Are There Seasonal Variations in Faecal Contamination of Exposure Pathways? An Assessment in a Low–Income Settlement in Uganda

Patrick Ronoh, Claire Furlong, Frank Kansiime, Richard Mugambe and Damir Brdjanovic
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Patrick Ronoh: Environmental Engineering and Water Technology Department, IHE Delft Institute of Water Education, 2611 AX Delft, The Netherlands
Claire Furlong: Environmental Engineering and Water Technology Department, IHE Delft Institute of Water Education, 2611 AX Delft, The Netherlands
Frank Kansiime: Department of Environmental Management, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, Makerere University, Kampala 7062, Uganda
Richard Mugambe: Department of Disease Control and Environmental Health, School of Public Health, College of Health Sciences, Makerere University, Kampala 7062, Uganda
Damir Brdjanovic: Environmental Engineering and Water Technology Department, IHE Delft Institute of Water Education, 2611 AX Delft, The Netherlands

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 17, 1-19

Abstract: Sanitation infrastructure are not able to cope with the increasing population in low-income countries, which leaves populations exposed to faecal contamination from multiple pathways. This study evaluated public health risk (using SaniPath) in a low-income community during the dry season, to identify the dominant exposure pathways, and compare this data to existing data for the rainy season, questioning the assumption that risk of faecal contamination is higher in the rainy season. SaniPath was used to collect and assess exposure and environmental data, and to generate risk profiles for each pathway. In the dry season the highest exposure frequency was for bathing and street food, exposure frequency generally increased, and seasonal variation was found in five pathways. The highest hazards in the dry season were through contact with drains, soil, and street food. Seasonal variation was found in the contamination of open drains and street food, with higher levels of Escherichia coli ( E. coli ) in the dry season. Open drains were identified as the most dominant risk pathway in both seasons, but risk was higher in the dry season. This highlights the complex nature of seasonal variation of faecal risk, and questions the assumption that risk is higher in the rainy season.

Keywords: sanitation; SaniPath; seasonal variation; exposure pathways; low-income; Kampala (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:17:y:2020:i:17:p:6355-:d:406978

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