Performance Indicators for Water Supply Services


Book Description

The IWA Performance Indicator System for water services is now recognized as a worldwide reference. Since it first appearance in 2000, the system has been widely quoted, adapted and used in a large number of projects both for internal performance assessment and metric benchmarking. Water professionals have benefited from a coherent and flexible system, with precise and detailed definitions that in many cases have become a standard. The system has proven to be adaptable and it has been used in very different contexts for diverse purposes. The Performance Indicators System can be used in any organization regardless of its size, nature (public, private, etc.) or degree of complexity and development. The third edition of Performance Indicators for Water Supply Services represents a further improvement of the original manual. It contains a reviewed and consolidated version of the indicators, resulting from the real needs of water companies worldwide that were expressed during the extensive field testing of the original system. The indicators now properly cover bulk distribution and the needs of developing countries, and all definitions have been thoroughly revised. The confidence grading scheme has been simplified and the procedure to assess the results- uncertainty has been significantly enhanced. In addition to the updated contents of the original edition, a large part of the manual is now devoted to the practical application of the system. Complete with simplified step-by-step implementation procedures and case studies, the manual provides guidelines on how to adapt the IWA concepts and indicators to specific contexts and objectives. This new edition of Performance Indicators for Water Supply Services is an invaluable reference source for all those concerned with managing the performance of the water supply industry, including those in the water utilities as well as regulators, policy-makers and financial agencies.




Screening Tool for Energy Evaluation of Projects


Book Description

The Screening Tool for Energy Evaluation of Projects (STEEP) is designed to help improve energy use efficiency in water and wastewater treatment systems. This publication provides a detailed overview of STEEP and guides users on how to apply it during energy use assessments of proposed or existing water supply and wastewater systems. Since 2017, STEEP has been under continuous development based on pilot assessments carried out in various projects financed by the Asian Development Bank. STEEP is available online and can be downloaded for free.




Watershed Management for Potable Water Supply


Book Description

In 1997, New York City adopted a mammoth watershed agreement to protect its drinking water and avoid filtration of its large upstate surface water supply. Shortly thereafter, the NRC began an analysis of the agreement's scientific validity. The resulting book finds New York City's watershed agreement to be a good template for proactive watershed management that, if properly implemented, will maintain high water quality. However, it cautions that the agreement is not a guarantee of permanent filtration avoidance because of changing regulations, uncertainties regarding pollution sources, advances in treatment technologies, and natural variations in watershed conditions. The book recommends that New York City place its highest priority on pathogenic microorganisms in the watershed and direct its resources toward improving methods for detecting pathogens, understanding pathogen transport and fate, and demonstrating that best management practices will remove pathogens. Other recommendations, which are broadly applicable to surface water supplies across the country, target buffer zones, stormwater management, water quality monitoring, and effluent trading.




Safe Water From Every Tap


Book Description

Small communities violate federal requirements for safe drinking water as much as three times more often than cities. Yet these communities often cannot afford to improve their water service. Safe Water From Every Tap reviews the risks of violating drinking water standards and discusses options for improving water service in small communities. Included are detailed reviews of a wide range of technologies appropriate for treating drinking water in small communities. The book also presents a variety of institutional options for improving the management efficiency and financial stability of water systems.




Privatization of Water Services in the United States


Book Description

In the quest to reduce costs and improve the efficiency of water and wastewater services, many communities in the United States are exploring the potential advantages of privatization of those services. Unlike other utility services, local governments have generally assumed responsibility for providing water services. Privatization of such services can include the outright sale of system assets, or various forms of public-private partnershipsâ€"from the simple provision of supplies and services, to private design construction and operation of treatment plants and distribution systems. Many factors are contributing to the growing interest in the privatization of water services. Higher operating costs, more stringent federal water quality and waste effluent standards, greater customer demands for quality and reliability, and an aging water delivery and wastewater collection and treatment infrastructure are all challenging municipalities that may be short of funds or technical capabilities. For municipalities with limited capacities to meet these challenges, privatization can be a viable alternative. Privatization of Water Services evaluates the fiscal and policy implications of privatization, scenarios in which privatization works best, and the efficiencies that may be gained by contracting with private water utilities.




Society - Water - Technology


Book Description

This book presents the results of the Interdisciplinary Research Group "Society – Water – Technology" of the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities. It describes interdisciplinary evaluation criteria for major water engineering projects (MWEPs) and portrays an application to the Lower Jordan Valley (Middle East) and the Fergana Valley (Central Asia). Both areas are characterised by transboundary conflicts, by challenges due to demographic and climate change and by political and societal pressures. Based on the findings, the book provides recommendations for science and political decisions makers as well as for international financing institutions. In addition, it outlines research gaps from an interdisciplinary perspective. In the past, MWEPs have been used as an instrument to cope with the demands of growing populations and to enhance development progress. Experiences with MWEPs have shown that a purely technical approach has not always brought about the desired results. In many cases, MWEPs have even resulted in negative implications for society and environment. Therefore, improved management strategies and enhanced technologies for a sustainable water resource management system are a prerequisite to meet present and future challenges. And, moreover, the continuous evaluation and optimisation of these measures is, likewise, a must.







Confronting the Nation's Water Problems


Book Description

In order to confront the increasingly severe water problems faced by all parts of the country, the United States needs to make a new commitment to research on water resources. A new mechanism is needed to coordinate water research currently fragmented among nearly 20 federal agencies. Given the competition for water among farmers, communities, aquatic ecosystems and other users-as well as emerging challenges such as climate change and the threat of waterborne diseases-Confronting the Nation's Water Problems concludes that an additional $70 million in federal funding should go annually to water research. Funding should go specifically to the areas of water demand and use, water supply augmentation, and other institutional research topics. The book notes that overall federal funding for water research has been stagnant in real terms for the past 30 years and that the portion dedicated to research on water use and social science topics has declined considerably.







Climate Change, Water Supply and Sanitation


Book Description

Climate Change, Water Supply and Sanitation: Risk Assessment, Management, Mitigation and Reduction pulls together the final outcomes and recommendations from the PREPARED project that originated from the WSSTP (Water Supply and Sanitation Technology Platform) thematic working group Sustainable Water Management in Urban areas. The PREPARED project confirms and demonstrates the technological preparedness of water supply and sanitation systems of ten cities in Europe and also Melbourne and Seattle to adapt to the expected impacts of climate change. It shows that the water supply and sanitation systems of cities and their catchments can adapt and be resilient to the challenges of climate change; and that the technological, managerial and policy adaptation of these PREPARED cities can be cost effective, carbon efficient and exportable to other urban areas within Europe and the rest of the world. The book: addresses issues related to the management of water, waste water and storm water that are impacted by climate change both in quantitative and qualitative aspects; addresses many of the Pan-European problems and optimises tests and implements adaptive solutions that contribute towards an integrated and coordinated approach; develops adaptation strategies, considering and weighting the mitigation side of solutions to minimise our carbon- and water footprint; improves resilience to deal with the impact of climate change; and contributes to the development of the knowledge base where it concerns the water supply and sanitation sector. Editors: Adriana Hulsmann, KWR Watercycle Research Institute, The Netherlands, Gesche Grützmacher Berliner Wasser Betriebe, Germany, Gerard van den Berg, KWR Watercycle Research Institute, The Netherlands, Wolfgang Rauch, University Innsbruck, Austria, Anders Lynggaard Jensen, DHI Aarhus, Denmark, Victor Popovych, Institute of Agriculture of Crimea, Mario Rosario, Mazzola University of Palermo, Italy. Lydia S. Vamvakeridou-Lyroudia, University of Exeter, UK, Dragan A. Savic, University of Exeter, UK