Water Resources Management: A Necessary Step To Existence

secureluokai April 5, 2017

How many of us really think that the depletion of water resources is the major reason behind water shortage? Undoubtedly, water resources are getting depleted at a faster rate than ever and the ever-receding ground table is a major concern, but definitely, these are not the only culprits behind the water shortage.

And this is the reason why there is a constant need that water management professionals including the likes of engineers, operators and water managers join hands to resolve the water crisis.

1) Water shortage – a combined result of leakage, infrastructural shortcomings, and scarcity

Let’s face it, the majority of us are never concerned about the drops of water that leak through the taps? The existing infrastructure is way behind in saving these drops. In places, where drought occurs frequently, this water loss causes more than just water shortage. Water is lost as a result of faulty pipes and infrastructural shortcomings, but the power used to transport water and making it fit for regular use, the associated chemicals and money are wasted too. This definitely demands change in the way things are going at the moment.

2) Its high time to bring about a change

Needless to say, a major part of the world still depends on old water management techniques even though times have changed. You might wonder if any change is necessary as the current system has worked perfectly for all these decades.,

However, you need to understand that the infrastructure has become old. What worked today need not work in the future. And this is the reason that:

• Developing countries are facing water shortage leading to health issues.
• There is no capital or capabilities to solve the problem of leakage existing in the current infrastructure.
• There is no transfer of knowledge happening and no solid plan in place.
• Many states are still not ready to accept the changing technologies which enable better decision making.

This pretty much explains the growing need for an innovation in the field.

3) Defining innovation

Innovation systems focus on the aspects of the network, actors, and institutions that create new products and technologies. It is believed that technological inventions are important, but not sufficient for innovation. Innovation uses the inventions to work rightly for successful water management strategies. The innovation in technology can result in a complete change in the current system or at least fix the bugs in the existing system. It is the experts in water management who should decide what is good for the current scenario.

4) Implementing innovation

Some of the greatest innovations of all times have happened as a result of the efforts of industry personnel who have identified an existing problem and worked to address it. When an innovative idea is adopted, a lot of tests are conducted. There is a need to patiently develop the idea along with a manufacturer. This should be followed by investing time and resources to do the field tests.

The manufacturer cannot consider it as a one-time opportunity to partner with the business. But, he should take the product to the market and be a winner. Although this is a tedious job, success is possible if there is a concrete plan that would reap lasting benefits.

Attaining the goal is a team effort and everyone in the industry should work hand in hand to develop the plan and achieve victory. Innovation is not a one day process. Innovative ideas should be tried and tested every day. This alone can solve the water crisis we are facing today.

5) Drivers of innovation

Studies show that the coming decades will see the stress on water supplies influencing the demand, cost, quality, supply, economic and environmental aspects of water. Global climate change is a topic of discussion today and this is thought to affect the water resources greatly. Water supplies like groundwater and surface water cannot be relied upon completely. The lingering question is how to fulfill the water needs in the future and how to perform water management effectively?

The growth of population and the urbanization trends are two important things that affect the demand for more water. The contaminants that get introduced daily like the pharmaceuticals, endocrine disruptors and personal care products pose a great threat to the public health. These contaminants make water treatment difficult.

The decreasing quality of the environment is also affecting the water systems. This also puts pressure on the aquatic systems. Another cause of worry is the weakening of the existing infrastructure due to aging. Above everything comes the problems related to maintenance and funding as the budgets are tightened at all governmental levels.

Considering all these factors, the current practices need to undergo massive changes to accommodate the increasing demand for better water management system. Innovation, or new ways of doing things, is the need of the hour.

6) Suggested areas of innovation

1) Water loss and pressure management tools

The tools for water loss and pressure management have become increasingly important to address the issues related to water shortage. There are many simple mechanical solutions and devices such as valves which are available in the markets that reduce water loss by improved pressure management techniques.Water loss management consists of tools and strategies to reduce non-revenue water. This is made possible by preventing water leakages due to inaccuracy in revenue metering. Water loss management techniques are considered as one of the most cost-effective ways of saving water. By implementing these techniques, it is also possible to enable stronger operational management of water delivery.

2) Electronics devices

With the advancement in the field of Electronics, the water specialists have been able to use the approaches like SCADA which enable the valves to respond in real time. Other useful approaches include 4-20mA motorized control, metering, position indicators and limit switches among many others.

There are also options like flow monitoring systems that have flow monitoring stations each of which has a pressure transducer, a flow meter, and a radio. The radio sends the pressure and flow signals to the Water Treatment Plant where these are processed by a Programmable Logic Controller. This PLC does the calculations for monitoring the flow. It then sends this data to the SCADA System where the real-time flows are monitored regularly.

7) Wrapping Up

These are just some of the innovative ideas that can be incorporated into the water management systems to ensure that not a single drop of water is being wasted. The water professionals can share their ideas with industry partners and then work together to develop them into something productive. It is high time that people in the industry embrace innovation and make way for a better future with enough water available to every single person. For more information about the water resources innovation & management, feel free to Contact Flowspec and we will be happy to answer your questions and give you all the details you need.