Utility Horizons - Second Quarter 2013 - (Page 35)
The BLeading Edge...
By Geoff Riggs | Project Manager-Smarter Cities| IBM
Building Paths to
Smarter Water
Management
Any doubt that water scarcity is a global threat should
be eliminated by the fact that the UN has declared
2013 as the International Year of Water Cooperation.
Cooperation is emphasized because of the scale
of the problem; By 2025, two-thirds of the world is
projected to face water scarcity. Governments, cities,
utilities and businesses all have critical roles to play in
crafting smarter approaches to addressing the world’s
water system challenges.
Water scarcity is certainly one important challenge.
Water quality is another. Today approximately one
in eight people lack access to safe water supplies.
The planet is thirsty. Not just for a drop of water
to drink, but for information about how we can be
smarter about water management in the first place.
The nature of the water we do have is changing—
everything from where rain falls to the chemical
makeup of the oceans is in flux. And these changes
are forcing us to ask some very difficult questions
about how and where we live and do business.
Water Infrastructure Under Pressure
A study about the water crisis in South Africa
found that for every percent of water that becomes
unusable, 200,000 jobs may be lost, which could
lead to a 5.7% drop in disposable income on a per
capita basis
and a 5%
increase in
government
spending.
It’s hard
to deny
that a lack
of usable
water would
have a
negative impact across all industries and in all corners
of the world.
Research is currently exploring new nano-membranes
that filter out salts as well as harmful toxins in water
while using less energy than other forms of water
purification. While still in the prototype phase today,
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“Water, water,
everywhere. Nor any drop
to drink.”
Will the English poet Samuel Taylor
Coleridgeʼs words come true in the 21st
century?
Drought is a growing and persistent threat
to food security, political stability and
the global economy. Climate change is
contributing to increasingly intense and
destructive storms and floods. The rise of
mega cities is placing significant strain on
water supplies. Population growth, and
more specifically, surging numbers of
middle-class consumers, place elevated
demands on industrial and agricultural
supplies, and are causing intensified
degradation of vital ecosystem services,
notably rivers, aquifers and watersheds.
this membrane could revolutionize water purification
by providing a low cost, low energy, high throughput
alternative for processes such as water desalination
and the removal of toxins such as arsenic and boron
from groundwater.
Efficient water management is another challenge
municipalities face worldwide. According to the
Environmental Protection Agency, much of the
880,000 miles of water pipes in the United States
has been in service for decades – some for over 100
years – and can be a significant source of water loss.
In water systems that serve 100,000 or more people,
30 percent of the pipes are between 40 and 80 years
old. The World Bank estimates that worldwide costs
from leaks total $14 billion annually.
In the United States alone, an average of 700 water
main breaks occur every day. That figure represents
over 250,000 water breaks per year. The aging water
infrastructure results in property loss, inconvenience,
expense, and threats to public health.
You Can’t Manage What You Can’t
Measure
All of these issues around water can be better
understood and managed by collecting and analyzing
Q2 - 2013 • UTILITY HORIZONS • 35
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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Utility Horizons - Second Quarter 2013
Utility Horizons - Second Quarter 2013
Publisher’s Message
Contents
The Queue
Automation Rising!
Inside Tracks
Focal Point
Automation and Innovation at Epcor Water Services
BLeading Edge: Advanced Technology Perspectives
Consumer Engagement: The Future Goes Mobile
Demand Response: Why the Future Is in the Cloud
Building Paths to Smarter Water Management
Bullet-Proofing Your Scada System Against the Evil-Doers
Education Matters
Standard Bearings
Regulation De Rigueur
On the Horizon
Purviews
Intersections
Eventualities
Thinking It Through With Sparky Flamedrop
Loose Ends
Utility Horizons - Second Quarter 2013
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