Diving into Smart Water Management
Since the beginning of civilisation, providing clean water and sanitation has proven to be a logistical challenge of the utmost importance, as people can fall ill or die prematurely when water resources, infrastructure or sanitation systems are inadequate. Human settlements initially developed only near fresh surface water, such as rivers and springs, before humans started to create systems for providing water to their homes and communities, as well as disposing (and later treating) wastewater.
According to Statista (2021), as much as two-thirds of the global population may live in regions with limited access to freshwater resources by 2050, while industrialised countries will also experience water shortages due to climate change.
Furthermore, in recent years water-related natural disasters have become increasingly more frequent and a real threat for numerous cities and regions. For example, millions of lives were affected by flooding and flash floods caused by heavy rains around the world in 2021.
Urban water distribution systems must therefore take into account many factors such as population and household sizes, changes in the physical characteristics of land surfaces, consumer behaviour, economic sector demands (such as tourism activities), the chemical composition of water, the logistics of water storage and transport as well as climate change issues that may include unexpected floods, heatwaves and periods of water scarcity.
To avoid urban water crises, cities need to manage water resources efficiently at every stage: from the supply of clean drinking water to its various uses by consumers.
Achieving water security requires innovative ways to address the delivery of a clean and steady supply of water while optimising the operation, maintenance and management of water utility companies.
Recycling
When lacking a resource, one of the first solutions coming to mind should be to find ways to use it more than once. While wastewater has been recycled and reused for irrigation and other purposes for some time, new innovations in the recycling and treatment of water are also emerging.
Wastewater from homes is becoming the “new black gold” of green energy, as kitchen and bathroom wastewater can be recovered for the purpose of heating water by water providers, communities, landlords, or even individuals. Similar systems are also used by local authorities for municipal networks, such as the installation of a heat exchanger and water-to-water heat pumps to recover the heat from sewage water in the city of Cologne, Germany.
Although treatment methods can be quite costly in terms of energy, organic filtration technology can prove to be a greener long-term alternative solution for wastewater reuse. For example, in 2019 the Peterhead Port Authority in Scotland adopted a DRAM filtration system by the company SEM, which uses biological, chemical and physical interactions to remove heavy metals from marine vessel maintenance washwater.
Measuring
Extended capabilities in data collection and management enable authorities and water providers to be more efficient in their water management. Deploying Smart Metering systems, upgrading outdated infrastructure and replacing labour-intensive processes helps water utilities to stay responsive, lean and resourceful, aiming at lower costs and timely responses to critical issues.
For instance, in the city of Kranj, Slovenia, Kranj Water Utility and Iskraemeco have implemented an Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) solution with Smart Water Meters equipped with advanced communication capabilities. The software enables access to and analyses massive amounts of data, which offers insights, facilitates data-driven decisions, and improves the satisfaction of water network operators and end-users.
Greening
While cities can take steps to address water scarcity, climate change remains the root cause of many water-related problems such as reduced water supply through lowered rivers, increased evapotranspiration and disrupted precipitation patterns. The water-smart cities of tomorrow thus must also prioritise the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions as part of their water management strategies.
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