A Longitudinal Study of Long-Term Change in Contamination Hazards and Shallow Well Quality in Two Neighbourhoods of Kisumu, Kenya

Joseph Okotto-Okotto, Lorna Okotto, Heather Price, Steve Pedley and Jim Wright
Additional contact information
Joseph Okotto-Okotto: Victoria Institute for Research on Environment and Development (VIRED), International Rabuour Environment and Development Centre, Kisumu-Nairobi Road, P.O. Box 6423-40103, Kisumu, Kenya
Lorna Okotto: School of Spatial Planning and Natural Resource Management, Jaramogi Oginga Odinga University of Science and Technology, Bondo (Main) Campus, P.O. Box 210-40601, Bondo, Kenya
Heather Price: Geography and Environment, University of Southampton, Highfield Campus, Southampton SO17 1BJ, UK
Steve Pedley: Robens Centre for Public and Environmental Health, University of Surrey, Guildford, Surrey GU2 7XH, UK
Jim Wright: Geography and Environment, University of Southampton, Highfield Campus, Southampton SO17 1BJ, UK

IJERPH, 2015, vol. 12, issue 4, 1-17

Abstract: Sub-Saharan Africa is experiencing rapid urbanisation and many urban residents use groundwater where piped supplies are intermittent or unavailable. This study aimed to investigate long-term changes in groundwater contamination hazards and hand-dug well water quality in two informal settlements in Kisumu city, Kenya. Buildings, pit latrines, and wells were mapped in 1999 and 2013–2014. Sanitary risk inspection and water quality testing were conducted at 51 hand-dug wells in 2002 to 2004 and 2014. Pit latrine density increased between 1999 and 2014, whilst sanitary risk scores for wells increased between 2002 to 2004 and 2014 (n = 37, Z = ?1.98, p = 0.048). Nitrate levels dropped from 2004 to 2014 (n = 14, Z = ?3.296, p = 0.001), but multivariate analysis suggested high rainfall in 2004 could account for this. Thermotolerant coliform counts dropped between 2004 and 2014, with this reduction significant in one settlement. Hand-dug wells had thus remained an important source of domestic water between 1999 and 2014, but contamination risks increased over this period. Water quality trends were complex, but nitrate levels were related to both sanitary risks and rainfall. Given widespread groundwater use by the urban poor in sub-Saharan Africa, the study protocol could be further refined to monitor contamination in hand-dug wells in similar settings.

Keywords: groundwater; water pollution; water wells; urbanization; latrines; longitudinal survey (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2015
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/12/4/4275/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/12/4/4275/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:12:y:2015:i:4:p:4275-4291:d:48348

Access Statistics for this article

IJERPH is currently edited by Ms. Jenna Liu

More articles in IJERPH from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().