Is household water use per capita decreasing in the Republic of Moldova?

Moldova is experiencing moderate water stress conditions with an annual water exploitation index around 13 %. Although there are no accurate data available, the dependecy ratio of Moldova to external inflow is also estimated to be relatively higher than other countries in the region. On average, every year, around 800 million m³ of water is used to meet the water demands of the different economic sectors, of which 7 % is water supplied to households supply by the water supply system.

Water supplied to households is mainly used for drinking and cooking; hygiene, including basic needs for personal and domestic cleanliness; and amenity use such as car washing and lawn watering. etc. (Howard and Bartram, 2003).

Given that half of the population is not connected to the public water supply system, this ratio should be considerably higher. However, because of a lack of accurate data, the assessment of water use by households presents uncertainities. In 2017, the water use per capita on a daily basis was approximately 86 l of water.

Since 2012, there has been a considerable improvement in the proportion of the population that is connected to the water supply system. In 2017, 53.5 % of the total population was connected to the water supply system (compared with 42 % in 2012), of which the majority is living in urban areas. Currently, nearly 93 % of the population in urban areas and only 27 % of the population in rural areas has access to improved water supply systems (UNECE, 2014). Groundwater is used as the main source of drinking water in rural areas, which puts high pressures on groundwater aquifers.

As a result of the increasing population connected to the water supply system, the water use from the public water supply system also increased by 15 % from 2012 to 2017. In fact, this increase should be treated as an increase in the measured water use by the water supply system. On the other hand, since half of the total population is still not connected to the water supply services, Moldova is far from meeting the universal target of achieving, ‘by 2030, universal and equitable access to safe and affordable drinking water for all’ (SDG 6.1).

The low density of the rural population increases the economic costs of improving the public water supply to rural areas, and the lack of sanitation services and no metering of water use for households expose a number of enviromental, economic and health-related problems.

Moreover, an ageing water supply system and leakages; insufficient investments in improving and modernising the public water supply; and a lack of adequate monitoring programmes for drinking water, associated with a fragmented institutional set-up for managing the water resources, are some of the acute problems lying ahead of water resources management in Moldova.

The agreement with the European Union (2016) has already created the political will in the country to align water legislation with the EU Water Framework Directive and other relevant directives.

Indicator specification

Indicator definition

The quantity of water used to cover the household and related utility needs of the population through the water supply industry and self-supply.

Units

Volumes of water used by households in total are measured in million cubic metres and per capita in cubic meter.

Rationale

Justification for indicator selection

The indicator is important for defining the level of development of water economy services and the degree of water accessibility to cover all household needs of the population. The indicator also helps to identify trends in household water use in a particular country.

Scientific references

• Howard, G. and Bartram, J., 2003. Domestic Water Quantity, Service Level and Health. World Health Organization, WHO/SDE/WSH/03.02, Geneva, Switzerland.

• Nadejda, C., 2018. Water Law No.272, 23 December 2011, new changes and complements. Powerpoint presentation, the 4^th meeting of the national policy dialogue coordination committee on integrated water resources management in the Republic of Moldova.

• UNECE, 2014. Republic of Moldova –Environmental Performance Reviews – third review, United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, Environmental Performance Reviews Series No. 39, e-ISBN 978-92-1-056518, New York and Geneva.

• UNECE, 2018. Guidelines for the Application of Environmental Indicators, Description of C4: Household water use per capita.

• UNECE, 2018. Guidelines for the Application of Environmental Indicators, Glossary of terms – C4: Household water use per capita.

 

Policy context and targets

Context description

National policy context

• Government Decision No 932 of the Republic of Moldova requires systematic monitoring and recording of the status of surface waters and groundwater.

• The Water Law No.272 endorsed by the Government of the Republic of Moldova aims to establishwater use rights and promoting investment in water as well as ensure a sufficient supply of surface water and good groundwater, which is necessary for a sustainable, balanced and equitable use of water.

• Law No 303 of 13 December 2013, on the public service of water supply and sewerage, regulates the unitary legal framework regarding the establishment, organisation, management, financing, operation, monitoring and control of the functioning of the public drinking water and wastewater sewage systems.

• Government Decision No 950 of 25 November 2013 on the approval of the regulation on the requirements for the collection, treatment and discharging of sewage and/or water bodies for urban and rural localities.

• The water supply and sanitation strategy 2014-2028, approved by Government Decision No 199 of 20 March 2014. The overall objective of the strategy is to ensure gradual access to safe water and adequate sanitation for all localities and the population of Moldova, thus contributing to the improvement of health, dignity and quality of life and to the economic development of the country.

International policy context

The UN SDG 6 of the Sustainable Development Agenda for the period up to 2030 is to ‘ensure access to water and sanitation for all’. Target 6.1 of SDG 6 aims ‘by 2030, to achieve universal and equitable access to safe and affordable drinking water for all’. Similarly, target 6.2 aims to, ‘by 2030, achieve access to adequate and equitable sanitation and hygiene for all and end open defecation, paying special attention to the needs of women and girls and those in vulnerable situations.’

Targets

National targets

No specific target has been identified.

International targets

Target 6.1 – by 2030, achieve universal and equitable access to safe and affordable drinking water for all.

Target 6.2 – by 2030, achieve access to adequate and equitable sanitation and hygiene for all and end open defecation, paying special attention to the needs of women and girls and those in vulnerable situations.

Related policy documents

• Government Decision No 950 of 25 November 2013 on the approval of the regulation on the approving the Regulation on requirements for collection, treatment and discharge of waste water into the sewerage system and/or in bodies of water for urban and rural areas, laying down the requirements for collection, treatment and discharge of wastewater into the sewerage system and/or water bodies for urban and rural settlements. UNECE, 2016. National programme for implementation of the Protocol on Water and Health for the years 2016-2025, in cooperation with SWISS Agency for Cooperation and Schweizerische Eidgenossenschaft, Chisinau.

• Sustainable Development Goals. UN (2016). Sustainable development goals, the sustainable development agenda.

• Water Law No.272, 2011. Ministry of Agriculture, regional Development and the Environment of the Republic of Moldova.

• Water supply and sanitation strategy 2014-2028 of the Republic of Moldova. Government of the Republic of Moldova, 2014. Government decision No.199, 20 March 2014, Chisinau.

Methodology

Methodology for indicator calculation

Units and equations

ID	Component	Units	Equation
C4.1	Water supplied to households by water supply industry	million m3/year
C4.2	Population connected to water supply industry (estimation)	million people
C4.3	Water use per capita (water supply industry)	m3/capita/year	= C 4.1/C 4.2
C4.4	Population not connected to water supply industry (self supply; estimation)	million people	= C 4.8 - C 4.2
C4.5	Estimated water use by households supplied by self supply per capita	m3/capita/year
C4.6	Water use in the country (self supply)	million m3/year	= C 4.4  C 4.5
C4.7	Total water use by households	million m3/year	= C 4.1 + C 4.6
C4.8	Total population	million persons
C4.9	Total household water use (water supply industry and self supply) per capita	m3/capita/year	= C 4.7/C 4.8

Methodology for gap filling

No gap filling has been performed.

Methodology references

• EEA, 2005. EEA core set of indicators guide. EEA Technical report No 1/2005, ISBN 92-9167-757-4, Luxembourg.

• UNECE, 2018. Guidelines for the Application of Environmental Indicators, Data template – C4: Household water use per capita.

• UNECE, 2018. Guidelines for the Application of Environmental Indicators, Description of C4: Household water use per capita.

• UNECE, 2018. Guidelines for the Application of Environmental Indicators, Glossary of terms – C4: Household water use per capita.

• UNSD and UNEP, 2013. Questionnaire 2013 on Environment Statistics. United Nations Statistics Division and United Nations Environment Programme, Questionnaire 2013 on Environment Statistics, Section Water.

Uncertainties

Methodology uncertainty

No uncertainty has been specified

 

Data sets uncertainty

• The data do not cover the territory on the left bank of the Nistru river.

• There is inconsistency between the data on the population connected to water supply and the data on the population not connected to public water supply.

• No data is available on self-supply

Rationale uncertainty

No uncertainty has been specified.

Data sources

 

The main indicator of water use provided by Statistical Databank of the National Bureau of Statistics of the Republic of Moldova

Number of population provided by Statistical Databank of the National Bureau of Statistics of the Republic of Moldova