Access to Water\nService Modalities in Rural Alaska:\nUnderstanding Community Experiences and Perceptions

Households\nin rural Alaska rely on various water service modalities\nto meet daily needs. The level of service provided impacts end-users’\nability to access and benefit from their services. Furthermore, the\ndegree of responsibility placed on end-users for the collection, storage,\nand maintenance of systems varies by water service modality. Centering\nend-users’ experiences and preferences in water management\nhelps ensure that water infrastructure solutions align with community\nneeds, priorities, and capabilities. To that end, we compare end-users’\nexperiences with different water service modalities and perceptions\nof service in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, one of the most underserved\nregions in the United States. We then explore associations between\nexperiences and sociodemographic and geographic community characteristics\nto identify potential inequities or factors impacting end-users’\naccess to water. We conducted a qualitative content analysis of 41\nsemistructured interviews with 50 end-users residing in the Yukon-Kuskokwim\nDelta. Findings show that end-users frequently struggle with service\ndisruptions and affordability, especially hauled water users. End-users\nalso expressed aesthetic concerns related to the taste of chlorinated\nwater, leading them to use potentially unsafe water service modalities\nfor consumption. Better understanding of public perceptions allows\nus to center community needs when improving access to water services.