India: Tata Projects and the Federation of Andhra Pradesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Fapcci) installed a de-fluorination plant with a capacity of 24,000 litres in the Gangadevipalli village in Warangal district.
The plant provides drinking water with fluoride content well within permissible limits and uses reverse osmosis, membranes and filters to remove harmful fluorides.
Groundwater contaminated by fluorides affect several districts, including Warangal, in Andhra Pradesh.
Inaugurated on 5 October 2004, the plant will produce an average of 20 litres per house for the village of 1,180 residents. The villagers formed a "women's committee" and decided that a household will pay a monthly fee of US$ 0.65 for 20/litres per day to maintain the plant. Additional water production will be sold to neighbouring villages and the profits will be saved in the village development fund. Fapcci will install another plant in the most fluoride-affected village of Nalgonda district.
India: International water and environment consultants WRc, based in Swindon, UK, are extending their defect coding system for sewers in India. WRc experts are working with the Indian Society of Trenchless Technology following on its success in North America and Malaysia in modifying the system for their markets.
India uses the third edition of the Manual of Sewer Condition Classification (MSCC), a well-established document in the wastewater industry now in its fourth edition. Current discussions will examine how the most recent changes to sewer condition classification coding can be delayed for India. The goal will be to develop a coding system, including training, that takes into account Indian requirements. Also, the document and training will enable emerging countries with significant new pipeline construction to apply the codes to resolve quality disputes.
"Many subsurface pipeline networks in India are old colonial systems that replicate UK designs. With English as a common language, there is much commonality with Britain and the project is progressing well," WRc Business Manager Phil Wildbore reported.
Malaysia: The Malaysian Centre for Remote Sensing awarded a US$ 1.2 million contract to supply software, services and training to PCI Geomatics, based in Richmond Hill, Ontario, Canada. Products to be supplied include Geomatica" and third-party products eCognition" from Definiens Imaging and EarthView" from Atlantis Scientific. The software will be used to support the activities of the MACRES Ground Receiving Station.
MACRES develops remote sensing, geographical information systems and related technologies through research for operational use. The centre focuses on environmental and resource management, and develops strategic national plans.
Singapore: Hyflux Ltd formed a joint venture with the Istithmar PJSC to build US$ 400 million of water and wastewater treatment facilities within the next three years in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The Singapore-based water treatment company Hyflux plans to bid for other water projects in the Middle East market. Istithmar was formed in 2003 with a start-up investment of US$ 2 billion and manages investments of two private firms, Nakheel Corporation and PCFZ, which hold lucrative franchises to manage Dubai's customs, free trade zone and customs operations. Hyflux and Istithmar's joint venture will design, build and commission water treatment facilities for the world's two largest man-made islands near the coast of Dubai. Nakheel is developing these two islands.
