scholarly journals Water Pricing and Affordability in the US: Public vs Private Ownership

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xue Zhang ◽  
Marcela Gonzalez Rivas ◽  
Mary Grant ◽  
Mildred E. Warner
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Water Policy ◽  
Water Systems ◽  
Private Ownership ◽  
Community Water Systems ◽  
Private Providers ◽  
Community Water ◽  
The Us ◽  
Low Income Families ◽  
Annual Water

We examine the 500 largest community water systems in the US to explore if ownership is related to annual water bills and the percent of income that low-income households spend on water. Results show that, among the largest water systems, private ownership is related to higher water prices and less affordability for low-income families. In states with regulations favorable to private providers, water utilities charge even higher prices. Affordability issues are more severe in communities with higher poverty and older infrastructure. Water policy needs to address ownership and regulation and explore new mechanisms to ensure water affordability for low-income residents.

Associations of Community Water Lead Concentrations with Hemoglobin Concentrations and Erythropoietin-Stimulating Agent Use among Patients with Advanced CKD

2021 ◽  
pp. ASN.2020091281
Author(s):  
John Danziger ◽  
Kenneth J. Mukamal ◽  
Eric Weinhandl
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Drinking Water ◽  
Kidney Disease ◽  
The United States ◽  
Water Systems ◽  
Adverse Outcomes ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Community Water Systems ◽  
Community Water ◽  
Lead Levels

BackgroundAlthough patients with kidney disease may be particularly susceptible to the adverse health effects associated with lead exposure, whether levels of lead found commonly in drinking water are associated with adverse outcomes in patients with ESKD is not known.MethodsTo investigate associations of lead in community water systems with hemoglobin concentrations and erythropoietin stimulating agent (ESA) use among incident patients with ESKD, we merged data from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Safe Drinking Water Information System (documenting average 90th percentile lead concentrations in community water systems during 5 years before dialysis initiation, according to city of residence) with patient-level data from the United States Renal Data System.ResultsAmong 597,968 patients initiating dialysis in the United States in 2005 through 2017, those in cities with detectable lead levels in community water had significantly lower pre-ESKD hemoglobin concentrations and more ESA use per 0.01 mg/L increase in 90th percentile water lead. Findings were similar for the 208,912 patients with data from the first month of ESKD therapy, with lower hemoglobin and higher ESA use per 0.01 mg/L higher lead concentration. These associations were observed at lead levels below the EPA threshold (0.015 mg/L) that mandates regulatory action. We also observed environmental inequities, finding significantly higher water lead levels and slower declines over time among Black versus White patients.ConclusionsThis first nationwide analysis linking EPA water supply records to patient data shows that even low levels of lead that are commonly encountered in community water systems throughout the United States are associated with lower hemoglobin levels and higher ESA use among patients with advanced kidney disease.

scholarly journals Anthropogenic organic compounds in source water of select community water systems in the United States, 2002-10

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joshua F. Valder ◽  
Gregory C. Delzer ◽  
James A. Kingsbury ◽  
Jessica A. Hopple ◽  
Curtis V. Price ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Organic Compounds ◽  
The United States ◽  
Water Systems ◽  
Source Water ◽  
Community Water Systems ◽  
Community Water

Factors Critical for Improving Intergenerational Mobility

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yue Chim Richard Wong
Keyword(s):  
Hong Kong ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Intergenerational Mobility ◽  
Child Poverty ◽  
Rental Housing ◽  
Social Program ◽  
The Us ◽  
Research Findings ◽  
Low Income Families ◽  
Housing Estates

Failure to appreciate theimportant fact that poverty propagated itself in the absence of a parent or a social program that had time to help young childrenhas allowed child poverty to fester, compromising children’s ability to go to school, their willingness to learn, their attitudes, and their motivation. This is a major cause of worsening intergenerational mobility and poverty. The research findings of Chetty et al. confirm the importance of investing in schooling, of having stable families, and of building communities to provide positive encouragement and support for the disadvantaged. The isolated, remote public housing estates we have in Hong Kong are unlikely to foster such communities.The findings from the US and Hong Kong strongly suggest that public sector housing policy to subsidize low-income families should be changed from providing subsidized rental housing units to homeownership units. This would have three different effects for increasing intergenerational mobility among low-income households.

scholarly journals Variations in sensitivity to chlorine in Ecuador and US consumers: implications for community water systems

2019 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 428-441 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacob Stout ◽  
Donald J. Tellinghuisen ◽  
David B. Wunder ◽  
Chad D. Tatko ◽  
Bruce V. Rydbeck
Keyword(s):  
Water Samples ◽  
Prior Experience ◽  
Critical Factor ◽  
Water Systems ◽  
Water Disinfection ◽  
Detection Sensitivity ◽  
Global Network ◽  
Successful Implementation ◽  
Community Water Systems ◽  
Community Water

Abstract Successful implementation of chlorination for disinfecting community water systems in developing countries faces obstacles, with rejection of chlorinous flavor as a significant factor. Determining consumers' abilities to accurately detect chlorine in treated water is important to identifying acceptable chlorination levels that are also effective for water disinfection. Chlorine detection sensitivity was tested in untrained Ecuadorian consumers with limited prior experience with chlorinated water and US consumers with extensive prior experience with chlorinated water. Water samples with free chlorine concentrations up to 3.0 mg/L were presented for flavor testing. Ecuadorian consumers showed higher sensitivity, being able to detect chlorination at 2.0 and 3.0 mg/L, while US consumers did not reliably detect chlorine presence for any concentration levels. Additionally, Ecuadorian consumers' rejection of water samples depended on chlorination, showing a statistically significant increase in rejections of samples with chlorine concentrations above 1.0 mg/L. On the other hand, although US consumers rejected more samples overall, their tendency to reject did not vary as a function of chlorination levels. This study demonstrated that limited experience with chlorination is a critical factor for accurate chlorine flavor detection in drinking water. This article has been made Open Access thanks to the generous support of a global network of libraries as part of the Knowledge Unlatched Select initiative.

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