Comparing perceived and actual drinking water quality across rural Northern Kazakhstan

Providing rural populations with safe drinking water remains a pressing issue in many regions of the world, particularly where decentralized water supply systems are used and water quality varies significantly. This study analyzes the relationship between the chemical composition of drinking water and the perception of its quality among residents of rural settlements in the Akmola region of Kazakhstan, represented by various landscape types. The study is based on a mixed-methods approach, including hydrochemical analysis of drinking water samples, analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Spearman correlation analysis, as well as the processing of village-level questionnaire data reflecting complaints, satisfaction levels, and post-treatment practices. The results show that most of the studied water sources belong to the Ca–Mg–Cl–HCO₃ hydrochemical type, with higher levels of dissatisfaction with drinking water quality observed in rural settlements in the steppe zone. The findings highlight the need to link objective water quality assessments with subjective public perceptions to improve the effectiveness of rural water supply management and build community confidence in water safety measures.