Factors Affecting Drinking Water Security in South-Western Bangladesh By Laura Mahoney Benneyworth, M.S., GISP Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School of Vanderbilt University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY in Interdisciplinary Studies: Environmental Management August, 2016 Nashville, Tennessee Approved Jonathan Gilligan, PhD Steven Goodbred, PhD John Ayers, PhD James H. Clarke, PhD Copyright © 2016 by Laura Mahoney Benneyworth ii for the children of Bangladesh, with hope for a brighter future iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank the Vanderbilt Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering's Center for Environmental Management Studies (VCEMS) program and Vanderbilt's Earth and Environmental Sciences Department for their willingness to work together on my behalf to make this interdisciplinary project possible, and for their educational and financial support. I consider myself fortunate to have been involved in such an interesting and meaningful project. I am grateful for the guidance of my advisor, Jonathan Gilligan, and for his patience, kindness and encouragement. I am also appreciative of Jim Clarke, who provided me with this degree opportunity, for 30 years of good advice, and for always being my advocate. Steve Goodbred, John Ayers and Carol Wilson were continually helpful and supportive, and always a pleasure to work with. I am also thankful for the moral support of my friends and family, and for the friendship of other graduate students who made my journey a memorable one, including Bethany, Sandy, Lindsay, Leslie W., Chris T., Greg, Leslie D., Michelle, Laura P., Lyndsey, and Jenny. I would also like to extend my sincere gratitude to our Bangladeshi colleagues, for their technical assistance and their friendship, which made this work possible. Many people participated in the fieldwork from the University of Khulna, the University of Dhaka, and Pugmark Tours. In particular, I want to thank my dear and faithful baghni and baghna, Farjana and Zitu; and also Reza, Babu, Sadam, Matab, Kushal, Dr. Kazi Matin Ahmed, Dr. D. K. Datta, and Bachchu. Finally, and most importantly, I would like to thank my husband, Al, for his unfailing love and support, and for always believing in me. This work was supported by the United States Office of Naval Research under Grant (N00014- 11-1-0683) and conducted in accordance with Institutional Review Board (130235). iv Disclaimer: This dissertation was prepared as an account of work sponsored by an Agency of the United States Government. Neither the United States Government nor any agency thereof, nor any of their employees, makes any warranty, express or implied, or assumes any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information apparatus, product, or process disclosed, or represents that its use would not infringe privately owned rights. Reference herein to any specific commercial product, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement recommendation, or favoring by the United States Government or any agency thereof. v TABLE OF CONTENTS Page DEDICATION ............................................................................................................................... iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ........................................................................................................... iv LIST OF TABLES ...........................................................................................................................x LIST OF FIGURES ....................................................................................................................... xi 1 Introduction ...............................................................................................................................1 1.1 Overview ...............................................................................................................................1 1.2 Study Area .............................................................................................................................2 1.3 Research Objectives ..............................................................................................................5 1.4 Structure of Dissertation ........................................................................................................5 1.5 References .............................................................................................................................6 2 Exploring Water Indices and Associated Parameters: A Case Study ..................................9 Abstract .......................................................................................................................................9 2.1 Introduction ...........................................................................................................................9 2.2 Methods ...............................................................................................................................10 2.2.1 Index Descriptions .........................................................................................................11 2.2.1.1 Water Scarcity .........................................................................................................11 2.2.1.2 Water Poverty ..........................................................................................................12 2.2.1.3 Water Vulnerability .................................................................................................13 2.2.1.4 Water Security .........................................................................................................13 vi 2.2.2 Parameter and Component Descriptions .......................................................................13 2.2.3 Overview of Analysis ....................................................................................................14 2.3 Results .................................................................................................................................15 2.3.1 Indices............................................................................................................................15 2.3.2 Parameter Values ...........................................................................................................16 2.3.3 Missing Parameters .......................................................................................................21 2.4 Discussion ...........................................................................................................................23 2.5 Conclusions .........................................................................................................................25 2.6 Acknowledgements .............................................................................................................25 2.7 References ...........................................................................................................................26 Appendix: Country Descriptions ...............................................................................................30 Appendix References ................................................................................................................33 3 Drinking Water Insecurity: Water Quality and Access in Coastal South-Western Bangladesh ....................................................................................................................................35 Abstract .....................................................................................................................................35 3.1 Introduction .........................................................................................................................35 3.1.1 Factors Affecting Water Security in Bangladesh ..........................................................36 3.1.2 Impacts of Water Insecurity ..........................................................................................38 3.1.3 Assessment of Water Security on a National Basis.......................................................39 3.1.4 Study Area .....................................................................................................................39 3.2 Materials and Methods ........................................................................................................42 3.3 Results and Discussion ........................................................................................................43 3.3.1 Drinking Water Availability and Accessibility .............................................................44 vii 3.3.1.1 Drinking Water Sources and Ownership .................................................................44 3.3.1.2 Non-Drinking Water Uses .......................................................................................44 3.3.1.3 Seasonality ...............................................................................................................44 3.3.1.4 Treatment and Reliability ........................................................................................45 3.3.1.5 Maintenance of Drinking Water Sources ................................................................45 3.3.1.6 Water Collection Travel Time, Distance and Gender .............................................46 3.3.2 Drinking Water Quality .................................................................................................46