Investigating the influence of climate change risks on sanitation technology types in Nakuru city, Kenya

Urban sanitation systems face climate-related hazards that may threaten containment and service access. This study examined sanitation technology types, reported climate-related risks and the association between flood exposure and containment types in Nakuru City, Kenya. A convergent mixed-methods cross-sectional design combined a survey of 1,564 households, 18 key-informant interviews, six focus-group discussions with 48 participants, 20 in-depth interviews and descriptive mapping of household flood reports.

Unlined pits accounted for 42% of containment systems, fully lined pits 27%, sewered systems 19% and partially lined pits 10%. Direct flooding was reported by 26.1% of households; toilet collapse was recorded separately. In the reported 1,301-case multinomial model, flood exposure was associated with higher relative category probabilities for unlined, partially lined and sewered containment compared with fully lined pits, after adjustment for income and settlement type.

Broad settlement type was not jointly significant and model explanatory capacity was modest. Qualitative accounts described drainage, soil saturation, construction quality, affordability and tenure constraints. The findings support site-specific sanitation risk assessment and targeted upgrading, while recognising recall bias, incomplete income data and the inability of cross-sectional analysis to establish causal climate effects.