MOBILE NOTE 5

Water source selection

Introduction
Water is essential for life, but for
many people, the quantity of water
available may be minimal, and the
water may be of poor quality. This
note outlines some of the issues which
need to be considered when planning
improvements to supplies, to ensure
that the most appropriate sources of
water are selected.

The three types of water source

considered in this guide are rainwater,
surface water and groundwater.
Contents
Introduction.....................................................1
Rainwater........................................................3
Surface water..................................................3
Groundwater....................................................5
Socio-political and cultural..............................
considerations ................................................8
Yield versus demand.....................................13
Water quality.................................................13
Technical requirements................................15
Economic considerations.............................15
Legal and management requirements........16
Impacts of development...............................16
Additional illustrations..................................17
Further reading.............................................17
About this note..............................................19
Rainwater
Collecting rainwater from either an
existing roof structure or a ground
catchment area can provide a useful
supplementary source of water even if it
is not used as the main supply. Storage
tanks are usually required to make the
best use of rainwater.

Figure 1. Rainwater catchment

Surface water
When rain falls to the ground it becomes
surface water, where it may move across
the ground in the form of streams or
rivers, or remain in one place in the form
of ponds or lakes.

Figure 2. Surface water

Surface water is easily polluted and can
be affected by wide seasonal variations
in turbidity (‘muddiness’) and flow.

Variations in turbidity present a

challenge for the effective operation of
treatment processes, while variations
in flow affect the location and design of
abstraction structures. Surface water,
however, is often the easiest to access.

Groundwater
Some surface water sinks into the
ground and becomes groundwater. Here
it can remain for long periods in aquifers
– spaces underground which can hold
water because the surrounding earth
and rock is impervious (does not let
water through).

Groundwater may be obtained in

several ways:

Water from mountain springs can often

be transmitted to areas of demand
by gravity, limiting the operation
and maintenance requirements of a
supply system.

Figure 3. Water from a mountain spring

Shallow wells can also provide a supply

system with minimal operation and
maintenance requirements – ­ particularly
if they are well-constructed, protected,
and fitted with a handpump. For larger
supplies, diesel or petrol pumps may be
used in place of handpumps. Shallow
wells can often be constructed using
local techniques and labour.

Figure 4. Drawing water from a well

Shallow or deep boreholes usually
require drilling equipment and an
experienced drilling team, but they can
provide high-yield supplies of good-
quality water. Groundwater, however,
may be affected by high levels of
chemicals, such as fluoride or chloride.

Locating groundwater can be difficult.

The presence of existing wells with
good, stable yields, other positive
hydrological features, or information
from satellite images can highlight
groundwater potential but following
this, extensive field-trials are usually
required to determine acceptable
borehole locations.

Socio-political and cultural

considerations
Socio-political and cultural consider-
ations are as important, if not more
so, than the technical requirements
for development. If the water supply is
not culturally appropriate, and causes
security difficulties or restricts access
for certain groups such as women or
disabled people, the benefits of the new
system will be limited.

Women and water

Communities may use a single source
or several sources of water for different
needs such as drinking, washing clothes
and watering crops. It is often the women
and children who are most involved in
water collection and its use. They are
likely to have the most knowledge about
existing sources, and are the people
most likely to benefit if new supplies are
developed. They are also the most likely
to suffer if a new water supply system
is not appropriate to the needs of a
community. It is essential, therefore, that
women and children, as well as men,
should be involved in every stage of a
water-supply project.

Participative approaches should be

used when selecting water sources and
designing village-level supply systems.
If some sections of the community are
not involved and their views are not taken
into account, the water supply system is
likely to be under-used and may easily
fall into disrepair.

Figure 5. Community meeting

People may revert to their old water

sources which may be more polluted.

Water committees
Water committees are set up in many
areas to manage water supply systems.
Care must be taken to ensure that all
groups in the community are repre-
sented and can make their concerns and
needs heard and understood. It is often
difficult to achieve this.

Figure 6. Collecting water

Women, for example, may form part of a

water committee but they still may not
have a voice within it because of cultural
or social conditions which prevent them
from speaking in public.Innovative
approaches are required to ensure that
representatives of as many groups as
possible can participate equally.

Operation and maintenance

Care must be taken when identifying
personnel both to undertake training,
and to be responsible for operation and
maintenance.

Figure 7. Problems of erosion and poor

maintenance of the protective
fence around a handpump can
lead to contamination of the
water source
It is well documented that women
often make the most conscientious
maintenance workers but are often
expected to undertake the task free of
charge in situations where men would
normally be paid. Care must be taken,
therefore, to ensure that both women
and men are consulted on the matter,
that they are willing to undertake the
task, and that they are compensated in a
way which is fair and appropriate.

Yield versus demand

The yield must be adequate. If a more
convenient supply is developed, then
consideration must be given to the
potential increase in demand and to the
possible migration of outsiders into the
community, particularly in areas where
water is scarce.

Water quality
All water is susceptible to contamination.
It may accumulate contaminants from
the air, the ground, or from rocks. Some
of these contaminants, such as low
levels of certain minerals or compounds,
are not harmful to health, whereas
others, such as pathogens, may be.

The water quality must also be

acceptable and treatment methods
suited to the community concerned.
What local treatment methods, if any,
are already being used in the area? Can
they be used in the new system? The
benefits of using improved sources of
water will be increased if the community
practises good sanitation and hygiene.
Will their current behaviour pollute the
water source or reduce the benefits of
an improved supply? Would additional
resources be required to help reduce
these risks?

Some water-quality problems such as

high fluoride levels are very hard to treat
and have serious health implications,
whereas others, such as turbidity, are
usually easier to deal with.
Technical requirements
The development of the source must be
technically feasible, and the operation
and maintenance requirements for the
source abstraction and supply system
must be appropriate to the resources
available.
If the supply system cannot be operated
and maintained either by the villagers
themselves or the organizations or
institutions within the area, then the
systems are likely to be misused or fall
into disrepair.

Economic considerations
Care must be taken to ensure that funds
are available for both the construction
and the operation and maintenance of
the system over the longer term. Who
will pay, how will they pay, and how
much will they pay? Who will manage
and maintain the system, and who will
collect the funds? From whom will the
resources be obtained and how will they
be secured?
Legal and management
requirements
Current ownership of the land and
the legal requirements of obtaining
permission to abstract are also factors
to consider when selecting a source.
Sources on private land may cause
access problems for certain groups
which may not be apparent at the outset.
The consequences of siting decisions
must be considered carefully.

Impacts of development
The use of a particular water source will
have impacts on the people who use it,
on animals, and on the environment.

The impacts on people may be positive or

negative, and may be related, amongst
other things, to health, economic status
or time. If a surface water source is
used, there may be impacts on remote
users and, likewise, if wastewater
enters surface water sources, there
may be similar impacts. Impacts on
the environment may include loss of
vegetation, erosion, or the draining of an
aquifer.

Additional illustrations
Selecting a water source for a
community supply system requires
careful consideration of a range of
factors

Steps for selecting alternative water

supplies

Further reading
This note is also available in print:
WEDC Guide 15: Water source selection

ALMEDOM, A. and ODHIAMBO, C.,

‘The rationality factor: Choosing water
sources according to water uses’,
Waterlines, Vol.13, No.2, IT Publications,
London, 1994.
BRIKKÉ, F., BREDERO, M., de VEER,
T., and SMET, J., Linking Technology
Choice with Operation and Maintenance
for Low-Cost Water Supply and Sanitation,
IRC International Water and Sanitation
Centre / World Health Organization
/ Water Supply and Sanitation
Collaborative Council, Geneva, 1997.

CAIRNCROSS, S., and FEACHEM, R.,

Small Water Supplies, Bulletin No. 10,
Ross Institute, London, 1978.
HOUSE, S.J. and REED, R.A., Emergency
Water Sources: Guidelines for selection
and treatment, Water, Engineering
and Development Centre (WEDC),
Loughborough, 1997.

IRC (1994a) Together for Water and

Sanitation: Tools to apply a gender
approach, Occasional Paper Series 24,
IRC International Water and Sanitation
Centre, The Hague, 1994.

IRC (1994b) Working with Women and

Men on Water and Sanitation: An African
field-guide, Occasional Paper Series 25,
IRC International Water and Sanitation
Centre, The Hague, 1994.

ITDG WATER PANEL, ‘Guidelines

on the planning and management of
rural water in developing countries’,
Waterlines, Vol.7, No.3, IT Publications,
London, 1980.

About this note

Author: Sarah House
Illustrator: Rod Shaw
QA: Bob Reed
Designed and produced by WEDC
© WEDC, Loughborough University, 2017

Water, Engineering
and Development Centre (WEDC)
School of Civil and Building Engineering
Loughborough University
Leicestershire LE11 3TU UK
Phone: + 44 (0) 1509 222885
Email: wedc@lboro.ac.uk
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