ABSTRACT

Two corollaries of the rapid growth of Sydney, New South Wales, during the nineteenth century were degradation of the water supply and inadequate sanitation. Reform was slow to arrive: a new scheme began to supply clean water from 1886, while connections to the sewerage system increased gradually from less than 25% of the population in 1889 to 80% by 1906. Examination of mortality trends during 1857–1906 shows that decline began in the mid 1880s, led by falls in under-five mortality from water-related communicable diseases. By 1906, the mortality differential between Sydney and the rest of New South Wales had all but disappeared. Based on statistical modelling, we conclude that the provision of a new source of clean water was the key factor in bringing about the decline in water-related mortality in Sydney. Improved sewerage coverage had less effect on mortality decline, coming as it did after the provision of clean water, although the role of sewerage infrastructure diffusion remains unknown.

摘要

19世纪，新南威尔士州悉尼的快速增长产生了两个推论，那就是供水能力下降和卫生设施不足。改革的到来很慢：从1886年开始提供清洁水的新计划，而到污水处理系统的连接逐渐增加，从1889年的不到25％的人口增加到1906年的80％。对1857年至1906年死亡率趋势的研究表明这种下降始于1880年代中期，其主要原因是与水有关的传染病导致5岁以下儿童死亡率下降。到1906年，悉尼和新南威尔士州其他地区之间的死亡率差异几乎消失了。根据统计模型，我们得出结论，提供新的清洁水源是导致悉尼与水有关的死亡率下降的关键因素。