scholarly journals Assessing water scarcity by simultaneously considering environmental flow requirements, water quantity, and water quality

2016 ◽  
Vol 60 ◽  
pp. 434-441 ◽  
Author(s):  
Junguo Liu ◽  
Qingying Liu ◽  
Hong Yang
2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michelle T.H. van Vliet ◽  
Edward R. Jones ◽  
Martina Flörke ◽  
Wietse H.P. Franssen ◽  
Naota Hanasaki ◽  
...  

<p>Water scarcity threatens people in various regions, and has predominantly been studied from a water quantity perspective. However<strong>, </strong>the provision of water for human uses and environmental health is dependent on both sufficient water availability but also appropriate water quality for the intended use.</p><p>Our study presents the first estimates of global water scarcity driven by both water quantity and water quality issues and including impacts of desalination and treated waste-water reuse. We have developed a new water scarcity framework combining model simulations of multiple global hydrological models and global surface water quality models (water temperature, salinity, organic pollution, nutrients) and spatially-explicit datasets of desalination and treated wastewater reuse capacities globally.</p><p>Our results show that 40% of the world’s population currently lives in regions with severe water scarcity, which is driven by a combination of water quantity and quality issues. Impacts of water quality are in particular high in river basins in eastern China. Here, excessive water withdrawals and polluted return flows degrade water quality, exacerbating water scarcity. Our results show that expanding desalination and treated wastewater reuse capacities can strongly reduce water scarcity in most river basins, although the side-effects (e.g. brine production, high energy demands and costs) must be considered. We conclude that effective water scarcity reduction requires that we expand our focus from conventional measures, which mainly focus on improving water supply for sectoral uses, to solutions that also promote water quality improvements.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p><strong> </strong></p>


1976 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 209-218 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas W. Constable ◽  
Nicholas Kouwen ◽  
Shully I. Solomon

A mathematical model has been developed which can aid in assessing the effect of the modification of land use patterns on the water quantity and water quality regime of a watershed. The basin under study is divided into a number of elements using a square grid technique. The hydrologic and water quality components are evaluated at each element in the basin at successive time intervals, and flows are routed through the elements by use of a streamflow network system. The model can be used to assist in evaluating the effects of alternative land use configurations in a watershed, such as urbanization, the removal or growth of forests, the construction of dams, etc., on water quantity and water quality. It can also be used in the preliminary design of an urbanized area to estimate the size of storm sewers, artificial ponds, etc.


EDIS ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 2018 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Amanda D. Ali ◽  
Laura A. Sanagorski Warner ◽  
Peyton Beattie ◽  
Alexa J. Lamm ◽  
Joy N. Rumble

Residents are inclined to over-irrigate and over-fertilize their lawns to uphold landscape appearances influenced by homeowner associations and neighborhood aesthetics (Nielson & Smith (2005). While these practices affect water quantity and quality, water quality is most impacted by fertilizer runoff (Nielson & Smith, 2005; Toor et al., 2017). Supporting water programs and engagement in fertilizer best management practices (BMPs) can have positive impacts on water quality. The Diffusion of Innovations (DOI) theory can be used to explain how a population accepts and adopts fertilizer best management practices (BMPs) over time (Rogers, 2003). Adoption can be understood through a population's perception of relative advantage, compatibility, complexity, observability, and trialability of fertilizer BMPs. The information presented here is an exploration of how extension can use video messages to influence residents' perception of these factors which influence adoption. The videos positively influence residents' perceptions of fertilizer BMPs, and recommendations are offered for applying this research to extension programs. 


Water ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (12) ◽  
pp. 2558 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew Ristvey ◽  
Bruk Belayneh ◽  
John Lea-Cox

Water security in ornamental plant production systems is vital for maintaining profitability. Expensive, complicated, or potentially dangerous treatment systems, together with skilled labor, is often necessary to ensure water quality and plant health. Two contrasting commercial ornamental crop production systems in a mesic region are compared, providing insight into the various strategies employed using irrigation-water containment and treatment systems. The first is a greenhouse/outdoor container operation which grows annual ornamental plants throughout the year using irrigation booms, drip emitters, and/or ebb and flow systems depending on the crop, container size, and/or stage of growth. The operation contains and recycles 50–75% of applied water through a system of underground cisterns, using a recycling reservoir and a newly constructed 0.25 ha slow-sand filtration (SSF) unit. Groundwater provides additional water when needed. Water quantity is not a problem in this operation, but disease and water quality issues, including agrochemicals, are of potential concern. The second is a perennial-plant nursery which propagates cuttings and produces field-grown trees and containerized plants. It has a series of containment/recycling reservoirs that capture rainwater and irrigation return water, together with wells of limited output. Water quantity is a more important issue for this nursery, but poor water quality has had some negative economic effects. Irrigation return water is filtered and sanitized with chlorine gas before being applied to plants via overhead and micro-irrigation systems. The agrochemical paclobutrazol was monitored for one year in the first operation and plant pathogens were qualified and quantified over two seasons for both production systems. The two operations employ very different water treatment systems based on their access to water, growing methods, land topography, and capital investment. Each operation has experienced different water quantity and quality vulnerabilities, and has addressed these threats using a variety of technologies and management techniques to reduce their impacts.


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