clean water and sanitation, is still far from being met. According to national norms and standards for domestic water and sanitation services, people who do not use water treatment or purification techniques fall in the ‘no service’ category and contribute to the water backlog. Pit latrines (n = 46, 94%) and flush toilet (n = 3, 6%) were found to be the only convenient toilet systems used. The number of toilets is not sufficient according to the guidelines. There are (n = 46, 94%) of the schools in the study area using pit latrine due to insufficient or no water supply. In 89.8% of primary schools, sanitation facilities are in working condition in terms of repair and hygiene, while 10.2% are not usable in terms of hygiene, and these are mostly boy’s toilets. All schools (n = 46, 94%) that have flush toilets is because they received sponsorship from non-government stakeholders that funded them in achieving piped water systems that permit the functionality of flush toilets. For the purposes of this study, hygiene was evaluate based on the items found in toilets and handwashing practices. The hygiene aspects of toilets included tissues, cleanness, and toilet seat. For handwashing practices we looked the number of washing basins, the colour of water, and having soaps to use. In the schools that did provide handwashing facilities, some of the toilets were broken, there was no water, or there was no drainage system in place to allow them to function. However, according to the school act, the handwash basins should be inside the facilities. A total of (n = 7, 14%) of handwash basins were inside the toilets. Only (n = 2, 4%) of schools had handwashing facilities which were Jojo tanks with taps near toilets, which were outside of the toilet, with no soap provided. Additionally, (n = 40, 82%) of learners used drinking points for handwashing, which can possibly transmit microbes among them. The findings revealed that, in general, (n = 32, 64%) of school toilets were clean, while, in general, the girls’ toilets were cleaner than the boys’ toilets. In all the schools, the cleaning services were from the people who were involved in school nutrition. In conclusion, there were water sources available for access to water inside schools; however, the situation can be improved by increasing the number of water source points. Pit latrines were the main used toilets, which were in a majority of the schools, and did not have the necessary terms for hygiene such as handwashing basin, tissues, and others. The lack of the main aspect, i.e., access to water and sanitation items, results in an impact on hygiene to learners as they will fail to practice proper hygiene. However, improvement can still be made by keeping the boys’ toilets clean while increasing the number of handwashing basins inside the toilets, so that they do not use taps outside the toilets. Schools should work towards meeting the required number of handwashing basins to increase access to handwashing facilities. Full article

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) build on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and aim to promote sustainable global development by addressing poverty, inequality, and environmental sustainability. Among the key objectives of the SDGs, Goal 6 targets universal access to safely managed drinking water and sanitation by 2030, recognizing the critical link between water, sanitation, hygiene (WASH), and public health. However, global challenges persist, particularly in rural areas, where infrastructure deficits and socio-economic barriers hinder progress. In regions like rural Kazakhstan, where sanitation monitoring is limited and much of the water grid is substandard, addressing these gaps is essential to meet SDG 6 targets. For this purpose, we used structured questionnaires to assess water access, sanitation services, and a multinomial logistic regression analysis to examine the factors influencing households’ willingness to pay (WTP) for individual water supply systems in Atyrau households. Water sources, sanitation availability, and household practices were investigated offering insights into sustainable water and sanitation management. Indoor taps served 44.2% of households, while 60.5% used centralized systems for drinking water. Daily interruptions affected 19.9%, with 23.0% dissatisfied with quality. Outdoor toilets were used by 79.6%, and 43.7% relied on pit-filling. While 82.5% of respondents favored free individual water supply installations, only 11.6% were willing to pay the $426 installation cost, highlighting financial constraints. Consequently, there are persistent challenges in ensuring safe drinking water and sanitation in rural areas of Kazakhstan. Infrastructure gaps, poor water quality, and reliance on outdoor toilets pose health risks. Financial constraints further limit access. Targeted investments, improved oversight, and community engagement are critical for sustainable solutions aligned with the SDGs. Full article

Coastal communities face unique challenges in maintaining continuous service from critical infrastructure. This research advances capabilities for evaluating the impact of using wave energy to desalinate water on the resilience of coastal communities. The study focuses on the feasibility of using wave energy conversion to provide drinking water to communities in need and applying resilience metrics to quantify its impact on the community. To assess the feasibility of wave-powered desalination, this research couples the open-source software Wave Energy Converter SIMulator (WEC-Sim) and Water Network Tool for Resilience (WNTR). This research explores variations in both the wave resource (location, seasonality, and duration) and the ability to maintain drinking water service during a disruption scenario by applying the simulation framework to three case studies, which are based on communities in Puerto Rico. The simulation framework provides a contextualized assessment of the ability of wave-powered desalination to improve the resilience of coastal communities, which can serve as a methodology for future studies seeking the integration of wave-powered desalination with water distribution systems. Full article

With environmental changes, sustaining watershed ecosystem services requires understanding community perceptions and preferences. Integrated approaches considering community perceptions, climate change, and land use cover change are crucial. We address a study gap by combining climate change and land use cover change data with an analysis of community perceptions to evaluate the watershed ecosystem services situation in Nepal’s Khageri Khola Watershed. Data from in-depth stakeholder interviews (n = 16), household perception surveys (n = 440), and participant observations (n = 5) were supplemented by meteorological and land use cover change data. Descriptive analysis, index value calculation, Spearman’s Rho correlation, and chi-square statistics were used to understand linkages between socio-demographics, climate change perceptions, watershed ecosystem services importance, and changes in watershed ecosystem services supply. The Mann–Kendall test, Sen’s slope calculation, and land use cover change analysis considered temperature, precipitation, and land use. Among watershed ecosystem services, communities prioritized drinking water as the most important and biodiversity support as the least important. Watershed ecosystem services exhibited decreasing trends, with soil fertility and productivity notably high (89%) and natural hazard control low (41%). Significant alignment existed between community perceptions and local climate indicators, unlike the incongruity found with land use cover changes, especially regarding water bodies. Socio-demographic factors influenced community perceptions. Policy recommendations include analyzing watershed-level community demand and preferences, integrating community perceptions with climate change and land use cover change data in decision making, engaging communities, equitable sharing of the benefits generated by watershed ecosystem services, and considering socio-demographic and topographic diversity in tailoring management strategies. Full article

The pipeline transport industry is constantly developing due to the high efficiency, long life, varied diameters of the pipelines, but a significant problem is the corrosion that occurs because of the corrosive attack of the various environments in which the pipelines are used. This study deals with the ex situ characterizations (optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy dispersive X-ray analyses, X-ray diffraction analysis, roughness, and Vickers hardness analyses) and the in situ characterizations (gravimetric and electrochemical methods). Samples of steel were tested at immersion time, after 336 h, 672 h, 1344 h, 2016 h, and 4032 h of exposure to a 3.5% NaCl solution and drinking water. The corrosion rate evaluated with the gravimetric method varied between 0.036518 and 0.008993 mm/year in the 3.5% NaCl solution and 0.02834 and 0.034162 mm/year in drinking water. The electrochemical method resulted in an estimated corrosion rate range of 0.097–0.681 mm/year for the 3.5% NaCl solution, and 0.028–0.0472 mm/year for drinking water. The passivation effect, lifetime, and operating limit of the S235JR steel in the tested corrosive environments were studied. The study can provide technical support to increase the service life of S235JR steel and to predict the suitable environment reduce corrosion costs. Full article

Water distribution systems (WDSs) are crucial for providing clean drinking water, requiring an efficient design to minimize costs and energy usage. This study introduces an enhanced life cycle energy analysis (LCEA) model for an optimal WDS design, incorporating novel criteria for pipe maintenance and a new resilience index based on nodal pressure. The improved LCEA model features a revised unit energy formula and sets standards for pipe rehabilitation and replacement based on regional regulations. Applied to South Korea’s Goyang network, the model reduces energy expenditure by approximately 35% compared to the cost-based design. Unlike the cost-based design, the energy-based design achieves results that can relatively reduce energy when designing water distribution networks by considering recovered energy. This allows designers to propose designs that consume relatively less energy. Analysis using the new resilience index shows that the energy-based design outperforms the cost-based design in terms of pressure and service under most pipe failure scenarios. The implementation of the improved LCEA in real-world pipe networks, including Goyang, promises a practical life cycle-based optimal design. Full article

Access to safe drinking water is a fundamental human need for health and well-being implemented globally by the United Nations under Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6. Storing drinking water is common in rural areas of Ethiopia due to off-premises water sources and intermittent piped water supply. However, this practice can lead to further contamination during collection, transport, and storage, posing a risk to public health. The objective of this study was to identify the determinant factors of drinking water quality at the point of use in the rural setting of northwestern Ethiopia, South Gondar zone. A questionnaire survey was conducted, and water samples from 720 households were collected during the wet and dry seasons. The determinant factors were identified using the multivariable logistic regression model. About 39.2% of the surveyed households had basic water supply services, 41.9% were using unimproved sources, and 8.3% were using surface water. Only 9.4% were using basic sanitation services, and 57.2% were practicing open defecation. Safe water storage was practiced by 84.3% of households, while only 2% engaged in household water treatment. About 14% of dry and 8% of wet season samples from the storage were free from fecal coliform bacteria. Furthermore, 52.9% of dry and 62.2% of wet season samples fell under the high microbial health risk category. The season of the year, the water source type, storage washing methods, and the socioeconomic status of the household were identified as key predictors of household drinking water fecal contamination using the multivariable logistic regression model. It was observed that the drinking water in households had a high load of fecal contamination, posing health risks to consumers. To tackle these problems, our study recommends that stakeholders should enhance access to improved water sources, implement source-level water treatment, increase access to improved sanitation facilities, advocate for safe household water management practices, and endorse household water treatment methods. Full article

Poor sanitation, improper food handling, limited access to safe drinking water sources, and limited access to healthcare services contribute to a high prevalence of infections caused by soil-transmitted helminths (STHs) among the BaAka Pygmies, an indigenous community living in Central Africa. The aim of this study was to determine the rates of STH infections in the BaAka people inhabiting the rain forests of the south-western parts of the Central African Republic (CAR) as well as to examine the validity of biannual deworming with a single dose of albendazole 400 mg in high-risk communities exposed to extreme environmental conditions. The study was conducted in August 2021 and involved a sample of 49 BaAka Pygmies inhabiting the rain forest of the Sangha-Mbaéré Prefecture, CAR. The study consisted of collecting single stool samples from each participant and examining the samples for intestinal parasites by light microscopy methods. The collected samples were fixed in SAF fixative and next transported from Africa to Europe, where they were analyzed by light microscopy using three different diagnostic methods (direct smear in Lugol’s solution, the Fülleborn’s flotation, the Kato–Katz thick smear) at the Department of Epidemiology and Tropical Medicine in Gdynia, Poland. Microscopic examination found that 61.2% of the study group were infected with at least one helminthic species. The parasitological screening found invasions with four different species of nematodes, of which hookworm invasions were the most prevalent. The study results demonstrated that although the WHO-recommended mass deworming, which is provided to the BaAka Pygmies in healthcare centers set up on the premises of catholic missions, can effectively reduce the number of infections with soil-transmitted helminths, the prevalence of STH infections remains high in the region. The study findings suggest that in order to contain the spread of STHs in the local community, it will be necessary to implement additional preventive measures, apart from only conducting mass deworming programs. Full article