Small drinking-water supplies face particular challenges in terms of their management. Being vulnerable to contamination but often not monitored regularly nor well-maintained, small drinking-water supplies may pose consequences for health of users. Sanitary inspection (SI) is a risk assessment tool to identify and manage observable conditions of the water supply technology or circumstances in the catchment area that may favour certain hazardous events and introduce hazards which may become a risk to health. This qualitative research aimed to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the SI tool as published by the World Health Organisation to inform a review and update of the forms and to improve their robustness. The study identified a number of benefits of the approach, such as its simplicity and ease of use. Challenges were also identified, such as potential for inconsistencies in perception of risk between inspectors, in interpreting questions, and lack of follow-up action. The authors recommend a revision of the existing SI forms to address the identified challenges and development of complementary advice on possible remedial action to address identified risk factors and on basic operations and maintenance.

To achieve Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 6, universal and equitable access to safe and affordable drinking-water quality and sanitation for all, and 10, to reduce inequality within and among countries, additional and urgent work is required. Efforts to achieve these Goals in the context of small drinking-water supplies, which are the furthest behind in regards to progress, are of particular need. Reasons for this disparity in progress include the remoteness of access to small drinking-water supplies and the lack of technical and financial capacity for monitoring supplies. The World Health Organization promote the use of Sanitary inspection (SI) as an on-site assessment of risk. Despite the potential to increase the body of knowledge and information on supplies in a region, there has been limited research into the role of citizen science and SIs. To meet SDG targets, we need to improve the reach of SIs. This study uses a mixed methods approach of quantitative on-site SI data collection and remote SI data collection via photographic images, together with qualitative data collection, collected by non-expert students, who are citizens of Malawi, as well as a panel of experts in the field of SI. Results indicate that, although further research into the topic is required prior to widescale implementation, the potential exists for citizens to conduct SI, with remote expert verification of the results using photographic images of supplies. Further documentation or guidance is required to support citizens in this process. The results highlight a critical gap in the availability of appropriate documentation for unprotected spring sources which is urgently required. The use of citizen science for SI data collection is in its infancy. However, this study indicates that there is potential to explore the use of citizen science in this area, which will contribute to achieving SDGs 6 and 10.

Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) places liability, physical, financial, and/or informative responsibility for a product throughout its life cycle on its producer. Implementing such schemes is expected to result in many environmental and social benefits. Yet, academic and practitioner discussions on the mechanisms focus on environmental impacts, whereas social dimensions of EPR are often side-lined. This short communication contributes to addressing this gap by establishing a research agenda for the justice dimensions of EPR. For this purpose, initial links between EPR and justice – specifically waste colonialism, procedural justice, recognition justice, distributive justice, intra- and intergenerational equity, waste justice, and corrective justice – are set out, including where it affects products in their life cycles and examples of which stakeholders may be impacted, with plastic waste used to provide examples.

Environmental laws are primarily concerned with controlling the industrial processes which cause pollution in its many forms. In the main, they focus on the mine or quarry, the factory and the waste disposal process, and are not concerned with the nature of the product itself and its inherent potential for causing environmental harm. Environmental product laws, insofar as they do exist, tend to focus on the product at the end of its life and its capacity at that point in its life for harm—not throughout its whole life from its conception at the design stage to its ultimate destruction. This article looks at the first examples of development of environmental product laws based on a life cycle approach through the European Union’s integrated product policy and its exposition in the Ecodesign Directive,¹ and analyses the extent to which product laws may change the way in which regulations address environmental impact—by shifting from a framework which regulates processes to one which places the product at the heart of controls.

The World Health Organization promotes risk assessment and risk management through Water Safety Plans (WSPs) as the most effective way to manage drinking-water supplies. Despite proven advantages of this approach in other regions, WSPs are still not widely used across small drinking-water supplies in Sub Saharan Africa. The aim of this research is to identify good practices and related gaps which may assist with formal uptake of WSPs for small drinking-water supplies in Rwanda. Through semi-structured interviews with the key stakeholders involved in small drinking-water supply management across Rwanda, the aim is achieved through the investigation of the following: (i) current drinking-water management challenges; (ii) stakeholder collaboration and data management activities including reporting of information; and (iii) the regulatory and policy environment. The use and awareness of WSPs in Rwanda was confirmed as low. However certain drinking-water management activities which align with the WSP methodology are being carried out. These include catchment management and stakeholder collaboration. Although legislation and policy are in place in Rwanda, communication and training of methods to implement WSPs are required to sustainably embed WSPs into practice. Several elements, including community engagement, systematic review of risks and data management, require greater focus to align with the WSP methodology. Respondents highlighted key drinking-water management challenges, including reactive budgeting and lack of sector prioritization, which could benefit from formal WSP implementation.