An Evaluation of Spatial Network Modeling To Aid Sanitation Planning In Informal Settlements Using Crowd-Sourced Data

Limited water and sanitation infrastructure in rapidly

urbanising informal settlements can present significant health and

environmental risks to the populations of developing nations. Where

formal piped networks are not available, road-based sewage treatmenttransportation

options have been cited as a viable alternative. However,

little research has been undertaken to evaluate the long-term operational

costs of such systems. In this paper we present an evaluation of network

modelling, as a novel method to evaluate the costs of road-based sewage

treatment-transport options. Such analysis is made possible using crowdsourced,

open geospatial data sets that allow us to examine costs based

on different spatio-topological network configurations. It is envisaged

that engineers could use such a tool as part of the sanitation planning

process, to evaluate sanitation network implementation options. This

study provides an evaluation of the methods using a case study from the

Kibera settlement in Kenya.