Small Water Enterprises: A Cross-sectional Study of Bottled Water Consumption in the Yucatan Peninsula Open Access

Abstract

Background: Each year there are millions of cases of diarrhea worldwide
because of lack of access to safe water. Interventions that seek to increase safe
access to water vary both in method and effectiveness. Local small water
enterprises (SWEs) can better respond to a community's need for safe water.
Living Waters for the World (LWW) is a global non-profit that aids members of
local communities to set up SWEs that purify and sell bottled water. There is a
dearth of research on communities' views regarding safe water interventions like
LWW and SWEs in general.
Objective: This thesis explores the differences between LWW consumers and
non-consumers in the Yucatan Peninsula.
Methods: 300 household surveys were conducted in two urban and three rural
communities throughout the Yucatan Peninsula. There was an LWW water plant
in all these communities and all inhabitants had access to their bottled water.
Data were then analyzed focusing on differences in bottled water consumption,
health and hygiene knowledge and attitudes and beliefs with regards to bottled
water.
Results: Bottled water was the primary source of drinking water for almost all
households. LWW consumers paid less significantly less for bottle water and
purchased more bottled water per week than non-consumers. LWW consumers
were more likely than non-consumers to cite price as a reason they preferred a
specific brand of bottled water. LWW consumers were also more likely to use
bottled water for other purposes besides drinking, namely, cooking, preparing
food, and brushing their teeth compared to non-consumers.
Discussion: Overall, there were some interesting findings but due to the small
sample it was difficult to perform further analyses. Further study is needed with
a larger, randomized sample. Qualitative studies can explore more in depth the
reasons LWW consumers prefer to drink their water. The findings from this
research can be used to scale up similar interventions, and set up SWEs that fit
with the community consumption practices. New LWW sites, particularly those
outside the Yucatan Peninsula should conduct baseline research to determine
community attitudes and practices before installing new systems.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

Chapter 1: Introduction 1

1.1. Background 1

1.2. Statement of the Problem 4

1.3. Purpose Statement 7

1.4. Research Question 8

1.5. Significance Statement 8

1.6. Definition of Terms 9

Chapter 2: Literature Review 10

2.1. The Problem 11

2.2. Water and Health in Mexico 13

2.3. Increasing Access to Purified Water 14

2.3.1. Water Treatment Methods 16

2.3.2. Safe Water Interventions 18

2.4. Health and Faith Based Organizations (FBOs) 19

2.5. Small Water Enterprises (SWEs) 22

2.6. Sustainability 25

2.7. Consumers 26

2.8. Conclusion 34

Chapter 3: Methods 36

3.1. Research Design and Procedure 36

3.2. Population 37

3.3. Project Site 37

3.4. Sample 38

3.5. Household Survey 39

3.5.1. Demographic Information 40

3.5.2. Wealth, Assets and Access 40

3.5.3. Water Consumption and Health Knowledge 41

3.5.4. Attitudes and Beliefs with Regards to Bottled Water 41

3.6. Data Collection 42

3.7. Data Analysis 43

3.7.1 Demographics 43

3.7.1.1. Respondents 43

3.7.1.2 Households 44

3.7.2. Wealth, Access and Assets 45

3.7.2.1. Access 45

3.7.2.2. Assets 46

3.7.3. Water Consumption and Use 47

3.7.4. Health Knowledge and Attitudes

Toward Bottled Water 48

3.8. Limitations & Delimitations 48

Chapter 4: Results 50

4.1. Demographics 51

4.1.1. Respondents 51

4.1.2.Households 53

4.1.3. LWW consumers and non-LWW consumers:

Significant Interactions and differences 53

4.2. Wealth, Access and Assets 54

4.2.1. Access 54

4.2.2. Assets 55

4.3. Water Consumption and Use 58

4.4. Health knowledge and attitudes towards bottled water 62

4.5. Conclusion 66

Chapter 5: Discussion 67

5.1. Summary and Discussion of Findings 67

5.2. Implications and Recommendations 75

5.3. Conclusion 78

References 79

Appendix 1: Survey 84

About this Master's Thesis

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School	Rollins School of Public Health
Department	Hubert Department of Global Health
Degree	MPH
Submission	Master's Thesis
Language	English
Research Field	Health Sciences, Public Health
Keyword	SWE Access water sustainability
Committee Chair / Thesis Advisor	Evans, Dabney, Emory University
Partnering Agencies	International Non-governmental organization (e.g., CARE, Inc.)

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