| Name | AKM AZAD |
|---|---|
| Last Name | HOSSAIN |
| Home Address | 402 Rolling Way Signal Mountain, TN 37377 United States |
| Organization Name | The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga |
| Describe Your Role In The Organization | I am an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biology, Geology, and Environmental Science. My scope of work includes teaching, research, and service (to the department, university, and community). |
| Organization Address | Dept. 2653, 615 McCallie Avenue Chattanooga, TN 37403 United States |
| Website | https://www.utc.edu/arts-and-sciences/biology-geology-and-environmental-science |
| Best Phone Number To Reach You | 662-202-2693 |
| Alternate Phone Number | 423-425-4404 |
| Email Address | azad-hossain@utc.edu |
| Alternate Email Address | azad.oxford.ms@gmail.com |
| Please Describe Your Project In Detail | Project Title: A Geospatial Analysis of Public Accessibility to Drinking Water Fountains in Chattanooga, Tennessee Project Description: Fluid, which is essential for life can be obtained from a variety of beverages and foods. However, plain water has the advantage of being calorie-free. It can prevent dehydration, which can affect constipation, kidney stones, and poor cognition, mood, and body heat regulation [1,2]. Drinking plain water can also help with managing healthy body weight and reducing calorie intake when substituted for sugar-sweetened beverages (SSB) [3-5]. Therefore, to promote plain water intake, free, safe drinking water should be more readily accessible to individuals in homes and public facilities such as parks, playgrounds, schools, public buildings, and worksites. A previous study reported that students in California who had access to free drinking water consumed significantly more water than students who had limited access to free drinking water [6]. Research suggests that there is a substantial need for expansion of free drinking water access in public spaces. A 2009 study of US adults who use parks and playgrounds found that only about half of respondents reported having access to drinking water fountains [7]. A study of beverages sold on Boston city property reported that beverages were commonly SSB (40.5%) in public libraries, community centers, administrative buildings, and parks and recreational facilities prior to issuance of the Healthy Beverage Executive Order [8]. Although access to water fountains in publicly accessible places may be limited in places in the United States [7], research has found high public support for free public drinking water access. A study reported that 89% of Americans aged 17 and older supported required access to water in parks [9]. Social status equity inherently deals with issues of access to community resources. Having access to drinking water not only provides an option for improving health but is an essential necessity to sustain life. Vancouver’s consideration of the homeless population in decisions as to where to site freeze-resistant fountains shows a significant focus on equitable access for that community. Boston also had a strong focus on equity, directing its planning efforts primarily at the minority community, who statistically have higher rates of obesity. In many urban centers, drinking water fountains are available to the public as free and healthy alternatives to SSB [10]. Additionally, minority and low-income populations, usually report lower accessibility to drinking water fountains [11]. Access to community resources has a relation with health. Therefore, identifying locations with disparities in access to resources (such as drinking water) and observing their relationships with social economic status (SES) and race is valuable. Though analyzing the distribution of race and SES is beneficial, it is also important to consider location as an influencing factor. Analyzing spatial patterns can provide further insight into the complex relationship between access to community resources and health [12]. Proximity, density, or a combination of the two, are common measurements that are usually used to describe the environment spatially [13]. Several studies [14,15,16] used information derived from GIS to successfully identify disparities in access to community resources at a regional level. However, these studies acknowledged the difficulty of observing a relationship at a local scale. The City of Chattanooga, TN, located along the Tennessee River, has grown substantially during the last several decades and has become the center of a series of urbanized sub-watersheds [17]. According to the US Census data, Hamilton County welcomed more than 33,000 new residents in the last decade. Between 1986 and 2016, Hamilton County’s population increased by roughly 76,000 people [18]. Within Hamilton County, the Chattanooga metropolitan area boasts the most employment opportunity in the county [19]. Rapid population increase has led to the development of additional business complexes, housing, and infrastructure development in Chattanooga, TN. In the first half of 2021 alone, more than 1,400 building permits were requested for new homes in Hamilton County. This is up 44% compared to previous years [20]. Over the last 30 years, there has been over 28 sq. miles of impervious surface development in Chattanooga [17]. Considering this remarkable growth, it is very important to understand the current state of the city’s scope of providing access to free drinking water in public places. Other than a few scattered online based resources, which seem to be incomplete, there is no comprehensive database and map available publicly in this regard. Therefore, this proposal aims to conduct a research-based study to address this need. More specifically this study is designed to: (1) develop a Geographic Information System (GIS) database for mapping all the publicly available drinking water fountains in the City of Chattanooga, TN, (2) assess the condition of the water fountains including water quality, (3) include the assessed conditions of the water fountains in the developed GIS database, (4) use the developed GIS database and mapping system to understand equity and environmental justice related with the access to free drinking water, and (5) make suggestions for the potential locations of new access points for free drinking water fountains to improve access to drinking water for the public. This research will be conducted in the Geological and Environmental Remote Sensing Laboratory (GERS-Lab) and the Geochemistry Laboratory in the Department of Biology, Geology, and Environmental Science (BGE) at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga (UTC). The GERS-Lab at UTC has the state-of-the-art GIS and remote seasoning technology to conduct advanced GIS research. The Geochemistry Laboratory is equipped with the necessary resources to perform the tasks related with water quality measurements. This project will also receive technical support from the Department of Civil Engineering, the Department of Economics, the SimCenter, and the Integrated Geospatial Laboratory (IGT-Lab) at UTC. The research team is composed of five faculty members, two graduate students, and four undergraduate students from three academic departments (BGE, Civil Engineering, and Economics) at UTC. The research team and their corresponding responsibilities are given below: • Dr. Azad Hossain (BGE), Principal Investigator: Project supervision, Database Development, Geospatial Analysis, Sampling, Water Quality, and Modeling • Dr. Jonathon Mies (BGE), Co- Principal Investigator: Database Development, Sampling, and Survey • Dr. Stephanie Devries (BGE), Co- Principal Investigator: Sampling and Water Quality • Dr. Jejal Bathi (Civil Engineering), Co- Principal Investigator: Sampling and Water Quality • Dr. Ghadir Asadi (Economics), Co- Principal Investigator: Database Development and Socio-economic Data Analysis • Two Graduate Students (TBD) – Field data collection, data analysis, and assistance in all other tasks. • Four Undergraduate Students (TBD) – Field data collection and assistance in all other tasks. This proposal is aligned with the following priority area of the Chattanooga’s American Rescue Plan solicitation: “improve access to clean drinking water’. References: 1. Manz F., 2007, Hydration and disease: Journal of the American College of Nutrition, v. 26, p. 535S-541S. 2. Popkin B., D'Anci K., and Rosenberg I., 2010, Water, hydration, and health: Nutrition Reviews, v. 68, p. 439-58. 3. Muckelbauer R., Sarganas G., Gruneis A., and Muller-Nordhorn J., 2013, Association between water consumption and body weight outcomes: a systematic review: American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, v. 98:282-99. 4. Wang, Y. C., Ludwig, D. S., Sonneville, K., and Gortmaker, S.L., 2009, Impact of change in sweetened caloric beverage consumption on energy intake among children and adolescents: Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, v. 163, p. 336-43. 5. Tate, D. F., Turner-McGrievy, G., Lyons, E., Stevens, J., Erickson, K., Polzien, K., Diamond, M., Wang, X., and Popkin, B., 2012, Replacing caloric beverages with water or diet beverages for weight loss in adults: main results of the Choose Healthy Options Consciously Everyday (CHOICE) randomized clinical trial: American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, v. 95, p. 555-63. 6. Bogart, L.M., Babey, S.H., Patel, A.I., Wang, P., and Schuster, M.A., 2016, Lunchtime school water availability and water consumption among California adolescents: Journal of Adolescent Health, v. 58, p. 98-103. 7. Park, S., Sherry, B., Wethington, H., and Pan, L., 2009, Use of parks or playgrounds: reported access to drinking water fountains among US adults: Journal of Public Health (Oxf), v. 34, p. 65-72. 8. Cradock, A. L., Kenney, E. L., McHugh, A., Conley, L., Mozaffarian, R.S., Reiner, J.F., and Gortmaker, S.L., 2015, Evaluating the impact of the Healthy Beverage Executive Order for city agencies in Boston, Massachusetts, 2011–2013: Preventing Chronic Disease, v. 12 (E147). 9. Long, M.W., Gortmaker, S.L., Patel A.I., Onufrak, S.J., Wilking, C.L., and Cradock, A.L., 2018, Public perception of quality and support for required access to drinking water in schools and parks: American Journal of Health Promotion, v. 32, p.72-4. 10. Avery, D.C., and Smith, C.D., 2018, Access to public drinking water fountains in Berkeley, California: a geospatial analysis: BMC Public Health, v. 18 (173). 11. Onufrak, S.J., Park, S., and Wilking C., 2014, Student-reported school drinking fountain availability by youth characteristics and state plumbing codes: Preventing Chronic Disease, v. 11 (E60). 12. Macintyre. S., Maciver, S., and Sooman, A., 1993, Area, class and health: should we be focusing on places or people?: Journal of Social Policy, v. 22, p. 213–34. 13. Charreire, H., Casey, R., Salze, P., Simon, C., Chaix, B., and Banos, A., 2010, Measuring the food environment using geographical information systems: a methodological review: Public Health Nutrition, v. 13, p. 1773–85. 14. Kearns, A., Gibb, K., and Mackay, D., 2000, Area deprivation in Scotland: a new assessment: Urban Study, v. 37, p. 1535–59. 15. Pearce, J., Witten, K., and Bartie, P., 2006, Neighbourhoods and health: a GIS approach to measuring community resource accessibility: Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, v. 60, p. 389–95. 16. Pearce, J., Witten, K., Hiscock, R., Blakely, T., 2008, Regional and urban–rural variations in the Association of Neighbourhood Deprivation with community resource access: a National Study: Environ Plan A, v. 40, p. 2469–89. 17. Hall, J., and Hossain, A., 2020, Mapping urbanization and evaluating its possible impacts on stream water quality in Chattanooga, Tennessee, using GIS and remote sensing: Sustainability v. 12 (980). 18. U.S. Census Bureau quickfacts: Hamilton County, Tennessee. (n.d.). Retrieved October 22, 2021, from https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/hamiltoncountytennessee/PST045219. 3. 19. Chattanooga-Hamilton County Regional Planning Agency, 2015, Comp plan trends & analysis technical report, Retrieved December 01, 2020, from https://chcrpa.org//www/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/COMP_TRENDS_ANALYSIS_TECH_REPORT_02022016.pdf. 20. Flessner, D., 2021, Chattanooga area home starts grow but fail to keep pace with population, timesfreepress.com, Retrieved October 22, 2021, from https://www.timesfreepress.com/news/business/aroundregion/story/2021/aug/17/home-starts-grow-fail-keep-pace-population/552436/. |
| Please explain how your project meets the requirements of the American Rescue Plan | Our project fits in the following federally eligible uses as explained on the website of Chattanooga’s American Rescue Plan application form: “Invest in water, sewer, and broadband infrastructure, making necessary investments to improve access to clean drinking water, support vital wastewater and stormwater infrastructure, and to expand access to broadband internet”. Our project specifically addresses the investments to improve access to clean drinking water. |
| Where would your project take place? | The project would take place on the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga campus and in different parts of the City of Chattanooga, TN. |
| How much will your project cost in total? | 50000 |
| Do you have any matching funding sources from other local governments, private entities, non-profits, or philanthropic entities for your project? | No |
| Please describe the source and list amounts of any other funding. | |
| What portion of the project are you asking the city to fund? | |
| If funded, when would your project start? | June 1, 2022 |
| How long would your project take to complete? | One year. |
| What milestones would you use to measure your project’s progress? | The success of the project would depend on the successful completion of the following five tasks: (1) Development of a GIS database for mapping all the publicly available drinking water fountains in the City of Chattanooga, TN, (2) Assessment of the condition of the water fountains including water quality, (3) Integration of the assessed conditions of the water fountains in the developed GIS database, (4) Evaluation of equity and environmental justice related with the access to free drinking water using the developed GIS database and mapping system, and (5) Making suggestions for the potential locations of new access points for free drinking water fountains to improve access to drinking water for the public. The progress of the project will be measured by the timely deliverables of each task and corresponding progress reports. |
| How would you ensure accountability and transparency throughout the project lifecycle? | The project will produce regular progress reports documenting the status of each five tasks including expenditures and budget details. There is a plan to organize a workshop involving the community participants for disseminating the outcomes of the project. The project progress reports, and the workshop will be used to ensure the accountability and transparency of the project. |
| If successful, how would your project benefit the community? | The successful completion of the project would provide the following deliverables to the community: (1) A GIS database of all the publicly available drinking water fountains in the City of Chattanooga, TN, (2) Assessment of the condition of the water fountains including water quality, (3) Integration of the assessed conditions of the water fountains in the developed GIS database, (4) Evaluation of equity and environmental justice related with the access to free drinking water using the developed GIS database and mapping system, and (5) Suggestions for the potential locations of new access points for free drinking water fountains to improve access to drinking water for the public. |
| How will you attract community buy-in for your project? | There is a plan to organize a workshop involving the community participants for disseminating the outcomes of the project. We strongly believe that the expected deliverables of the projects would benefit the community by providing a web-GIS based mapping system to visualize the distribution of the available publicly accessible drinking water fountains in the city, the current state of the fountains including water quality, evaluation of equity and environmental justice related with the access to free drinking water, and suggestions for the potential locations of new access points for free drinking water fountains to improve access to drinking water for the public. |
| Name | Jonathon Mies |
| Contact Information | Jonathan-Mies@utc.edu |
| Name | Stephanie Devries |
| Contact Information | stephanie-devries@utc.edu |
| Name | Jejal Bathi |
| Contact Information | jejalreddy-bathi@utc.edu |
| Name | Ghadir Asadi |
| Contact Information | ghadir-asadi@utc.edu |
| Is there anything else you would like us to know about your project? | Thank you very much for your consideration! |