Water usage in the Gaza Strip: recommendations from a literature review and consultations with experts.

Water quality in the Gaza Strip has been severely compromised due to increasing salinity, contamination with pollutants, and lack of adequate treatment options. To provide the population of the Gaza Strip with advice on how to mitigate health risks from water we developed recommendations on using water from different sources for different purposes (such as for consumption, hygiene, amenities, and irrigation) based on a literature review and consultation with experts. Specific advice was developed for several vulnerable groups, including infants, children, pregnant or lactating women, and elderly people. The recommendations are inherently limited, as it is unacceptable to recommend consuming water that is of substandard quality. However, pending long-term solutions, information can be targeted to vulnerable groups to ensure that exposure to the most harmful contaminants is avoided. The implementation of these recommendations may require information campaigns to assist the population in differentiating water from different sources for different uses.

Water usage in the Gaza Strip: recommendations from a literature review and consultations with experts

Water quality in the Gaza Strip has been severely compromised due to increasing salinity, contamination with pollutants, and lack of adequate treatment options. To provide the population of the Gaza Strip with advice on how to mitigate health risks from water we developed recommendations on using water from different sources for different purposes [such as for consumption, hygiene, amenities, and irrigation] based on a literature review and consultation with experts. Specific advice was developed for several vulnerable groups, including infants, children, pregnant or lactating women, and elderly people. The recommendations are inherently limited, as it is unacceptable to recommend consuming water that is of substandard quality. However, pending long-term solutions, information can be targeted to vulnerable groups to ensure that exposure to the most harmful contaminants is avoided. The implementation of these recommendations may require information campaigns to assist the population in differentiating water from different sources for different uses

La qualité de l'eau dans la Bande de Gaza a été grandement compromise du fait de l'augmentation de la salinité, de la contamination par les polluants, et du manque d'options de traitement appropriées. Afin de conseiller la population de la Bande de Gaza sur la façon de réduire les risques sanitaires liés à l'eau, nous avons mis au point des recommandations pour l'utilisation de l'eau provenant de différentes sources en vue d'usages variés [consommation; hygiène; utilisation des infrastructures y compris le lavage des voitures et l'arrosage de la pelouse, production et irrigation], sur la base d'une analyse documentaire et de consultations d'experts. Des conseils spécifiques ont été mis au point pour différents groupes vulnérables tels que les nourrissons, les enfants, les femmes enceintes ou allaitantes, et les personnes âgées. Les recommandations mises au point sont nécessairement limitées; il est en effet inacceptable de recommander la consommation d'une eau ne répondant pas aux normes. Cependant, en attente de solutions sur le long terme, les groupes vulnérables peuvent être ciblés afin de garantir que l'exposition aux contaminants les plus dangereux soit évitée. La mise en place de ces recommandations pourrait nécessiter des campagnes d'information pour aider les populations à reconnaître l'eau de différentes sources en vue d'usages varies