Investigating wastewater flow from a gated community to disaggregate indoor and outdoor water use

Abstract Disaggregating residential water use into components for indoor and outdoor use is useful in view of water services planning and demand management campaigns, where outdoor use is often the target of water restrictions. Previous research has shown that individual end-use events can be identified based on analysis of the flow pattern at the water meter, but such studies are relatively complex and expensive. A basic method to disaggregate the indoor–outdoor water use would be useful. In addressing this problem, a technique was employed in this study to disaggregate indoor–outdoor water use based on knowledge of the wastewater flow, with assumptions that link indoor use to wastewater flow. A controlled study site in a gated community, with small bore sewers, was selected to allow certain assumptions to be validated. The results provide insight into the monthly indoor and outdoor water use of homes in the study area, and show how wastewater flow could be used to assess outdoor use. Outdoor use was found to represent up to 66% of the total household water use in January, accounting for ∼58% of the total annual water use in the study area 2016.

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Classifying household water use into indoor and outdoor use from a rudimentary data set: a case study in Johannesburg, South Africa

Journal of Water Sanitation and Hygiene for Development ◽

10.2166/washdev.2021.229 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Bettina Elizabeth Meyer ◽

Heinz Erasmus Jacobs ◽

Adeshola Ilemobade

Keyword(s):

South Africa ◽

Water Use ◽

Data Set ◽

Household Water ◽

Residential Properties ◽

End Use ◽

Water Scarce ◽

Indoor And Outdoor ◽

Water Meter

Abstract Distinguishing between indoor use and outdoor use is becoming increasingly important, especially in water-scarce regions, since outdoor use is typically targeted during water restrictions. Household water use is typically measured at a single water meter, and the resolution of the metered data is typically too coarse to employ on commercially available disaggregation software, such as flow trace analysis. This study is the first to classify end-use events from a rudimentary data set, into indoor use or outdoor use. This case study was conducted in Johannesburg, South Africa, and quantified the volume of water used indoors and outdoors at 63 residential properties over 217 days. A recently developed model for classifying water use events as either indoor or outdoor, based on rudimentary water meter data, was employed in this study. A total of 212,060 single end-use events were classified as being either indoor or outdoor. The indoor and outdoor consumptions were compared with survey results. It was found that 30% of all events were outdoor, based on the total volume.

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How managers can reduce household water use through communication: A field experiment

10.31234/osf.io/j5v6y ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Heather Hodges ◽

Colin Kuehl ◽

Sarah E. Anderson ◽

Phillip John Ehret ◽

Cameron Brick

Keyword(s):

Field Experiment ◽

Water Use ◽

Cost Effective ◽

High Water ◽

Single Family ◽

Residential Water Use ◽

Household Water ◽

Average Water ◽

Water District ◽

Residential Water

As populations increase and droughts intensify, water providers are using tools such as persuasive messaging to decrease residential water use. However, district-led messaging campaigns are rarely informed by psychological science, evaluated for effectiveness, or strategically disseminated. In collaboration with a water district, we report a field experiment among single-family households using persuasive messaging based on the information-motivation-behavioral skills model (IMB). We randomly assigned 10,000 households to receive different mailings and measured household water use. All messaging reduced water consumption relative to the control. On average, water use dropped 0.68 HCF (509 gallons) per household in the first month. Had all 10,000 single-family, occupied, non-agricultural residences been mailed the IMB messaging, more than 5 million gallons would have been saved in the first month. The effects declined but persisted for approximately three months and were three to six times greater in households with high water use (75th-90th percentiles) relative to average water use. These findings suggest that combining message elements from the IMB model can reduce residential water use and that targeting high-use households is particularly cost-effective.

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Using smart meters to identify social and technological impacts on residential water consumption

Water Science & Technology Water Supply ◽

10.2166/ws.2011.088 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 11 (5) ◽

pp. 527-533 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Cara Beal ◽

Rodney A. Stewart ◽

Anneliese Spinks ◽

Kelly Fielding

Keyword(s):

Water Use ◽

Community Education ◽

Demand Management ◽

High Water ◽

Management Policy ◽

Smart Meters ◽

Water Users ◽

Residential Water Consumption ◽

End Use ◽

Demographic Surveys

Studies have shown that householders' perceptions of their water use are often not well matched with their actual water use. There has been less research, however, investigating whether this bias is related to specific types of end use and/or specific types of socio-demographic and socio-demographic household profiles. A high resolution smart metering study producing a detailed end use event registry as well as psycho-social and socio-demographic surveys, stock inventory audits and self-reported water diaries was completed for 250 households located in South-east Queensland, Australia. The study examined the contributions of end uses to total water use for each group identified as ‘low’, ‘medium’ or ‘high’ water users. Analyses were conducted to examine the socio-demographic variables such as income, percentage of water efficient stock, family size and composition, that characterise each self-identified water usage group. The paper concludes with a discussion of the general characteristics of groups that overestimate and underestimate their water use and how this knowledge can be used to inform demand management policy such as targeted community education programmes.

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Extracting household water use event characteristics from rudimentary data

Journal of Water Supply Research and Technology—AQUA ◽

10.2166/aqua.2020.153 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 69 (4) ◽

pp. 387-397 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Bettina Elizabeth Meyer ◽

Heinz Erasmus Jacobs ◽

Adeshola Ilemobade

Keyword(s):

High Resolution ◽

Water Use ◽

Service Providers ◽

Flow Measurements ◽

High Resolution Data ◽

High Resource ◽

Smart Water ◽

Household Water ◽

End Use ◽

End Uses

Abstract Household water end-uses have been extracted from high-resolution smart water meter data in various earlier studies. However, research on end-use disaggregation from rudimentary data is limited. Rudimentary data is defined as data recorded in intervals longer than 1 min, or data recorded with resolutions larger than 0.1 L/pulse. Developing countries typically deal with rudimentary data, due to the high cost and high resource investment associated with high-resolution data. The aim of this study was to extract useful event characteristics from rudimentary data, without identifying the actual end-uses per se. A case study was conducted in the City of Johannesburg, South Africa, where 63 homes were equipped with iPERL smart water meters. The meters recorded flow measurements every 15 s at a 1 L/pulse resolution, rendering the recorded data rudimentary. A total of 1,107,547 event pulses were extracted over the 217-day study period. Although the method presented is limited in the sense that water use events cannot be identified, the method allows for disaggregation of event pulses in the presence of rudimentary data. Using this tool, it is possible to lift valuable information from rudimentary data that would subsequently benefit service providers in setting water demand strategies.

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Household water use and conservation models using Monte Carlo techniques

Hydrology and Earth System Sciences Discussions ◽

10.5194/hessd-10-4869-2013 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 10 (4) ◽

pp. 4869-4900 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

R. Cahill ◽

J. R. Lund ◽

B. DeOreo ◽

J. Medellín-Azuara

Keyword(s):

Monte Carlo ◽

Water Use ◽

Water Conservation ◽

Water Demand ◽

Cost Effective ◽

Mixed Integer ◽

Residential Neighborhood ◽

Household Water ◽

End Use ◽

Conservation Model

Abstract. The increased availability of water end use measurement studies allows for more mechanistic and detailed approaches to estimating household water demand and conservation potential. This study uses, probability distributions for parameters affecting water use estimated from end use studies and randomly sampled in Monte Carlo iterations to simulate water use in a single-family residential neighborhood. This model represents existing conditions and is calibrated to metered data. A two-stage mixed integer optimization model is then developed to estimate the least-cost combination of long- and short-term conservation actions for each household. This least-cost conservation model provides an estimate of the upper bound of reasonable conservation potential for varying pricing and rebate conditions. The models were adapted from previous work in Jordan and are applied to a neighborhood in San Ramon, California in eastern San Francisco Bay Area. The existing conditions model produces seasonal use results very close to the metered data. The least-cost conservation model suggests clothes washer rebates are among most cost-effective rebate programs for indoor uses. Retrofit of faucets and toilets is also cost effective and holds the highest potential for water savings from indoor uses. This mechanistic modeling approach can improve understanding of water demand and estimate cost-effectiveness of water conservation programs.

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How Trust and Risk Perception Affect Household Water Use

10.1093/acrefore/9780190632366.013.164 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Raymond Yu Wang ◽

Xiaofeng Liu

Keyword(s):

Risk Perception ◽

Water Use ◽

Water Consumption ◽

Water Conservation ◽

Tap Water ◽

Demand Management ◽

Management Strategies ◽

Social Groups ◽

Recycled Water ◽

Household Water

Household water use accounts for an important portion of water consumption. Notably, different households may behave differently regarding how water is used in everyday life. Trust and risk perception are two significant psychological factors that influence water use behavior in households. Since trust and risk perception are malleable and subject to construction, they are useful for developing effective demand management strategies and water conservation policies. The concepts of trust and risk perception are multidimensional and interconnected. Risk perception varies across social groups and is often shaped by subjective feelings toward a variety of activities, events, and technologies. Risk perception is also mediated by trust, which involves a positive expectation of an individual, an organization, and/or an institution that derives from complex processes, characteristics, and competence. Likewise, different social groups’ trust in various entities involved in household water use is subject to the significant and far-reaching impact of risk perception. The complexity of the two notions poses challenges to the measurement and exploration of their effects on household water use. In many cases, risk perception and trust can influence people’s acceptance of water sources (e.g., tap water, bottled water, recycled water, and desalinated water) and their conservation behavior (e.g., installing water-saving technologies and reducing water consumption) in household water use. Trust can affect household water use indirectly through its influence on risk perception. Moreover, trust and risk perception in household water use are neither given nor fixed; rather, they are dynamically determined by external, internal, and informational factors. A coherent, stable, transparent, and fair social and institutional structure is conducive to building trust. However, trust and risk perception differ among groups with diverse household and/or individual demographic, economic, social, and cultural characteristics. Direct information from personal experiences and, more importantly, indirect information from one’s social network, as well as from mass media and social media, play an increasingly important role in the formation and evolution of trust and risk perception, bringing a profound impact on household water use in an era of information. Future directions lie in new dynamics of risk perception and trust in the era of information explosion, the coevolution mechanism of risk perception and trust in household water use, the nuanced impacts of different types of risks (e.g., controllable and uncontrollable) on household water use, and the interactive relations of risk perception and trust across geographical contexts.

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Classifying Household Water Use Events into Indoor and Outdoor Use: Improving the Benefits of Basic Smart Meter Data Sets

Journal of Water Resources Planning and Management ◽

10.1061/(asce)wr.1943-5452.0001471 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 147 (12) ◽

pp. 04021079

Author(s):

Bettina E. Meyer ◽

Khoi Nguyen ◽

Cara D. Beal ◽

Heinz E. Jacobs ◽

Steven G. Buchberger

Keyword(s):

Water Use ◽

Data Sets ◽

Smart Meter ◽

Household Water ◽

Indoor And Outdoor

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What does rebounding water use look like? An examination of post-drought and post-flood water end-use demand in Queensland, Australia

Water Science & Technology Water Supply ◽

10.2166/ws.2014.008 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 14 (4) ◽

pp. 561-568 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

C. D. Beal ◽

A. Makki ◽

R. A. Stewart

Keyword(s):

Water Use ◽

Water Consumption ◽

Demand Management ◽

Management Policy ◽

Dry Period ◽

Residential Water Consumption ◽

End Use ◽

Capacity Data ◽

Residential Water

Rebounding water use behaviour has been observed in communities that have experienced plentiful water supply following a very dry period. However, the drivers of such rebounds in water consumption are varied and not well understood. Knowledge of such drivers can greatly assist managers towards proactive demand management, modelling and timely promotion of water efficient behaviours. Total and end-use residential water consumption has been tracked in South East Queensland, Australia for a sample of up to 252 homes in post-drought conditions (dam supplies growing but water restrictions continued, changed water use behaviours still ‘fresh’), and during and post-flooding conditions (eased restrictions, 100% dam capacity). Data on end-use water consumption trends using nearly 3 years of residential water end-use data have revealed several interesting patterns of consumption such as a delayed return to pre-drought use, the influence of climate and end-use specific rebounds (e.g. indoor versus outdoor use). The end-use data have helped to identify the drivers of rebounding water consumption which appear to include environmental cues (rainfall, temperature), social cues (e.g. government encouraging consumers to turn on tap) and a gradual general reduction in conservative water use behaviours. The paper concludes with a discussion of how this knowledge can be used to inform long-term demand management policy, particularly in variable climates.

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Advances in the Economic Analysis of Residential Water Use: An Introduction

Water ◽

10.3390/w10091162 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 10 (9) ◽

pp. 1162 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Arnaud Reynaud ◽

Giulia Romano

Keyword(s):

Water Use ◽

Water Conservation ◽

Water Demand ◽

Water Price ◽

Special Issue ◽

Residential Water Demand ◽

Residential Water Use ◽

Household Water ◽

The Impact ◽

Residential Water

The aim of this Special Issue is to gather evidence on the impact of price policies (PP) and non-price policies (NPP) in shaping residential water use in a context of increased water scarcity. Indeed, a large body of the empirical economic literature on residential water demand has been devoted to measuring the impact of PP (water price increases, use of block rate pricing or peak pricing, etc.). The consensus is that the residential water demand is inelastic with respect to water price, but not perfectly. Given the low water price elasticity, pricing schemes may not always be effective tools for modifying household water behaviors. This is puzzling since increasing the water price is still viewed by public authorities as the most direct economic tool for inducing water conservation behaviors. Additional evidence regarding the use of PP in shaping residential water use is then required. More recently, it has been argued that residential consumers may react to NPP, such as water conservation programs, education campaigns, or smart metering. NPP are based on the idea that residential water users can implement strategies that will result in water savings via changing their individual behaviors. Feedback information based on smart water metering is an example of approach used by some water utilities. There are still large gaps in the knowledge on the residential water demand, and in particular on the impact of PP and NPP on residential water use, household water affordability and water service performance. These topics are addressed in this Special Issue “Advances in the Economic Analysis of Residential Water Use”.

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