Voluntary Management of Residential Water Demand in Low and Middle-Low Income Homes: A Pilot Study of Soacha (Colombia)

Water

JuanPablo Rodríguez¹  RocíoAcosta Alarcón²  HarnWei Kua³ 

[1] Centro de Investigaciones en Ingeniería Ambiental (CIIA), Departamento de Ingeniería Civil y Ambiental, Universidad de los Andes, Bogotá 111711, Colombia;Corporación Universitaria Minuto de Dios—UNIMINUTO, Bogotá 111021, Colombia;Department of Building, School of Design and Environment, National University of Singapore, 4 Architecture Drive, Singapore;

关键词: residential water demand;    voluntary management;    educational strategies;    socioeconomic factors;   

DOI  :  10.3390/w11020216

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

The efficient use of water in urban contexts becomes a priority in the face of population growth and the potential vulnerability of water supply as a result of the impacts of climate change. This pilot study focuses on the use of educational strategies to promote the voluntary management of residential water demand. Three schools in the municipality of Soacha (Colombia) were involved, where students from 12 to 15 years old participated as promoters of water consumption educational campaigns within their families, covering a total of 120 low and middle-income families. Three intervention strategies (that is, a virtual platform, learning activities, and graphical tools) were carried out. The effects of these intervention strategies on changes in the water consumption were analyzed to establish the dependence of this variable with socio-demographic, economic, environmental and quality of life factors. Different information gathering tools were used, such as validated local water utility bills, surveys and self-reports. The graphical tools reduced consumption by 14%, but other strategies did not show significant reductions. However, according to self-reported data, all educational campaigns did have positive outcomes on the participants’ behavior. It was found that socioeconomic factors, such as type of housing, socioeconomic strata, living in a rented home, and quality of life variables (such as enjoying nature and culture, good and fluid family relationships, and material possessions) significantly affected the changes in water consumption behavior.

【 授权许可】

Unknown