Barriers and Opportunities to Achieving Safe Drinking Water in Bangladesh: A System Dynamics Approach

Abstract

Although Bangladesh is a nation rich with freshwater resources, many of the country’s citizens lack access to safe drinking water. Between 35 and 77 million residents are estimated to have been chronically exposed to unacceptable concentrations of arsenic, a known carcinogen, through their drinking water. Additionally, the presence of bacterial contamination in surface water and shallow aquifers limits the availability of safe source water alternatives. Governmental and non-governmental organizations have attempted to remedy the drinking water crisis for decades with little widespread or long-lasting success. Often the most successful mitigation techniques include digging deep tubewells, which have a lower likelihood of arsenic and microbial contamination, and installing decentralized water treatment technologies designed to remove certain contaminants. However, changing environmental conditions, increasing urbanization, and the presence of strong cultural norms and social preferences are likely to have an effect on the success of many commonly employed mitigation techniques. Therefore, an analysis of the environmental, socioeconomic, and technological factors is needed to identify the current barriers to providing safe water in Bangladesh as well as the opportunities for more effective interventions. Data from previous studies was compiled and analyzed to create a causal loop diagram (CLD) in order to organize important factors, identify exogenous forces, and define causal relationships among different factors. Six driving forces were identified in the current system, and several interventions were purposed, including the integration of community preferences in the decision-making process and technology implementation and increased water testing.