NC Water-Health Bellwether
The first water-health bellwether in New Caledonia, led by the Directorate of Health and Social Affairs, has been published.
According to this study, Caledonians believe that the water quality of the network is good, if not very good. With nuances to bring regarding the geographical areas and different perceptions of so-called drinking water.
Driven by the Shared Water Policy, which was adopted by Congress in 2019, the water-health bellwether project joins one of the working themes of the PROTEGE regional cooperation project that helped fund it. The telephone survey, conducted in May 2020, affected a representative sample of just over 1,500 people across New Caledonia. The goal ? Collect from Caledonians their perceptions of water quality and associated health risks, their knowledge of water services or their representations of the resource.
Five consumer profiles
The water-health bellwether provides a consumer typology that includes five categories:
The motivated: these users perceive all the problems related to water, especially health and environmental. They expect degradation in the future in both quantity and quality.
The united: not very aware of the health risk associated with water, these consumers are quite critical of the price-quality ratio of water and are aware of the problem of access to the source. They have already set up ecological gestures and are ready to do more.
The unaffected conscious: connected to the network, these users, mainly in the Loyalty Islands, use an alternative source as a priority, which is why they feel little concerned about the problems related to water distribution. However, they believe there will be a long-term degradation of the resource.
The skeptics: These consumers have complete confidence in the drinking water system and are skeptical about resource issues. Located mostly in the Grand Nouméa, they think there will always be fresh water.
The eco-restricted households: connected to the network, these generally modest households are primarily concerned with the price-quality ratio considered too high. The issue of water resources is not their priority.
Find out more on the New Caledonia Government website HERE.
