A Case Study on Water Demand Management
Introduction
Over the years, an enormous growth in population, agriculture and industries are creating an immense pressure on water resources. The traditional methods of urban water systems are now altered to sustainable urban water management (SUWM). This case study drives the difference between conventional and water sensitive urban development.
Water Sensitive City
Urban water systems are currently facing the challenges such as climate change, which includes water scarcities, high intensity rainfall and high radiation waves, which gives rise to storm water runoff. A modern way of water sensitive urban development (WSUD) has been put into practise to mitigate the effects of storm water runoff (van de Meene, Brown, & Farrelly, 2011). WSUD practises to manage storm water, fresh water and waste water by means of providing water recycle. This creates an
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2011). In order to mitigate the flood risk, it created an approach to water sensitive city. This leads to understand storm water as a resource, with water sensitive planning and design in a Low Impact Design approach. The integrated water management in cities mainly depends upon the stakeholders and they are responsible to make space in urban areas. A field trip to Talbot Park, Auckland city gave an idea about composting of toilets in commercial buildings and about rain gardens. The water from public roads and raised parking areas reach rain gardens but it was not much disturbed by sediment discharges, because of the high infiltration rates. The Auckland council uses about 80% of water, and combined with water care research which is a part of energy management system, to benchmark Auckland’s demand management. (Auckland Demand Management Plan
Direct the development and management of contracting and employment compliance policies, procedures, and standards for the District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority’s (DC Water) $8 billion Capital Improvement Program. Mr. Harley leads compliance reviews and audits of more than 100 contractors and vendors on 17 capital improvement projects to ensure procedures are in accord with the Authority, local, state and federal regulations. He created and implemented training protocols that comprised of written documentation guides, media presentations, workshops, and webinars to educate employees, contractors, and other stakeholders on compliance requisites.
FIJI Water (FIJI) is a brand of bottled water that is derived from an aquifer in the Nakauvadra Mountains in Fiji. FIJI was created for international distribution in 1995, under the corporate name of Natural Waters of Viti Ltd. It was marketed to appeal to health-conscious and image oriented consumers by touting the water’s silica-rich property that has been attributed to anti-aging and immunity boosting. FIJI Water has captured a large share in the bottled water industry in the niche premium segment alongside Evian and Perrier. The initial success of FIJI has been overshadowed by multifaceted issues that were exacerbated by management’s actions.
This is because only a small part of the population, particularly in developing countries, have access to water of acceptable quality. It is estimated that in some countries only 20% of the rural population has water of satisfactory quality. Based on these statistics, it is clear the urgent need for awareness about caring for water use. Almost without realizing it, we are seriously jeopardizing this essential resource, not for us but for our children's children and their generations, aware that in other parts o...
Water purification and a wastewater treatment plants would be necessary in order to provide the citizens and visitors with clean healthy water. To prevent flooding, this city was built on flood plains.
Background: Waste water treatment plants are essential to communities of all sizes and must work efficiently. Waste water treatment plant primary priority and responsibility is the treatment of incoming sewage water by the removal of biological and chemical wastes so it can be treated and recycled for future use. There are many government agencies and standards set forth to govern and observe the successful treatment of sewage, such as the Department of Environmental Quality, the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System and the Clean Water Act of 1972. Compliance and constant monitoring of the treatment plant’s operations are important as they protect the surrounding community. A spill or backflow of sewage due to a complete system malfunction could potentially be detrimental to the environment and local community.
That’s not even taking into the account the contaminants the water picks up on its way through a city or suburban area. Even though this problems are known and plans are made to redevelop new ways to combat them, like satellite surveys of areas to better understand a problem areas and what should be done, smart growth new to the American cityscape that we as a nation seem to make more mistakes than progress (NASA, National Geographic). In fact growth does not seem to be the answer at all but a steadfast boundaries between rural areas and urban development seems to be the ideal—much like the old city in Europe, cities with insurmountable boundaries like coast or high mountains, or the ideal that a city should grow-up not out that existed before the development of suburbs and large road ways bisecting a city. Unfortunately this means a retraction back into the city center and more controls on development—which makes are capitalistic society cringe and turn its' back; even if it would be more economic anyway, as soon as a Planning Committee suggests reduction to development, developers stop listening and do not hear that a reduction in development is not a reduction in progress and economic income. To make any progress in urban development this view of the developers’ have about bigger is better must be changed to something less environmentally
Indeed, many global cities face compelling urban planning issues like urban sprawl, population, low density development, overuse of non-renewable natural recourses, social inequities and environmental degradation. These issues affect the cities themselves, the adjacent regions and often even globally. The resulting ecological footprint upsets the balance in adjacent rural and natural areas. Unplanned or organic development leads to urban sprawl, traffic problems, pollution and slums (as evident in the case of Mumbai city). Such unplanned development causes solid waste management and water supply to fall inadequate. Urban sprawl gives rise to low density development and car dependent communities, consequently leading to increased urban flooding, low energy efficiency, longer travel time and destruction of croplands, forests and open spaces for development.
There is a global shortage of drinking water. A person might wonder how this can be if seventy percent of the earth’s surface is covered by water. Most of the Earth’s water is unsuitable for human consuption. Ocean water is salt water, which makes up 97.5% of all water on the planet. Freshwater is only 3.5% of all the water on Earth. Drinking water is sourced from bodies of freshwater.
Surely there exist cities that are determined to transform into more eco-friendly representatives of urban civilization, yet these efforts are typically focused on minimizing the harmful output of cities rather than rew...
Despite substantial rainfall from annual monsoons and access to vast aquifers in the northern region of the Maharashtra state, Mumbai has never been able to provide piped water or sanitation for all, or even most of its residents. According to one report, the city has a notional per capita water availability exceedingly that of London, yet it fails to provide even the most affluent communities with 24 hour piped water. Relying on a crumbling, century-old system of fragile pipes that is woefully inadequate, even just for the city proper, Mumbai’s water system can be accurately characterized as in crisis. Water leakage and pipe ruptures are extremely common, some estimates suggest as must as 20% of all the City’s piped water is lost in this manner. Projects to build new reservoirs and upgrade failing infrastructure have been stymied by perpetual funding shortages and severe delays, leaving much of Mumbai’s population underserved or completely unserved.
The problem of water scarcity has increasingly spread throughout the world as of yet, The UN reports that within the next half- century up to 7 billion people in 60 countries which is more than the whole present population will face water scarcity (Sawin “Water Scarcity could Overwhelm the Next Generation”). As well the demand for freshwater has tripled over the past 50 years, and is continuing to rise as a result of population growth and economic development. 70% of this demand derives from agriculture which shows the influence of water on food supply globally as well not just drinking water (Sawin “Water Scarcity could overwhelm the Next Generation”). But increasing water use is not just a matter of the greater number of people needing it to drink and eat; it also comes from pollution and misuse of water supplies, by either dumping or runoff of bacteria or chemicals into water. This also “causes other pollutions as well such as soil and air pollution, accelerating wetland damage and human caused global warming” (Smith and Thomassey 25). According to UN report, recent estimates suggest that climate change will account for about 20 percent of the increase in global water scarcity in coming decades.
Nowadays, more than half of the world population lives in cities. Urban populations consume 75% of the world 's natural resources and generate 75% of waste. Cities have become consumers of enormous amounts of natural resources and generating massive environmental
“Water is the lifeblood of this planet. Every time a good is bought or sold there is a virtual exchange of water. Every time we interact with water, we change it, redirect it, or otherwise alter its state. We have never learned how to efficiently manage water.”(Cluckie, 2009) Ian Cluckie, Professor of Hydrology and Water Management, emphasizes the fact that humans can’t survive without water. Although water is a renewable resource that can replenish under hydrological cycles, our intervention has interrupted its natural cycle causing its supply to decrease.(Cluckie, 2009)
A major premise of the subdiscipline of environmental engineering is to keep the water free of harmful chemicals and debris used in infrastructure projects and this is directly related to the public’s health. 11% of childhood deaths are directly related to not having potable drinking water[3]. This is due to contaminants either from sanitation discrepancies from sewage issues or the detrimental effects of the pollutants we are adding to the air and therefore through the water cycle eventually into the water .It is estimated that 12,000 people die prematurely because of the pollutants that exist in our air, the main cause is CO2 emissions, which if we took more of an environmental approach when designing means of transportation and and relied heavily on mass transit, we could reduce this immensely.[4] If we are able to effectively reduce pollutants added to the air and water, we will continue to increase the lifespan of humans and reduce deaths that are easily avoided through well designed and environmentally friendly engineering
South Africa has a very erratic and unpredictable rainfall pattern with many of its provinces relying on the seasonal rainfall. With fresh water being in high demand, it would be highly advisable that they introduce systems such as the water harvesting system as it will relieve households from high water bills for simple domestic uses such as flushing toilets to washing the laundry. On the other hand, it will put less strain on the water bill needing to be paid at the end of the month. This warrants water sustainability as well as economic stability as resources will be regulated in terms of over-exploitation and environmental degradation.