“ANYONE WHO CAN SOLVE THE PROBLEMS OF WATER WILL BE WORTHY OF TWO NOBEL PRIZES—ONE FOR PEACE AND ONE FOR SCIENCE.”
—PRESIDENT JOHN F. KENNEDY, 1962
I learned recently that the first recorded water conflict occurred more than 4,500 years ago near the confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in what is today Iraq. History tells us that war erupted when the ancient city-state of Lagash diverted the water supplies of its neighbor Umma. Throughout history, droughts and water shortages are believed to have fueled countless other transboundary invasions—as well as magnificent innovations. Humankind needs access to water. And its scarcity compels us to take action.
In the coming years, as populations grow and climate change heightens the uncertainty of water availability, water scarcity is expected to increase globally. Climatologists predict extensive periods of drought, warmer temperatures, and more frequent and powerful storms. Climate change calls for water professionals, government leaders, and world citizens to optimize water resource management. We need solutions to address water scarcity.
“Climate change is really about hydrological change, and it’s really about water change,” according to Richard Damania, a lead economist at the World Bank and an author of a recent report titled, High and Dry: Climate Change, Water, and the Economy. “Water is to adaptation, what energy is to mitigation,” the report states, “and the challenges the world will face in adapting to water issues are enormous.”
The moment has arrived for adaptation through hydro-ingenuity. Our species has historically confronted this sort of challenge with cleverness. Over centuries, humans have created elaborate structures and developed marvelous technologies—from the aqueduct networks of the Ancient Romans to Sir Francis Bacon’s 1627 desalination trials, and engineering feats like Egypt’s Ismailia Canal—to solve issues of water shortage.
Within this issue of Water Efficiency magazine, we highlight an abundance of current technologies—both hardware and software—that support water resource management and promote long-term, sustainable solutions to critical water supply issues. We share these exemplary practices to spark new ways of thinking and catalyze further innovation.
In “Pipe Innovations” we find that new materials, manufacturing techniques, product testing, and emerging pipe technologies will help retain the water that travels through pipelines. In “Keeping Water Quality Contained” we approach the topic of water storage and explore ways in which contemporary containers and liners can maintain the highest-quality water, long-term.
In “AMI + IoT“we’re introduced to the brilliant software and mesh networks that support Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI). We learn that AMI, coupled with the Internet of Things (IoT), creates new paths of communication between consumers and utilities—an interconnectedness that saves time, cost, and water.
In “Replenishment Through Reinjection” we observe water treatment for indirect potable reuse at two California water districts: the Water Replenishment District of Southern California and the Orange County Water District’s Ground Water Replenishment System. These facilities are leading the way in conservation through water reuse.
In this issue’s guest commentary, “Decentralized MBR for Reuse Applications“, Mike Snodgrass shares the details of a membrane bioreactor project in Midland, Texas, in which a satellite wastewater treatment facility constructed near the point of use is saving water.
Shifts in water availability, climate, and weather events are stresses that our communities will have to adapt to and manage in the days to come. And like the generations before us, we will have to develop new ways of conserving water and coping with a reduced supply. Our hope is that the operational insights and emerging technologies featured in this issue provide you with employable concepts and spark further conservation innovation. It’s up to us to find solutions to water scarcity.
What techniques help you manage water resources?
