ABSTRACT
This chapter provides a brief review of methods and approaches for evaluating the consequences of using wastewater to irrigate vegetables. The following five objectives are considered: (a) analysing poor producers’ and consumers’ knowledge, attitudes and perceptions of the risks associated with pathogen contamination/ exposure, and the economic consequences on health and livelihoods; (b) analysing the costs and benefits of non-treatment interventions at the farm level (e.g. drip irrigation and cessation of irrigation prior to harvest) and post-harvest level (e.g. washing and disinfection of vegetables after harvesting); (c) identifying costeffective interventions for reducing the risk of waterborne disease associated with wastewater use for irrigation; (d) estimating producers’ and consumers’ willingness to pay for or adopt non-treatment interventions at multiple stages along the food chain; and (e) evaluating the long-term economic and livelihood impacts of adopting those non-treatment interventions that are identified as cost-effective and targeted at poor producers and consumers. The chapter concludes by synthesizing a methodological framework for the collection and analysis of data to assess the livelihood and economic impacts of illness caused by microbial pathogens from wastewater.
