From the Ground Up: How Khulna City Shifted Its Water Supply System from Salinated, Diminishing Groundwater to Surface Water

The publication captures the knowledge and lessons from a water supply project in the coastal city of Khulna in Bangladesh in addressing the worsening salinity levels in the water sources.

The transition from groundwater to surface water or conjunctive use can be costly and technically complex. The Khulna Water Supply Project, cofinanced by the Asian Development Bank and the Japan International Cooperation Agency, developed a new surface water source and avoided the recurring high costs of desalination treatment technology. The project financed an entirely new system--from intake to tap--for 65% of the city’s population. The transformative changes from the project were possible with the newly established Khulna Water Supply and Sewerage Authority, only the third of its kind in the country.