http://idl-bnc.idrc.ca:80/dspace/handle/10625/40425 2013-06-19T16:05:50Z http://idl-bnc.idrc.ca:80/dspace/handle/10625/43087 Title: Adoption of safe drinking practices : does awareness of health effects matter? Authors: Somanathan, E.; Choudhuri, Saraswata Abstract: In this study, Jyotsna Jalan, E. Somanathan and Saraswata Choudhuri of the Indian Statistical Institute examine the determinants of clean drinking water practices by using a national data set for urban India. The authors also estimate willingness to pay for clean water for a subset of households from Delhi. Description: This policy brief is based on SANDEE working paper no. 4-03, "Awareness and the demand for environmental quality : drinking water in Urban India" 2004-01-01T00:00:00Z http://idl-bnc.idrc.ca:80/dspace/handle/10625/38929 Title: Danger dirty water! : an assessment of the importance of information in improving water use hygiene Authors: Jalan, Jyotsna; Somanthan, E. Editors: Bellamy, Rufus Abstract: The improvement of drinking water quality is a key challenge across the developing world where millions die or fall ill due to unsafe water and inadequate sanitation and hygiene. The sad fact is that many of these deaths and illnesses could be avoided by improved infrastructure, increased public information, and better management of water services. But what is the best way to get people to drink safer water? // A recent SANDEE study examines this issue by asking whether better information can lead to safer drinking water practices. Will households who are informed about the quality of their drinking water take action to improve it? To answer this question, SANDEE researchers surveyed a randomly selected group of households from a Delhi suburb, and, tested the quality of water in their houses. They found that 61% of unpurified water tested ‘dirty,’ indicating the presence of fecal bacteria. Interestingly, alerting people to the fact that their water supply is contaminated is quite beneficial. Households that were initially not purifying their water, and were told that their drinking water was contaminated, were 11 percentage points more likely to begin some form of home purification than households that received no information. Description: This policy brief is based on SANDEE working paper no. 8-04, "Importance of being informed : experimental evidence on the demand for environmental quality" 2005-01-01T00:00:00Z http://idl-bnc.idrc.ca:80/dspace/handle/10625/38928 Title: Valuing life and limb : understanding the risk-return trade-off Authors: Madheswaran, S. Editors: Bellamy, Rufus Abstract: Across the developing world improvements in public health and environmental safety are becoming an ever-greater priority. One way to understand how the public values improvements in health is by assessing what individuals are willing to pay or forgo for small decreases in risks that may affect their longevity. For example, workers frequently make decisions that trade-off increased work-place risk and higher wages. This estimate of the financial gain required to take on increased risks can be used to assess public policies that seek to decrease the risk of death from environmental factors such as air pollution. Description: This policy brief is based on SANDEE working paper no. 9-04, "Measuring the value of life and limb : estimating compensating wage differentials among workers in Chennai and Mumbai" 2005-01-01T00:00:00Z http://idl-bnc.idrc.ca:80/dspace/handle/10625/23786 Title: Benefit transfer approach to environmental valuation : an application in China Authors: IDRC. Regional Office for Southeast and East Asia, Economy and Environment Program for Southeast Asia Description: Full text version of this study is available as an EEPSEA research report: Use of benefit transfer for the evaluation of water quality improvement : an application in China 1999-01-01T00:00:00Z