Damage to water supply systems, prolonged disruptions to the water supply, and the use of wells and alternative water sources have become a daily reality for many frontline communities. At the same time, water safety depends not only on the functioning of the infrastructure. It is equally important that people know how to respond to emergencies, whom to trust, and how to obtain reliable information quickly.

These issues were the central theme of the public discussion “Infectious Risks and Safe Water in Frontline Communities: From Research to Action”, which was held on 8 July at the Ukraine Crisis Media Centre. The event was organised by the Eleos-Ukraine NGO within the framework of the communication campaign “Safety Scenarios: Safe Water = Safe Life”. The aim of the campaign is to help people develop simple, practical skills for the safe use of water in wartime conditions, and to enable communities, the media, and public health specialists to use consistent, clear, and evidence-based communication messages.

The key idea underlying the campaign is that effective communication begins not with recommendations, but with people's understanding. Therefore, the first stage involved focus group research in six communities in Kharkiv, Sumy, and Dnipropetrovsk regions, which helped to identify how residents perceive risks, whom they trust, what knowledge they lack, and what influences their behaviour.

 

 

‘The Eleos-Ukraine NGO team has been working in the humanitarian sector for thirteen years. We remember all too well the problems that arose after the russians blew up the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Station. The first things we delivered to the local residents were clean water or supplies for its disinfection and purification. After all, virtually all infrastructure had been destroyed,’ said Serhii Dmytriiev, Head of Board of the organisation, at the event. ‘As an active-duty military officer, I also constantly see the difficulties – particularly in terms of water supply – that people in frontline communities face today.’

In the first phase, the NGO team conducted focus group research in Derhachi and Bohodukhiv communities in Kharkiv region, in Sumy and Konotop communities in Sumy region, and in Pavlohrad and Samar communities in Dnipropetrovsk region, to identify the extent to which residents are aware of infectious disease risks and prepared for water supply crises. The most important aim was to identify what knowledge people were lacking and which sources of information on safe water use they trusted.

 

 

‘The results obtained formed the basis of our communication campaign, which aims to help communities prevent infectious risks more effectively and transform the conclusions drawn into tangible decisions and practical actions,’ said Iryna Aheieva, Programme Director of the Eleos-Ukraine NGO.

Focus group research showed that people in frontline territories trust, primarily, their community leaders and starostas. Therefore, according to Iryna Aheieva, it is important for local authorities to have accurate information and to be able to communicate it to residents in a timely manner.

One of the most important findings was that people rarely assess the safety of water based on official information. Most often, they rely on their own experience: the clarity of the water, its smell, taste, or the absence of sediment. At the same time, these very indicators do not always indicate that the water is safe, especially following shelling, accidents, or the use of alternative water supplies.

Depending on the type of community, the water supply problems that may arise also vary. In urban communities, these are usually damage to water supply systems, whilst in settlement and rural communities, the main risk is nitrate contamination of water in wells; flooding or waterlogging is less common. The Eleos-Ukraine NGO team, in cooperation with experts from the Centre for Public Health of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine, has developed practical scenarios for how people should behave in different crisis situations and tested them in focus groups. As a result, simple communication messages have been created which communities can post on their information platforms to raise the awareness of residents.

 

 

‘It is important to provide every family and every individual with a clear and transparent set of guidelines, in plain language, on how to act in each specific situation,’ commented Tetiana Orabina, Deputy Director-General of the Centre for Public Health of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine. ‘And water remains, as it always has, one of the key factors in the transmission of infectious diseases.’

According to Ms Orabina, besides posing a threat to people’s health and lives, any outbreak of an infectious disease also has a financial dimension, as it entails costs for communities, particularly those near the front line, where access to medical care cannot always be guaranteed. Centres for Disease Control and Prevention operate in every region and conduct laboratory testing of water in communities to ensure its safety, enabling them to respond promptly to risks. In addition, the Centre for Public Health of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine has joined the communication campaign run by the Eleos-Ukraine NGO in order to jointly create simple and transparent tools that will enable people to respond appropriately, learn and change their behaviour in relation to water.

‘Of course, the best scenario would be for every community, taking into account its specific characteristics, to have its own water supply resilience plan, and we are also working on this,’ said Tetiana Orabina, pointing out that fostering behavioural change is a key component of efforts to prevent infectious disease risks at the national level. She emphasised that developing such behavioural habits is a vital part of preparing communities for crisis situations and one of the most effective ways of preventing infectious risks even before an emergency arises.

In wartime, a rapid response to damage to critical water supply infrastructure is of the utmost importance. Oleksandr Kozak, Programme Officer at WASH Cluster Ukraine, explained that the organisation cooperates with water utility companies, as well as state and civil society organisations, to ensure a stable, centralised supply of safe water. In the last four years, whilst facing numerous challenges, the team has developed effective tools for the rapid restoration of water supplies in cities. Since critical infrastructure can be affected at any moment, people need to know how to prepare for such a situation in advance so that they are not left without water until repair work is completed. They also need to understand when tap water may be unfit for drinking, so as not to put themselves at risk.

 

 

In peacetime, water is a standard utility service. During wartime, it becomes a resource on which lives, the functioning of hospitals, the city’s sanitary conditions, and the psychological resilience of the community depend. The border city of Sumy is under constant attack, including attacks on critical infrastructure. As Leonid Nikolaienko, First Deputy Mayor of Sumy, explained, in such circumstances the local authorities have to act not only as service providers, but also as crisis managers, coordinators of all services, and a source of reliable information for the public.

‘We have come to an important conclusion: during wartime, simply delivering water is not enough. People need to be taught how to use it properly,’ emphasised Leonid Nikolaienko. He noted that in Sumy, preparations for a potential crisis are underway: reserve water supply sources are developed, response plans and public information systems are in place, water utility staff are trained, and partnerships are established. City residents are provided with information on water distribution points, rules for its use and what to do in the event of potential contamination. Ultimately, readiness is the most valuable thing a community can do in the run-up to a crisis. Leonid Nikolaienko identified people’s readiness to act correctly even before a crisis arises as one of the key elements of community resilience.

In Pavlohrad community in Dnipropetrovsk region, due to the challenges posed by the existing centralised water supply system, the local authorities are working to establish alternative sources of water for residents. Anatolii Vershyna, Mayor of Pavlohrad, spoke about this. According to the Mayor, the city’s daily water requirement is roughly 10,000 cubic metres, supplied from a water intake located 100 kilometres away. The Pavlohradvodokanal public utility regularly analyses the water in its own laboratory and publishes the results on its website and via the information resources of the city council. If any deviations from the norm are detected at any of the boreholes, residents are immediately warned not to use that water until disinfection measures have been completed. ‘Community resilience begins with preparedness for different scenarios. Therefore, we are investing not only in the restoration of the existing system, but also in the creation of alternative water supply sources,’ emphasised Anatolii Vershyna.

The experience of Sumy and Pavlohrad communities has shown that preparation for water crises today goes far beyond the development of infrastructure. It combines technical solutions, the preparedness of local authorities, and the timely provision of information to the public on the safe use of water.

In recent years, Ukrainians have already experienced the vulnerability of the energy system and learnt to prepare for power outages. The war has shown that ensuring a safe water supply could pose a similar challenge. The participants in the public discussion reached a consensus: preparations for such situations should be made before a crisis arises – by communities, state institutions, and every family. Whilst the authorities and utility companies strengthen the resilience of water supply systems, people can also play their part: by knowing simple steps to take, using reliable sources of information, and ensuring they have a supply of safe water in advance. The combination of community preparedness, effective communication, and responsible behaviour by individuals forms the basis of resilience to water crises and helps to reduce the risk of infection in wartime conditions.

Full recording of the public discussion is available here.