Household greywater use practices in Melbourne, Australia

2013 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 294-301 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Sinclair ◽  
J. O'Toole ◽  
M. Malawaraarachchi ◽  
K. Leder
Keyword(s):  
Urban Areas ◽  
Microbial Contamination ◽  
Tap Water ◽  
Severe Drought ◽  
Urban Water ◽  
Housing Developments ◽  
End Use ◽  
Volume Estimates ◽  
And Storage ◽  
Greywater Reuse

Research on the potential of greywater reuse to reduce urban tap water demand has focused mainly on permanently installed greywater treatment or irrigation systems. These may be readily implemented in new housing developments, but experience in Australia shows their uptake by established households in urban areas is low. The majority of households employ simple and temporary methods for greywater collection and use, but their behaviour has not been well documented. We characterised the greywater use practices of over 1,000 Melbourne households during a 5-year period (2007 to 2011) which included 3 years of severe drought with stringent restrictions on outdoor tap water use. Greywater was most frequently collected from the laundry and bathroom, and generally used within 24 hours. Garden watering was the most common end use, and treatment of greywater to reduce microbial contamination was very rare. Volume estimates by householders suggest that on average around 10% of tap water used in the home was being collected for reuse. When drought conditions and water restrictions eased, over 40% of user households discontinued greywater use. Widespread adoption of permanent greywater collection, treatment and storage systems by households would be required to achieve a lasting effect on urban water consumption.

scholarly journals Overall Efficiency of On-Site Production and Storage of Solar Thermal Energy

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 1360
Author(s):  
Teodora M. Șoimoșan ◽  
Ligia M. Moga ◽  
Livia Anastasiu ◽  
Daniela L. Manea ◽  
Aurica Căzilă ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Energy Efficiency ◽  
Thermal Energy ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Renewable Energy Sources ◽  
Multicriteria Analysis ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Solar Thermal ◽  
Solar Thermal Energy ◽  
The Impact ◽  
And Storage

Harnessing renewable energy sources (RES) using hybrid systems for buildings is almost a deontological obligation for engineers and researchers in the energy field, and increasing the percentage of renewables within the energy mix represents an important target. In crowded urban areas, on-site energy production and storage from renewables can be a real challenge from a technical point of view. The main objectives of this paper are quantification of the impact of the consumer’s profile on overall energy efficiency for on-site storage and final use of solar thermal energy, as well as developing a multicriteria assessment in order to provide a methodology for selection in prioritizing investments. Buildings with various consumption profiles lead to achieving different values of performance indicators in similar configurations of storage and energy supply. In this regard, an analysis of the consumption profile’s impact on overall energy efficiency, achieved in the case of on-site generation and storage of solar thermal energy, was performed. The obtained results validate the following conclusion: On-site integration of solar systems allowed the consumers to use RES at the desired coverage rates, while restricted by on-site available mounting areas for solar fields and thermal storage, under conditions of high energy efficiencies. In order to segregate the results and support optimal selection, a multicriteria analysis was carried out, having as the main criteria the energy efficiency indicators achieved by hybrid heating systems.

scholarly journals Innovative approach for achieving of sustainable urban water supply system by using of solar photovoltaic energy

2017 ◽  
Vol 37 (1) ◽  
pp. 58 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jure Margeta ◽  
Bojan Đurin
Keyword(s):  
Water Supply ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Renewable Energy Sources ◽  
Water Reservoir ◽  
Supply System ◽  
Water Supply System ◽  
Urban Water ◽  
Solar Photovoltaic ◽  
Urban Water Supply ◽  
Pump Station

Paper describes and analyses new and innovative concept for possible integration of solar photovoltaic (PV) energy in urban water supply system (UWSS). Proposed system consists of PV generator and invertor, pump station and water reservoir. System is sized in such a manner that every his part is sized separately and after this integrated into a whole. This integration is desirable for several reasons, where the most important is the achievement of the objectives of sustainable living in urban areas i.e. achieving of sustainable urban water supply system. The biggest technological challenge associated with the use of solar, wind and other intermittent renewable energy sources RES is the realization of economically and environmentally friendly electric energy storage (EES). The paper elaborates the use of water reservoires in UWSS as EES. The proposed solution is still more expensive than the traditional and is economically acceptable today in the cases of isolated urban water system and special situations. Wider application will depend on the future trends of energy prices, construction costs of PV generators and needs for CO2 reduction by urban water infrastructure.

Detection of infectious enteroviruses and adenoviruses in tap water in urban areas in Korea

2002 ◽  
Vol 36 (1) ◽  
pp. 248-256 ◽  
Author(s):  
Seung-Hoon Lee ◽  
Sang-Jong Kim
Keyword(s):  
Urban Areas ◽  
Tap Water

Implementation of sustainable sanitation in existing urban areas: long-term strategies for an optimised solution

2007 ◽  
Vol 56 (5) ◽  
pp. 115-124 ◽  
Author(s):  
I. Kaufmann ◽  
T. Meyer ◽  
M. Kalsch ◽  
T.G. Schmitt ◽  
H.W. Hamacher
Keyword(s):  
Urban Areas ◽  
Ecological Impacts ◽  
Nutrient Cycle ◽  
Practical Implementation ◽  
Mathematical Tool ◽  
Urban Water ◽  
Future State ◽  
Sustainable Urban Water Management ◽  
Decision Making Processes ◽  
Mathematical Optimisation

If technologies for decentralised sanitation and reuse (DESAR) and for natural stormwater management should at least partially replace existing systems, then intensive reconstruction work becomes essential. A conversion can only be realised successively over a long period due to high construction and financial expenses and requires new strategies. This paper presents the development and practical implementation of a mathematical tool to find an optimised strategy for the realisation of alternative and more decentralised drainage and sanitation concepts in existing urban areas. The succession of construction measures (e.g. the implementation of decentralised greywater recycling) for the whole period of consideration is determined based upon a mathematical optimisation model on the condition that the favoured future state is known. The model describes the complex interdependencies of the urban water and nutrient cycle and enables the minimisation of both financial efforts and ecological impacts on the way toward the future state. The results of the implementation for a rural area in Germany show that the mathematical optimisation is an adequate instrument to support decision-making processes in finding strategies for the realisation of sustainable urban water management.

scholarly journals Present challenges for future water sustainable cities: a case study from Italy

2013 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 151-166
Author(s):  
L. Bonzanigo ◽  
G. Sinnona
Keyword(s):  
Water Management ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Sustainable Use ◽  
Severe Drought ◽  
Sustainable Cities ◽  
Adaptation Measures ◽  
The Future ◽  
Italian Context ◽  
The Impact

Abstract. The global population is increasingly concentrated in cities. Cities and urban areas face many challenges – economic, social, health and environmental – which are often exacerbated by an increase in the frequency of natural disasters. Together, these challenges call for a shift towards sustainable cities which reduce their impact on the surrounding environment, whilst at the same time succeeding to make resources available to their increasing number of inhabitants. This article explores the state of the art of water management practices of the highly urbanised Northern Italian region and plans and scope for the future development of water management. Although the region is at present not under severe water stress, recently some cities faced water scarcity problems and were forced to implement water rationing. We assessed the vulnerability of Parma and Ferrara to a water crisis, together with the regular and emergency adaptation measures already in place, and the forecast for the near future. In two workshops, the authors adapted the Australian concept of Water Sensitive Urban Design for the Italian context. Although the population remains generally unaware of the impact of the two latest severe drought events (2003 and 2006/7), many adaptation measures towards a more sustainable use of the water resource are already in place – technically, institutionally, and individually. Water managers consider however that the drastic and definite changes needed to integrate the urban water management cycle, and which minimise the ecological footprint of urban spaces, lay far in the future.

Urban-Water Harmony model to evaluate the urban water management

2014 ◽  
Vol 70 (11) ◽  
pp. 1774-1781 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yifan Ding ◽  
Deshan Tang ◽  
Yuhang Wei ◽  
Sun Yin
Keyword(s):  
Water Management ◽  
Water Resources ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Rapid Development ◽  
Urban Expansion ◽  
Water Environment ◽  
Integrated Approach ◽  
Urban Water ◽  
Urban Water Management

Water resources in many urban areas are under enormous stress due to large-scale urban expansion and population explosion. The decision-makers are often faced with the dilemma of either maintaining high economic growth or protecting water resources and the environment. Simple criteria of water supply and drainage do not reflect the requirement of integrated urban water management. The Urban-Water Harmony (UWH) model is based on the concept of harmony and offers a more integrated approach to urban water management. This model calculates four dimensions, namely urban development, urban water services, water–society coordination, and water environment coordination. And the Analytic Hierarchy Process has been used to determine the indices weights. We applied the UWH model to Beijing, China for an 11-year assessment. Our findings show that, despite the severe stress inherent in rapid development and water shortage, the urban water relationship of Beijing is generally evolving in a positive way. The social–economic factors such as the water recycling technologies contribute a lot to this change. The UWH evaluation can provide a reasonable analysis approach to combine various urban and water indices to produce an integrated and comparable evaluation index. This, in turn, enables more effective water management in decision-making processes.

Transdisciplinary Design of Adaptation Pathways in Peri-urban India: Planning for Water Needs in a Sustainable Urban Transition 

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sharlene L. Gomes ◽  
Sarah Luft ◽  
Shreya Chakraborty ◽  
Leon M. Hermans ◽  
Carsten Butsch
Keyword(s):  
Water Resources ◽  
Urban Communities ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Urban Water ◽  
Urban Context ◽  
Urban Transition ◽  
Local Actors ◽  
Context Specific ◽  
Key Steps ◽  
Urban Institutions

<p>This research, conducted within the H2O-T2S project, is located in peri-urban areas of three cities in India: Pune, Hyderabad, Kolkata. Peri-urban areas are where the rural to urban transition is most visible. A key challenge for peri-urban areas is sustainable management of water resources. Peri-urban water resources in India are under threat from growing water demand and ineffective institutions. Interdisciplinary research of existing water-based livelihoods, household water use, and peri-urban institutions in these three regions shows that current urban transformations are unsustainable. Given the dynamic nature of peri-urban contexts, short and long-term vulnerabilities must be considered. An adaptation policy pathways approach can help peri-urban actors develop longer-term transformative plans. This study describes the design and execution of a participatory process to design context-specific pathways with peri-urban communities and governments in India.</p><p>This presentation outlines the key steps in our customized pathways approach for the peri-urban context. Due to the covid-19 pandemic, initial plans to implement these steps through a series of stakeholder workshops were replaced by remote pathways design using the Delphi method. We present a step-by-step methodology to engage peri-urban actors in the design of longer-term adaptive plans for water resources in the future. Results are presented for Hadia village (Kolkata), one of the three peri-urban case studies. It reveals the range of future normative scenarios developed for this village and a pathways schematic towards these scenarios.</p><p>Our results demonstrate the value of engaging local actors in the design of adaptive plans for peri-urban water resources. This study offers insights for ways to conduct transdisciplinary research even when face to face interactions are not feasible.</p>

Comparing urban sub-catchment delineation approaches for dynamic hydrological modelling

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yannick Back ◽  
Fabian Funke ◽  
Peter Marcus Bach ◽  
Joao Paulo Leitao ◽  
Wolfgang Rauch ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Management ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Hydrological Cycle ◽  
Geographical Information ◽  
Surface Model ◽  
Urban Water ◽  
Rainfall Runoff ◽  
Management Models ◽  
Catchment Delineation ◽  
The Way

<p>In the face of rapid urban and population growth and with climate change altering precipitation patterns, urban water management is becoming increasingly demanding. Numerous software, tools and approaches to study urban water flow behaviour and model hydrological processes exist. However, the understanding of water movement in urban areas, especially during extreme events, and the physical principles behind them, as well as the interaction between the natural and the urban hydrological cycle is still incomplete. For decades, models suited for urban hydrological analysis greatly impacted the improvement of flood protection, public health and environmental protection, changing the way we look at urban water and stormwater management. In order to calculate accurate quantities of runoff in any rainfall/runoff model, information about urban sub-catchment characteristics plays an important role. Size, shape, topography, as well as land use influencing infiltration rates and evapotranspiration, are of great importance to calculate accurate runoff quantities on the urban scale. New implementations to reduce runoff towards the sewer system, such as decentralised stormwater techniques, increase the urgent need for accurate and high-resolution local/neighbourhood-scale information. Spatial and temporal developments require water management models to be connected with GIS (Geographical Information Systems). Initially not being developed to interact with each other, multiple approaches exist to combine GIS with water management models. Nevertheless, defining urban sub-catchments for rainfall-runoff modelling is often still performed manually using specific maps or using simple surface partitioning algorithms such as the Thiessen polygons. A significant disadvantage in generating urban sub-catchments manually is the fact that natural surface inclination is usually not considered, influencing the size and shape of the delineated sub-catchments. So far, only a few studies have devoted attention to improving the way urban sub-catchments are delineated and the information about their surface characteristics is generated. This study evaluates a GIS-based approach to automatically delineate urban sub-catchments accounting for the location of nodes (actual manholes or drain inlets) as sub-catchment outlets. In order to compare the influence of the sub-catchment delineation methods (1 to 3), we use (1) a digital surface model (DSM) and (2) a digital elevation model (DEM) to automatically delineate the urban sub-catchments and compare these two methods with each other as well as with (3) already manually derived sub-catchments of a specific case study. Furthermore, we compare hydraulic simulation results from the software SWMM with measured flow data to infer the most accurate sub-catchment delineation method.</p>

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