Plumbing Around the World

Throughout the world, plumbers perform a vital public function, working to protect the health and prosperity of their local populations by ensuring the safe and efficient supply and disposal of water.

The importance of plumbing to public health first became apparent in the 18th / 19th centuries, when rapid urbanization in the industrialized West led to sharp increases in fatalities from water-borne epidemics.

Even in our modern world, clean water and proper sanitation systems remain the most effective public health measures. Inadequate water supply or sewage disposal systems can create widespread health problems and contribute significantly to health inequities.

Around the globe, 3.2 million people now have access to drinking water supplied through pipe systems in their home. An estimated 1.8 billion people are also served with piped sanitation facilities.

While superficially impressive, these figures also highlight the sanitation problems facing the developing world. Only around half of the earth's population currently has access to domestic plumbing systems. Poorly designed, maintained and operated plumbing systems are responsible for further facilitating the spread of disease in many of these areas, where urbanization is growing at an accelerated rate. Ineffective plumbing can be linked to the transmission of bacteria and viruses including diarrhea, cholera and dysentery. It is also possible for carcinogenic chemicals to make their way into the water supply via unsafe pipework. In addition to such microbial and chemical contamination, serious injuries such as scalding are sometimes caused by faults in plumbing.

Low levels of global plumbing coverage mean that the scope for growth in the industry is enormous. Millions of plumbing systems will have to be designed, constructed and properly maintained in the future to safeguard public health around the world.

The World Health Organization has joined forces with the World Plumbing Council and a team of international experts to draw up a document offering guidance for plumbing regulators on the safe design, operation and maintenance of plumbing systems in an attempt to standardize levels of plumbing provision across the globe, with an emphasis on public health and safety.