The development and validation of a nationwide dataset of water distribution zones in Aotearoa New Zealand: A cross-sectional geospatial study

Type of content
Journal Article
Thesis discipline
Degree name
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Language
eng
Date
2023
Authors
Puente-Sierra, M
Chambers , T
Marek, Lukas
Broadbent, J M
O'Brien, B
Hobbs, Matt
Abstract

The reliable supply of safe drinking water is vital for the health of human populations. Despite this, there is no consistent nationwide spatial dataset of water distribution zones (WDZ) for Aotearoa New Zealand (A-NZ). The purpose of this data article is to describe the development and validation of a consistent nationwide dataset of WDZ across A-NZ. We obtained spatial data from all 67 district and city councils through: 1) information requests between 2021 and 2023; 2) the Ministry of Health and; 3) the Institute of Environmental Science and Research. Data were modified to improve the spatial accuracy of the WDZ using auxiliary data on the building footprints (Land Information New Zealand) and the drinking water reticulation (WSP & councils). We estimated the population served by each WDZ through spatial linking to meshblock-level data provided by Statistics New Zealand (meshblocks are the smallest administrative geographic unit in A-NZ). The dataset will be useful to provide insights into the extent of the publicly-owned drinking water assets in A-NZ and is essential for the accurate exposure assessment in epidemiological research investigating the impact of drinking water quality on human health.

Description
Citation
Puente-Sierra M, Chambers T, Marek L, Broadbent JM, O'Brien B, Hobbs M (2023). The development and validation of a nationwide dataset of water distribution zones in Aotearoa New Zealand: A cross-sectional geospatial study. Data in Brief. 49. 109349-.
Keywords
Access, Drinking water, Environmental justice, Equity, GIS, Geographic information systems, Geospatial, Spatial, Water distribution zones
Ngā upoko tukutuku/Māori subject headings
ANZSRC fields of research
37 - Earth sciences::3707 - Hydrology
Rights
©2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. This is an open access article under the CCBY-NC-ND license ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ )