Research Project: What do the residents think? Exploring resident perceptions, preferences, behaviours and consequences related to drinking water in the town of Sunnyside, NL
Principal Investigator: Kelly Vodden, Environmental Policy Institute – Grenfell Campus, Memorial University
Co-Investigator: Jen Daniels, Department of Geography, Memorial University
This project will explore the persistent challenges facing Sunnyside, eastern Newfoundland, primarily through the viewpoint of local residents. These challenges include: threats to source water, effective water treatment, disinfection and distribution, including dealing with high levels of disinfectant by-products (DBPs) as a result of their current disinfection system, and developing strategies for addressing these issues. Many rural municipalities in Newfoundland and Labrador face similar issues, which present a challenge to municipalities in ensuring residents access to clean, safe drinking water.
Though a university-community partnership, this project will facilitate a community-based approach to drinking water related research that will provide the community of Sunnyside with better information regarding resident practices and perceptions relating to drinking water. This information will be of critical importance for the municipality in moving towards sustainable solutions with respect to water systems and source water protection and development in the future. Thus, the research objectives here include:
- To determine population perspectives and practices related to drinking water security and potential solutions;
- To investigate the implications of public perceptions and practices related to drinking water for the operation of drinking water systems and for the well-being of residents and their communities;
- To provide recommendations for the municipality and the provincial government that address resident concerns related to water security (such as high levels of contaminants, in particular, elevated concentrations of DBPs, or extreme weather events).
Presentations
- Water Forum. Sunnyside Community Meeting, Sunnyside, NL, May 12, 2015 (Vodden, Daniels, Holloway, Snook)
Draft fact sheets on chlorinated disinfectant by-products prepared for the Sunnyside community meeting
Final report