Affecting Factors in Rehabilitating Water Distribution Networks

High levels of non-revenue water (NRW) reflect that an area’s water distribution networks (WDN) are losing vast volumes of clean water. Therefore, reducing NRW is crucial for sustainable water management. NRW levels in most developing countries are high, ranging between 35 and 50%. While one of the significant causes of NRW is difficulties in rehabilitating old piping networks, studies on factors that are influencing WDN rehabilitation in practice is limited. This study aims to identify affecting factors for WDN rehabilitation. To achieve that objective, a series of individual interviews with industry practitioners that manage WDN are analyzed using the thematic analysis. The major findings from the analysis are: (1) internal and external factors are influencing WDN rehabilitation; (2) internal factors are related to cost, location, and design; and (3) external factors are related to local authorities and surrounding communities. This research adds to the body of knowledge by providing a set of affecting factors for rehabilitating WDN, which can assist researchers and practitioners in developing strategies to reduce NRW for achieving sustainable water management.