The coronavirus pandemic and its impact on water consumption as recorded by the water industry

The coronavirus outbreak has been extremely difficult for water utilities. The COVID-19 epidemic has become a challenge for the water and sewage sectors due to changes in water consumption caused by disrupted business operations, services, and household activities. Higher operating costs followed by lower revenues from the sale of water as well as staff shortages have been the biggest problems of the water and sewage industry. The drop in revenues related to lower water consumption turned out to be considerable for some enterprises, while for others it was dramatic. Some operators con-tinued to supply more water, but large increases were out of the question in their case. The paper presents innovative research on the scale of fluctuations in water demand during the COVID-19 epi-demic on the example of the Krakow Water. At Krakow, the coronavirus epidemic resulted in lower water sales, which upset the last 4 y of company rewards. Water sales monthly volume was ana-lyzed in parts divided by groups of customers. The authors based on real data which came from the billing system, where each customer belongs to a specific group or kind of conducted service or activity. The significant drop in water use was reported in the group "other customers". The reduced sales in that whole group within specific months of the 2020 year, compared to the same month of the 2019 year (before the pandemic) varied from 4.75% to 42.37%. The water sales volume, like before the pandemic is expected to reach about 2025 year.

Spatio-temporal changes in urban water consumption during 2 years of the COVID-19 pandemic in southern Brazil

This study investigated the changes that occurred during the pandemic of COVID-19 in urban water consumption in residential, commercial, industrial, and public agencies in the city of Sao Leopoldo, southern Brazil, which has about 55,000 consumers and over 200,000 inhabitants. Overall, the city increased water consumption by 5.6% during the 2-year pandemic, with 5.9% in 2020 and 5.5% in 2021. Residential and industrial consumption increased by 6.77 and 9.92% in the first year, and by 5.47 and 14.45% in the second year, respectively. On the other hand, commercial and public sector consumption decreased, respectively, 5.48 and 46.26%, in the first year, and also 1.83 and 40.99% in the second year. In the first months of the pandemic, there was a sharp increase in residential water consumption at the same time as a reduction in consumption in the other categories. In contrast, there was a slight return to previous water consumption patterns in the following months. Overall, we can affirm that the more central neighborhoods presented higher changes in water consumption than the peripheral neighborhoods. In addition, the water consumption during the pandemic and pre-pandemic periods was statistically different for residential, industrial, and public consumers.

Synchronization of water-energy consumption in residential and non-residential buildings during COVID-19

COVID-19 has made working from home (WFH) a widely prevalent mode of work, resulting in highly complex changes of energy and water consumption in buildings. To understand these changes, this study applies the concept of water-energy nexus (WEN) in the analysis of energy and water data in residential and non-residential buildings in Ontario, Canada, before and during the pandemic. The study found the overall energy and water consumption of buildings exhibited a decreasing trend, with the most significant change found in water consumption. Energy and water consumption increased in residential buildings but decreased in non-residential buildings;the changes in energy and water consumption were synchronized over the WFH period. This study also elucidated that changes were related to the demographic and job attributes. When dealing with the peak load of residential consumption with a high consumption benchmark, due consideration should be given to the stronger synchronization of the two types of resources to improve the resilience of residences to cope with the uncertainty of unexpected large-scale public health crisis. Applying WEN to building resource consumption during WFH for the first time, the findings shed light on the need to enhance integrated water and energy management. © 2023 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

Analysis of Electricity and Water Consumption in Existing Mosque Buildings in the UAE

According to the World Economic Forum, the building sector is responsible for 40% of global energy consumption and 33% of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and this is expected to increase due to population growth and the subsequent impact on the environment, economy and health. To tackle the problem, countries have set new construction codes, policies and regulations for the construction of new buildings in an effort to make them greener. However, there is a need to enhance the status of the existing buildings, especially mosques, as they are the main contributors to energy usage and water consumption in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Therefore, this research seeks to fill this gap, aiming to evaluate the energy usage and water consumption practices employed in the existing mosque buildings within the UAE and to provide recommendations for improving the sustainability of mosques, with a focus on the environmental and economic pillars. The methodology relies mainly on data collected from 146 existing mosque buildings that have undergone energy saving audits across the UAE. Descriptive statistical analysis is performed to analyze the data from the period of 2018–2019 in order to determine the most significant factors related to energy inefficiency in existing mosque buildings in the UAE and to determine the most cost-effective and energy-saving corrective measures for energy and water conservation. The findings further enhance the standard of experience for mosque visitors (social aspect);reduce energy bill expenses, providing an acceptable return on investment from the proposed energy conservation measures for stakeholders (economic);and reduce the overall energy consumption, which can reduce the total CO2 emissions from mosque buildings (environmental).

The impact of COVID-19 and natural disasters on water consumption across sectors: case studies of Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago

The Small Island Developing States of the Caribbean (SIDS) are among the most vulnerable to natural hazards, particularly hydroclimatic and, in some cases, geological. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic added another layer of complexity to the already disruptive risk profiles of these countries. Understanding how these hazards, both individually and cumulatively, impact sectors, particularly essential sectors such as the water sector, is crucial. This paper examines the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on water consumption along with concurrent natural hazards in two Caribbean countries: Barbados, and Trinidad and Tobago. The assessment indicated a marked influence on consumption levels in various sectors consistent with imposed public health restrictions. In the case of Barbados, monthly consumption decreased during the pandemic across all categories when compared to the pre-Covid period, except for residential consumption, which increased by approximately 9%. For Trinidad and Tobago, a decrease in average monthly water consumption across all categories, ranging from 3% to 13% was noted. Although available data did not permit conclusive analysis, we have discerned some general trends, identified gaps, and provided recommendations. Our findings can provide useful guidance for water utilities in the region to better understand consumer behaviour and address demand and supply issues. © 2023 The Authors.

Managing Building Water Disruptions in a Post-COVID World: Water Quality and Safety Risk Assessment Tool for Academic Institutions and School Settings

Fluctuating building occupancy during the COVID-19 pandemic contributed to poor water quality and safety conditions in building water distribution systems (BWDSs). Natural disasters, man-made events, or academic institutional calendars (i.e., semesters or holiday breaks) can disrupt building occupant water usage, which typically increases water age within a BWDS. High water age, in turn, is known to propagate poor water quality and safety conditions, which potentially exposes building occupants to waterborne pathogens (e.g., Legionella) associated with respiratory disease or hazardous chemicals (e.g., lead). Other influencing factors are green building design and municipal water supply changes. Regardless of the cause, an increasing number of water management policies require building owners to improve building water management practices. The present study developed a Water Quality and Safety Risk Assessment (WQSRA) tool to address gaps in building water management for academic institutions and school settings. The tool is intended to assist with future implementation of water management programs as the result of pending policies for the built environment. The WQSRA was modeled after water management practices created for controlling water contaminants in healthcare facilities. Yet, a novel WQSRA tool was adapted specifically for educational settings to allow building owners to evaluate risk from water hazards to determine an appropriate level of risk mitigation measures for implementation. An exemplar WQSRA tool is presented for safety, facility, industrial hygiene, and allied professionals to address current gaps in building water management programs. Academic institutions and school settings should examine the WQSRA tool and formulate an organization-specific policy to determine implementation before, during, and after building water-disruptive events associated with natural or man-made disasters.

CHANGES IN THE BASIC UNIT WATER VOLUME OF HOUSEHOLD WATER DUE TO COVID-19: ANALYSIS OF THE RELEVANT FACTORS BASED ON QUESTIONNAIRE SURVEY DATA

The purpose of this study is to statistically analyze the changes in the usage of domestic water in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and other relavant factors. In this analysis, the results of a questionnaire survey on water use and the basic unit water volume of each household were used. Specifically, focusing on the ratio of the basic unit water volume in FY2020 (during COVID-19) to FY2019 (before COVID-19), households larger than the standard are referred to as "high group" and households smaller than the standard are referred to as "low group". The binary variables were set as outcomes, and statistical tests of differences and logistic regression analysis were performed. As a result of the analysis, it was clarified that the "change in the number of washings" and "change in the number of cooking for dinner" contributed largely to the group with a high water volume ratio. It was also determined that higher changes in the water volume ratio tended to occur in households that did not include the elderly (65 years old or older) as family members.Alternate :抄録　本研究の目的は，水使用に関するアンケート調査結果と当該世帯の原単位水量データを用い，コロナ禍における生活用水の利用状況に関する変化とその要因を統計的に分析することである．具体的には，2019年度（コロナ禍前）に対する2020年度（コロナ禍）の原単位水量の比（前年比）に着目し，基準より大きい世帯を「高値群」，小さい世帯を「低値群」とした2値変数をアウトカムに設定し，差の検定及びロジスティック回帰分析を実施した．分析の結果，水量前年比の高値群に「洗濯回数変化」及び「夕食調理回数変化」が寄与する要因となることが明らかとなった．また，家族構成員に高齢者（65歳以上）を含む世帯に比べ，それを含まない世帯での水量前年比の増加変化が多く確認された点も特徴的である．

A risk assessment model of WSMC projects under emergencies

As a novel market-based water-saving mechanism, the Water Saving Management Contract (WSMC) project faces interruption risk caused by emergencies like the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. An interruption risk assessment model of WSMC projects is established through a quantitative evaluation of the impact of emergencies on water users based on input-output theory. First, the concept of the interruption risk index (IRI) is defined as a function of the duration of enterprise shutdown (DES). Second, the DES is divided into two parts: the duration caused by COVID-19 and that under other types of emergencies. Third, the risk tolerance threshold is given to estimate the interruption result, and its different consequences are discussed. Finally, a WSMC project in China is taken as a case study, and its interruption risks are analysed. The results show that the IRIs of this WSMC in both 2020 and 2021 are theoretically greater than the risk tolerance thresholds, and the high pandemic prevention standards and conservative pandemic estimates are the main reasons for the above results. The model established in this study provides a reference for WSMC participants to deal with emergencies and provides the theoretical support for the extension of the WSMC.

Influence of exogenous factors on water demand forecasting models during the COVID-19 period

Water scarcity has urged the need for adequate water demand forecasting to facilitate efficient planning of municipal infrastructure. However, the development of water consumption models is challenged by the rapid environmental and socio-economic changes, particularly during unforeseen events like the COVID-19 pandemic. This study investigated the impact of COVID-19 on the efficiency of water demand prediction models, considering the lockdown measures and various exogenous features, such as previous consumption (PC) and socio-demographic (SDF), seasonal (SF), and climatic (CF) factors. Multiple ensemble models, gradient-boosting machines (GBM), extreme-gradient-boosting (XGB), light-gradient-boosting, random forest (RF), and stack regressor (STK) were examined, compared to other machine-learning techniques, multiple -linear regression (MLR), decision trees, and neural networks. The models were tested using 3-year metering records for 128,000 consumers in Dubai. The feature importance analysis indicated that PC and SDF had a significant impact on consumption rates with correlation coefficients of 0.95 and 0.74, respectively, as opposed to SF and CF, which had negligible effect. The results showed that, before COVID, RF and STK outperformed other models with a coefficient-of-determination (R2) and root-mean-squared-error (RMSE) of 0.928 and 0.039, followed by XGB at 0.923 and 0.041, respectively. However, MLR achieved the highest prediction accuracy amid COVID with R2 and RMSE of 0.90 and 0.05, followed by GBM and XGB equally at 0.83 and 0.06, respectively. An ensemble-based error prediction model was applied, resulting in up to 9.2% improvement in predictions. Overall, this research emphasized the efficiency of ensemble models in handling fluctuating data with a high degree of nonlinearity.

Water management issues in the context of music festivals

In recent years, festivals, especially music festivals have become important vectors for promoting their host cities. Festivals are complex phenomena with high economic and socio-cultural impact. High CO2 emissions and huge resource consumption are commonly related to the festivals' negative environmental impact. Ensuring the suitable amount of water for a large-scale event is essential for both the audience experience and the city residents, especially when their access to water is hindered by excessive water usage for the festival. Therefore, an accurate estimation of water consumption during festivals is a prerequisite for rigorous water planning. In the Covid-19 world, due to the worsening crisis of resources and to the increasing pressure exerted by audiences asking for more eco-conscious events, festival organizers are called to get together with other stakeholders and re-examine the water management issues. Water companies have already started to embrace digital solutions. Their further implementation will result in a large amount of environmental data that could contribute to a paradigm shift concerning festival sustainability. The present paper was conceived around this topic, with the goal of increasing the awareness of all the actors involved in festival operational processes. Outcomes of a desk research and a case study focused on the UNTOLD and Electric Castle music festivals are presented.

Estimation of household water consumption pattern in a metropolitan area taking the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

A new approach for estimating the household water consumption pattern was developed by taking the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic using geographical data. Water consumption data for two years before and a year after the outbreak of the pandemic were analyzed to recognize the consumption pattern on annual and bi-monthly time scales as well as in different spatial classes. Following the recognition of the pattern, the spatiotemporal distribution of household water consumption was estimated based on the discovered connections between consumption and geographical variables. Once a regression relationship between consumption and population density was observed, an idea was developed to investigate the linear equations and their coefficient of parameters in water consumption groups from very low to very high classes using the training data. The coefficients were then adjusted to account for the pandemic's impact on the consumption pattern. Results showed that the highest increases in consumption were 11% for May-July due to the impact of the pandemic while the impact was from decreasing type during lockdowns. A pandemic-induced decline in the mean of consumption was linked to temporary migration by high-income families, whereas the water consumption of others faced an increase. The impact has also increased the slope of the linear relationship between the annual water consumption and population density increased by 3.5%. The proposed model estimated the annual water consumption with the accuracy of %3.77, %1.82, and %1.85 for two years before, one year before and one year after the pandemic, respectively.

Influence of exogenous factors on water demand forecasting models during the COVID-19 period

Water scarcity has urged the need for adequate water demand forecasting to facilitate efficient planning of municipal infrastructure. However, the development of water consumption models is challenged by the rapid environmental and socio-economic changes, particularly during unforeseen events like the COVID-19 pandemic. This study investigated the impact of COVID-19 on the efficiency of water demand prediction models, considering the lockdown measures and various exogenous features, such as previous consumption (PC) and socio-demographic (SDF), seasonal (SF), and climatic (CF) factors. Multiple ensemble models, gradient-boosting machines (GBM), extreme-gradient-boosting (XGB), light-gradient-boosting, random forest (RF), and stack regressor (STK) were examined, compared to other machine-learning techniques, multiple-linear regression (MLR), decision trees, and neural networks. The models were tested using 3-year metering records for 128,000 consumers in Dubai. The feature importance analysis indicated that PC and SDF had a significant impact on consumption rates with correlation coefficients of 0.95 and 0.74, respectively, as opposed to SF and CF, which had negligible effect. The results showed that, before COVID, RF and STK outperformed other models with a coefficient-of-determination (R2) and root-mean-squared-error (RMSE) of 0.928 and 0.039, followed by XGB at 0.923 and 0.041, respectively. However, MLR achieved the highest prediction accuracy amid COVID with R2 and RMSE of 0.90 and 0.05, followed by GBM and XGB equally at 0.83 and 0.06, respectively. An ensemble-based error prediction model was applied, resulting in up to 9.2% improvement in predictions. Overall, this research emphasized the efficiency of ensemble models in handling fluctuating data with a high degree of nonlinearity.

UNICON: An Open Dataset of Electricity, Gas and Water Consumption in a Large Multi-Campus University Setting

In this paper we introduce UNICON, a large-scale open dataset on UNIversity CONsumption of utilities, electricity, gas and water. This dataset is publicly released as part of La Trobe University's commitment to Net Zero Carbon Emissions by 2029, for which we are building the La Trobe Energy AI/Analytics Platform (LEAP) that leverages Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Data Analytics to analyse, predict and optimize the consumption, generation and utilization of electricity, renewables, gas and water resources. UNICON contains consumption data for La Trobe's five campuses in geographically distributed regions, across four years, 2018-2021 inclusive. This includes the COVID-19 global pandemic timeline of university shutdown and work from home measures that led to a significant decrease in the consumption of utilities. The consumption data consists of smart electricity meter readings at 15-minute granularity, gas meter readings at hourly intervals and water meter readings at 15-minute intervals. UNICON also contains weather data from the closest weather station to each campus, collected at two-speed latency of 1 minute and 10 minutes. The dataset is annotated with internal events of significance, such as energy conservation measures (ECMs) and other measurement and validation (M&V) activities conducted as part of LEAP optimization. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first large-scale, comprehensive, open dataset for the three main utilities, electricity, gas, and water consumption in a multi-campus university setting. A high granularity data dictionary and technical validation of the dataset for consumption trends, baseline modelling and forecasting are further contributions of this article that will enable interested research scientists, academics, industry practitioners, sustainability and energy consultants to experiment and evaluate their AI algorithms, models, forecasts, as well as inform the development of energy benchmarks, guidelines and much needed data-driven energy policies. © 2022 IEEE.

Assessing the Impact of SARS-CoV-2 on Water Consumption in São Paulo State, Brazil

The pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in 2020 led to a significant change in human behaviors, mainly because of the quarantine to avoid the spread of the virus. Measures affected both economic activities and citizens' behaviors as they developed more intense hygiene habits to avoid contamination and switched to home offices. These exceptional behaviors also affected the way that water is consumed and need to be fully understood to manage supply systems. Therefore, this study aims to investigate changes in residential and commercial water consumption in 31 municipalities in the state of São Paulo, Brazil, during SARS-CoV-2. To do this, the expected consumption for the first half of 2020 was forecasted using the Holt-Winters multiplicative method and compared with the data observed for the same period. In addition, we compared monthly records of new contaminations and the social distancing index to establish a correlation with changes in water consumption. The results show an average difference between forecasted and observed consumption equal to +6.23% and -18.59% for residential and commercial activities, respectively. For the first one, the consumption per capita increased at the rate of 8.44 L.person-1.day-1. The observed changes in consumption seem to be a consequence of hygiene habits, social distancing and the closing of nonessential services in commerce. © 2022 American Society of Civil Engineers.

Utjecaj pandemije 2020. godine na rezultate analize potreba za vodom i posljedično definiranje količina otpadnih voda i kapaciteta UPOV-a

S ciljem suzbijanja globalne pandemije bolesti COVID-19 tijekom 2020. godine uvedene su stroge mjere koje su ograničavale brojne aktivnosti, djelatnosti i kretanje stanovništva na razini cijelog Svijeta pa tako i Hrvatske. U ovom radu analiziran je utjecaj uvedenih ograničenja na kretanje potrošnje vode po pojedinim kategorijama potrošača (kućanstva, privreda) na temelju podataka prikupljenih za 17 isporučitelja vodnih usluga na području Republike Hrvatske. Pritom su podjednako zastupljeni podaci za kontinentalni (ne-turistički) i primorski (turistički orijentiran) dio teritorija. Provedena je analiza potrošnje vode u 2020. godini u odnosu na prosječne vrijednosti potrošnje u prethodnom petogodišnjem periodu. Detektirane su promjene u odnosu na udio pojedine kategorije u ukupnoj potrošnji te su dani zaključci i preporuke o potrebi kritičkog sagledavanja podataka za 2020. godinu prilikom izrade projekcija u sklopu analize potreba za vodom. Na pokaznom primjeru demonstriran je i utjecaj promjena u potrošnji vode 2020. godine na definiranje opterećenja (hidrauličkog i biološkog) uređaja za pročišćavanje otpadnih voda.Alternate :In order to supress the COVID-19 global pandemics in 2020, strict measures, which limited numerous activities and movement of people at the global level, including Croatia, were introduced. The paper analyses the impact of introduced limitations on the water demand per individual consumer categories (households, economy) based on data collected for 17 water services providers in the Republic of Croatia. The data for the continental and coastal (tourism-oriented) parts of the country were equally represented. The conducted analysis looked at water consumption in 2020 in relation to average consumption values in the previous 5-year period. The changes regarding the shares of individual categories in the total consumption were detected, and conclusions and recommendations were offered in relation to the need for gaining a critical insight into the 2020 data when developing projections within the water demand analysis. An indicative example was also used as a demonstration of the impact of changes in the 2020 water consumption on the determination of (hydraulic and biological) loads on waste water treatment plants.Alternate :Im Laufe des Jahres 2020 wurden strenge Maßnahmen getroffen, die zahlreiche Aktivitäten, Tätigkeiten und Bewegungsfreiheit der Bevölkerung in der ganzen Welt und so auch in Kroatien beschränkt haben mit dem Ziel, die COVID-19-Pandemie zu bekämpfen. In diesem Beitrag wird der Einfluss der eingeführten Beschränkungen auf den Wasserverbrauch in einzelnen Verbraucherkategorien (Haushalte, Industrie) analysiert auf Grund der Angaben, die von 17 Wasserversorgern in Kroatien erhoben wurden. Dabei werden die Angaben für das kontinentale Gebiet (nicht-touristisch orientiert) und die Küste (touristisch orientiert) gleichermaßen vertreten. Die Analyse des Wasserverbrauchs im Jahre 2020 wurde in Vergleich zu den durchschnittlichen Werten im vergangenen Fünfjahreszeitraum durchgeführt. Es konnten Änderungen in Bezug auf den Anteil einzelner Kategorie im Gesamtverbrauch festgestellt werden. Die Ergebnisse und Empfehlungen für die Notwendigkeit einer kritischen Betrachtung dieser Angaben für 2020 werden angesichts der Erfassung von Projektionen im Rahmen der Wasserbedarfsanalysen gegeben. Auf einem Beispiel wird auch der Einfluss der Änderungen im Wasserverbrauch in 2020 auf die Bestimmung der hydraulischen und biologischen Belastung einer Abwasserkläranlage dargestellt.

The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Food Consumption Habits, Food Purchasing Behaviours, and Food Security Status among South Africans

This study assesses the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on food consumption habits, food purchasing behaviours, and food security status among South African adults. The researchers conducted an online consumer survey for the month of October 2020. Approximately two-thirds of participants were youth and women, predominantly from KwaZulu-Natal. A significant number of participants reported to either having remained the same weight or gained weight. Changes in food consumption habits included a significant increase in snack consumption, increased water consumption, and improved food skills. Notably, no food was eaten significantly more than before COVID-19 and no food was eaten significantly less than before COVID-19. Regarding food purchasing behaviours, a significantly high number of participants indicated that food prices increased during the lockdown. Whilst a significant number of participants indicated that they had no difficulties eating enough food, a significant number of participants reported that they could not afford to buy more food and as a coping strategy resorted to planting vegetables. The findings of this survey provide an advancement of knowledge on food consumption, food purchasing behaviours, and food security status during emergency situations as well as long-term food-related strategies.

Sanitation progress slows to a crawl amid pandemic

Speed read COVID-19 upped demand for water, sanitation and hygiene facilities But progress has been slow, before and since the pandemic began Data collection on WASH access is key to gaining ground, say experts Progress towards universal access to handwashing facilities has slowed in communities from Latin America to Sub-Saharan Africa amid the pandemic, data analysis reveals. According to the UN children’s agency UNICEF, 82 per cent of Brazilians had access to safe water sources in 2015, increasing slightly to 86 per cent in 2020. “The public water companies installed pipe systems and donated tanker trucks to the poorest communities, installed laundries for the street population and negotiated the water billing debt. [...]the increase in water consumption has been detrimental for some communities: in Algeria, water consumption increased with the rise in the number of COVID-19 cases, creating a major water deficit.

Bottled water sales rose globally as pandemic took hold

Speed read Bottled water consumption rose in many poor countries during COVID-19 lockdowns Lack of access to safe drinking water a factor in the shift to bottles But countries reliant on tourism saw a decline in sales Families in some of the poorest parts of the world turned to buying bottled water as the pandemic sent countries into lockdown, with larger chunks of incomes being spent on drinking water, SciDev.Net analysis shows. Bottled water consumption has increased in the past two years as the number of production companies has increased, while outbreaks of the waterborne disease cholera, as well as COVID-19, have driven the need for safe drinking water. The extent to which communities trust their public or private water suppliers is one factor in the rise or fall of bottled water sales, say analysts.

Back to basics: urban households’ perspective on free water supply in Ghana in the COVID-19 pandemic

Water supply is a basic human right and governments have sought to fulfil this right through free supply of water. The emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic has pushed governments, including the Government of Ghana, to return to supply of free water as a measure of enhancing personal hygiene in fighting against the COVID-19 pandemic. This study sought to analyse the reliability of water supply before and during the COVID-19 pandemic and the state of households’ water consumption during the pandemic. The paper is based on an online survey of 4,257 urban households across the 16 administrative regions of Ghana. The study found that flow reliability has increased during the COVID-19 pandemic free water delivery. We also established that correlation between consumption before and during the pandemic was r = 0.659, p < 0.01. Therefore, use of the ‘stay home campaign’ as a strategy to contain the disease in addition to social connection and sharing free water, have increased domestic water consumption. Although the pandemic necessitated the return to water being delivered as a basic necessity to fight against the pandemic, the emphasis on ‘back to basics’ was not fully implemented. This is because some urban households that could not pay water bills prior to the free water supply were denied the COVID-19 pandemic free water package and rural households who relied on point sources also did not benefit from the package. © The authors, 2022.

Measuring Pollution Control and Environmental Sustainable Development in China Based on Parallel DEA Method

The purpose of this study is to explore the impact of pollution control on industrial production efficiency in 31 provinces and cities in the Yellow River and Non-Yellow River basins in China from 2013 to 2017, using the methods of the directional distance function (hereinafter referred to as DDF) and the technology gap ratio (hereinafter referred to as TGR) in parallel, while taking the industrial production sector (labor force, total capital formation, energy consumption and industrial water consumption) and the pollution control sector (wastewater treatment funds and waste gas treatment funds) as input variables. Undesirable outputs (total wastewater discharge, lead, SO2 and smoke and dust in wastewater) and an ideal output variable (industrial output value) are taken as output variables. It is found that the total efficiency of DDF in the Non-Yellow River Basin is 0.9793, which is slightly better than 0.9688 in the Yellow River Basin. Among the 17 provinces and cities with a total efficiency of 1, only Shandong and Sichuan are located in the Yellow River Basin. The TGR values of 31 provinces, cities and administrative regions are less than 1, and the average TGR value of the Yellow River Basin is 0.3825, which is lower than the average TGR value of the Non-Yellow River Basin of 0.5234. We can start by improving the allocation of manpower and capital, implementing the use of pollution prevention and control funds, improving the technical level of industrial production, improving pollutant emission, and increasing output value to improve overall efficiency performance. This study uses the parallel method, taking the industrial production department and the pollution control department as inputs, to objectively evaluate the changes in industrial production efficiency and technology gap in the Yellow River and Non-Yellow River basins, which is conducive to mastering the situation of pollution control and industrial production efficiency, and provides the reference for SDG-6- and SDG-9-related policy making.