Proceedings, 2018, ECWS-2 2017

China has paid more attention to improving urban and rural drinking water security in recent years. Ensuring the security of drinking water in urban and rural areas is a fundamental condition for protecting the basic interests of the public, and it is also an important aspect of building a moderately and all-sided prosperous society in China. Taking the Shanshan County in Turpan City of Xinjiang Autonomous Region as an example, this study analyzed the countermeasures of ensuring drinking water security. Firstly, this paper discusses the status quo of drinking water security in Shanshan. In terms of urban drinking water, problems are shown as follows: (1) drinking water sources are polluted to varying degrees; (2) water treatment technologies lag behind when compared to the social development; (3) there is a high leakage rate in the water supply pipe network; and (4) there is low emergency handling capability. In terms of rural drinking water, small-scale drinking water security projects are on low construction standard, which has resulted in low water supply guarantee rates and poor water source protection and water quality supervision. Secondly, based on an analysis of current problems, the quantity of water resources guaranteed is put forward. This paper divides Shanshan County into three units—the Karuqi area, the Ertanggou area, and the Kekeya area—based on urban or rural land use. This paper proposes the optimal distribution of regional water plants and a water supply network for the optimal allocation of regional water resources. Thirdly, for water quality improvement, a corresponding water purification program is developed to solve raw water quality problems, which includes centralized and decentralized water quality treatment, as well as an intelligent water flow control process. At the same time, management measures such as water source conservation and risk control measures are proposed in order to promote the security of drinking water. This paper also puts forward relevant strategic suggestions for ensuring the security of drinking water in Shanshan County, which includes enhancing equipment for the project, modulizing the system of devices, developing instrumentation of the management system, and establishing an intelligent water management platform. This study acts as a reference for solving problems of drinking water security in urban and rural areas in arid regions in Northwest China and similar areas around the world. Full article

Options to develop tanning industries could be hindered even in the presence of huge leather industry raw materials due to the requirements of high-tech contaminant removal technologies, especially in developing countries. This study was initiated to investigate the efficiency of freeze desalination for Cr(VI) removal using freezers to generate fresh water. Simulated water as well as deionized water to which known concentrations of Cr(VI) spiked into it were studied. The effects of parameters such as initial concentration, freeze duration, ice nucleation, ice volume, and influence of co-occurring ions were evaluated in relation to meltwater. The physicochemical characteristics of the produced meltwater were also evaluated. A high total water recovery of up to 85% V/V of initial water was achieved for the freeze separation rate of 90% in the experimental evaluation. Cr(VI) removal efficiency of up to 80% from simulated tap and 93 to 97% for deionized water spiked with Cr(VI) were found in this batch partial freezing. Freeze desalination was found to be relatively viable desalination technology in terms of quality of water produced, options on the use of cost effective refrigerants and technologies which could have a pertinent importance to save energy consumption of freezers. Full article

The objective of this study is to assess the filtering capability of porous pavement models and the quality of rainwater and stormwater filtered by such models. Three slabs of porous asphalt mixtures and two systems composed of porous layers that resulted in porous pavement structures were produced. Data were collected in two phases: using rainwater directly from the sky and then using stormwater collected from a street. The models with different layers were assembled in acrylic boxes and rainwater was stored in the boxes in each rainfall event. Parameters such as pH, dissolved oxygen, ammonia, phosphorus, nitrite, aluminium, chromium, copper, zinc and iron were measured. The infiltration capacity of the models varied from 83.4% to 83.7%. For both rainwater and stormwater quality analyses, there was an increase in the concentration of the following parameters: phosphorus, iron, aluminium, zinc, nitrite, chromium, cooper and pH; there was no significant variation in the concentration of dissolved oxygen; and there was a decrease in ammonia in one of the models. However, the concentrations of only phosphorus and aluminium exceeded the limits established by the Brazilian National Environmental Council and National Water Agency for the use of non-potable water. The models were capable of filtering rainwater and stormwater, and reducing the concentration of ammonia. It can be concluded that it is possible to collect stormwater from asphalt porous surfaces and porous pavements. Porous pavements are able to filter out certain pollutants from stormwater and rainwater, and were shown to be an alternative to harvest rainwater for non-potable uses and to recharge the water table. Full article

This paper presents the possibility of applying a colloidal solution of nanosilver in the closed circuit of pool water treatment. The applied nanosilver solution is characterized as having a very high biocidal effect, with no negative impact on either the human and animal body, or the environment. Samples of pool water for the control were taken from 5 points of a pool circuit. The safety of the water was appraised by comparing the bacteriological and physicochemical test results with the admissible values specified by hygienic requirements. The results show that nanosilver solution can be successfully applied for precoating the filter bed and supporting the disinfection system. Special attention was paid to the bacteriological purity and stability of the disinfectant concentration. Full article

Beyond just a visual data enhancement of water quality data, the use of hierarchically arranged spatial patterns and sequentially arranged temporal patterns can provide a means of discerning anomalies and correlations among water quality parameters that would otherwise be difficult to distinguish or communicate. Similarly, comparing actual water quality patterns with ideal patterns (generated by models) or abstract patterns (created from hypotheses) can be used to evaluate their relevance to observed datasets. Finally, assessing the connectivity of water quality elements as a coherent network, rather than as isolated data points, can expose feedback loops, disproportionate effects and data limitations. Full article

The present study investigated the occurrence of selected micropollutants including emerging contaminants (mainly pharmaceuticals and personal care products- PPCPs) in selected water samples from swimming pool systems. The study area was selected based on the lack of available information regarding the suspected contamination of swimming pools water by PPCPs. The variety and concentration of chemical compounds in these aquatic systems can be quite diversified, presenting a challenge in terms of both purification and quality control. Determination of PPCPs requires very sensitive analytical methods that make it possible to confirm the presence of tested compounds in a complex organic extract. In this field, GC-MS gas chromatography can be used. This system enables to perform Selected Ion Monitoring, which reduces the detection limits of the investigated analyte. This paper aims at presentation of analytical methods and strategies adapted to obtain information on the composition and characteristics of water in swimming pool systems. The sample preparation methodology including solid phase extraction was developed for swimming pool water. Full article

This study assesses the seasonal particle size distribution (PSD) dynamics inside a WSP (Buguruni, Tanzania) to understand the settling dynamics of wastewater particles with a specific focus on helminth eggs. Results indicate that particles coming into the pond are mainly supracolloidal and settleables, at 52.9% and 45.6%, respectively, in the dry season and 48.9% and 49.9%, respectively, in the wet season. Inflow PSD is a unimodal distribution that splits into settling and suspended PSDs, with an indication of particle breakage as shown by the increased volume of smaller particles, and hence the appearance of a bimodal distribution for the suspended particles. Up to 61.5% and 45.2% of particles that fall within the size range of helminths eggs are suspended during the dry and wet seasons, respectively, and have the potential to be carried in the effluent, causing contamination. Full article

Drought is a continuous process in Thar Desert, Pakistan. The extent of this drought needs to be assessed for future land use and adaptation. The effect of previous drought on vegetation cover of the Thar region was studied, through combined use of drought indices and geographic information (GIS) techniques. Five years (2002, 2005, 2008, 2011 and 2014) were selected to analyze the drought conditions and land use pattern of the Thar region. The drought indices used in this study included the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and the Standard Precipitation Index (SPI). Images of past drought were compared with post-drought images of our targeted area and land use maps were developed for spatio-temporal analysis. The results of the study revealed that vegetation in Thar showed an improving trend from 2002 to 2011 and then declined from 2011 to 2014. The rainfall occurred at a below average rate and SPI values for each year were calculated to be negative, indicating below average rainfall. This actual precipitation data was then compared with the data obtained from the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite and R²; Pearson correlation coefficients were also calculated. The R² values for the years 2002 and 2014 were 0.519 and 0.670 respectively. In the same manner, the Pearson correlation coefficient values for the years 2002 and 2014 were 0.721 and 0.867 respectively. The results showed the TRMM satellite’s over-estimation in calculating rainfall data. Further, the average temperature for the five years under study was analyzed by graphical representation and it was revealed that the temperature of Thar has increased by almost 1 °C during the last decade. Full article

This paper compared the removal degrees of selected contaminants of emerging concern, such as H₂O₂, O₃, UV and UV/TiO₂, in water solutions during advanced oxidation processes (AOPs). The tested micropollutants belong to the following groups: pharmaceuticals, dyes, UV filters, hormones, pesticides and food additives. The highest removal rate of pharmaceutical compounds was observed during the UV/TiO₂ process. The decomposition of hormones in this process exceeded 96% and the concentration of the UV filter dioxybenzone was reduced by 75%. Toxicological analysis conducted in post-processed water samples indicated the generation of several oxidation by-products with a high toxic potential. Full article

Water bio-contamination causes serious environmental and economic penalties and health risks in several applications (e.g., freshwater and seawater circuits). In this work, a non-toxic potential strategy able to control this bioburden through new functional bioactive agents, capable of being tethered in polymeric coatings, is presented. Econea biocide was successfully tethered in a silicone-based coating, further used to coat polymeric substrates and monolithic filters. Coated substrates demonstrated promising antifouling effects after being submerged for more than a year in simulated and real conditions. Furthermore, coated monolithic filters showed auspicious growth inhibition and bacteriostatic behaviour for the S. aureus MRSA bacteria. Full article

Sediment discharges from rivers play a key role in downstream ecosystems, both for ecosystem morphology (e.g., deltas) and productivity. However, the construction of dams and river regulation dramatically alter sediment transport. Currently, the Colorado River delta is one of the most transformed deltas in the world and, most years, no flow reaches the Gulf of California. In this study, we used satellite images for the observation and measurement of coastal water turbidity in the Upper Gulf of California (UGC) and Colorado River Delta (CRD). Specifically, we used the Earth-observing Satellites (in French Satellites Pour l’Observation de la Terre, SPOT) high spatial resolution satellite. We processed images of the wavelength 2 (S2610-680) from the period between 2008 and 2013 in the Biosphere Reserve area. Results showed that suspended material and high turbidity predominate in the CRD and intertidal zones of the UGC. High and very high turbidity values were due to two opposite coastal transport components along the Sonora and Baja California coasts. The high spatial resolution of the SPOT sensor effectively allowed the sediment transport gradients and the accumulation zones to be located in a highly variable area. This information provided by SPOT images can be very valuable for management decisions such as the amount of ecological flow that needs to be released. This area is the habitat of endangered species, such as totoaba (Totoaba macdonaldi) and vaquita (Phocoena sinus), that are seriously affected by the loss of estuarine conditions. High resolution satellite images can help to quantify the true extent of corrective measures. Full article

Riverine concentrations and loads of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P), in both dissolved and particulate fractions, are influenced by land cover and hydrologic variability. Previous studies on relationships between watershed characteristics and stream chemistry have focused on the response of individual N and P fractions. However, marine and lakes studies have shown the value of using individual nutrient fractions as well as nutrient ratios (e.g., N:P) to assess ecosystem condition. This study examined variation in total, dissolved, and particulate N:P ratios in response to changes in crop cover and hydrologic variability in agricultural catchments in the Red River Basin, southern Manitoba, Canada. For both study years (2013 and 2014), discharge was greatest during snowmelt; however, flow ceased in early June 2013 due to lack of precipitation whereas discharge peaks were observed during summer and fall 2014 in response to persistent multi-day rain events. Despite hydrologic differences between the two years, total, dissolved, and particulate N:P concentration ratios did not differ (p > 0.05) between years (expressed as either annual or seasonal means) or vary with crop cover. In contrast, N:P load ratios were associated with watershed characteristics: total N:P and dissolved load ratios differed (p < 0.05) both seasonally and with extent of crop cover whereas particulate N:P load ratios differed (p < 0.05) among seasons and between years. These findings suggest that dissolved load ratios are more closely linked to land use activities whereas particulate load ratios are largely influenced by climate and discharge variability. Improved knowledge of dominant nutrient fractions and their transport pathways will assist in determining appropriate mitigation practices to reduce nutrient loads under a changing climate. Full article

Use of energy in the agriculture sector has directly or indirectly been intensified to increase crop production to fulfill the food demand of the growing population. Considering the energy and water scarcity in Pakistan, the present study was carried out to assess wheat production efficiency with regard to energy consumption. For this purpose, a field experiment was conducted at the Water Management Research Centre (WMRC), University of Agriculture Faisalabad, to compare two irrigation scheduling techniques (climatic- and soil moisture-based) and farmers’ practice. All the inputs, except volume of irrigation water, were the same for all treatments. Energy equivalents (extracted from a scientific source) were used to calculate the energy balance and indices (energy use efficiency, energy productivity (kg MJ⁻¹), specific energy (MJ kg⁻¹), net energy (MJ ha⁻¹) and water productivity (kg m⁻³)). The results show that soil moisture-based treatment (at 30% management allowable depletion (MAD)) gave 7.94% and 27.94% more yield compared to climate-based treatments (20 mm cumulative pan evaporation (CPE)) and farmers’ practice respectively. Pumping water for irrigation was the highest energy consumption input for wheat production after chemical fertilizers. T1 = 30% MAD and T4 = 20 mm CPE treatments saved 33.71% and 35.72% energy, respectively, compared to farmers’ practice, due to water being saved. T1 and T4 treatments increased energy output by 11.40% and 6.38%, respectively, compared to farmers’ practice, in terms of grain yield and biological yield. The highest net energy (155,557.95 MJ ha⁻¹), energy use efficiency (7.478), energy productivity (0.181 kg MJ⁻¹) and water productivity (1.875 kg m⁻³) were achieved with T1 (30% MAD); however, the highest specific energy (8.148 MJ kg⁻¹) was achieved with farmers’ practice. The results thus obtained help the farmers, stakeholder agencies and researchers to make informed decisions when choosing different treatments. Full article

The present study evaluated the microbiological risk for roof-harvested rainwater (RHRW), with Campylobacter as the pathogenic microorganism of reference, using a Quantitative Microbial Risk Assessment (QMRA). QMRA has been widely used as an alternative method for epidemiological assessment of human exposure to microorganisms that can cause diseases, through a four-step process: hazard identification, exposure assessment, dose–response assessment, and risk characterization. The results presented drinking as the water use with the highest median value for microbiological risk, with 3.4 × 10⁻⁴ disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) per person per year (pppy), and bathing, food washing, hose irrigation and toilet flushing with median values of 6.5 × 10⁻⁷, 4.0 × 10⁻⁷, 2.1 × 10⁻⁷ and 1.4 × 10⁻⁷ DALYs pppy, respectively. Therefore, drinking would be the only water use that would require preliminary treatment for its safe use, considering the acceptable risk standards set by the World Health Organization for drinking water. However, with the adoption of a sanitary barrier and a simple point-of-use treatment system, it was observed that drinking rainwater would have a median microbiological risk of 2 × 10⁻⁶ DALYs pppy, enough to meet the safety criteria considering developing countries. Full article

This article presents a literature review of rainwater usage in buildings in Brazil. It focuses on economic, environmental, and social impacts. The legislation related to rainwater harvesting—including the cities that have made such a practice mandatory—was also assessed. The literature review was based on a search strategy that uses protocols to find and select studies about the main subject, i.e., rainwater harvesting in buildings. The protocols were defined as the site to be investigated (buildings), the intervention (rainwater harvesting), and the expected result (influence on the potable water consumption). Despite the variation of water availability in the country, it was concluded that there is a high potential for potable water savings when using rainwater in buildings in Brazil. Finally, it was observed the need for financial investments in experimental research and innovation technologies in order to improve rainwater management. Full article

Phytoplankton blooms are sporadic events in time and isolated in space. This complex phenomenon is produced by a variety of both natural and anthropogenic causes. Early detection of this phenomenon, as well as the classification of a water body under conditions of bloom or non-bloom, remains an unresolved problem. This research proposes the use of Inherent Optical Properties (IOPs) in optically complex waters to detect the bloom or non-bloom state of the phytoplankton community. An IOP index is calculated from the absorption coefficients of the colored dissolved organic matter (CDOM), the phytoplankton (φ) and the detritus (d), using the wavelength (λ) 443 nm. The effectiveness of this index is tested in five bloom events in different places and with different characteristics from Mexican seas: (1) Dzilam (Caribbean Sea, Atlantic Ocean) a diatom bloom (Rhizosolenia hebetata); (2) Holbox (Caribbean Sea, Atlantic Ocean) a mixed bloom of dinoflagellates (Scrippsiella sp.) and diatoms (Chaetoceros sp.); (3) Campeche Bay in the Gulf of Mexico (Atlantic Ocean) a bloom of dinoflagellates (Karenia brevis); (4) Upper Gulf of California (UGC) (Pacific Ocean) a diatoms bloom (Planktoniella sol) and (5) Todos Santos Bay, Ensenada (Pacific Ocean) a dinoflagellates bloom (Lingulodinium polyedrum). The diversity of sites shows that the IOP index is a suitable method to determine the bloom conditions. Full article

The work detailed in this study utilized 20 kHz ultrasonic irradiation as a mechanism of hydrogen peroxide production. The effects of various operating parameters were investigated, including ultrasonic intensity; solution pH; source of water; initial dibutyl phthalate concentration and the presence of hydrogen peroxide. During the irradiation, the H₂O₂ concentration was monitored. The results indicate that H₂O₂ is produced by cavitation during ultrasonic irradiation. An increase in ultrasonic intensity increases the amount of hydrogen peroxide produced. The initial pH of the solution does not affect the efficiency of processes substantially. H₂O₂ is regarded as one of the most effective additives enhancing the sonochemical production of hydroxyl radicals and hydrogen peroxide. Above a 0.1 mM dose of H₂O₂, the amount of H₂O₂ formed decreased as the concentration of H₂O₂ increased. Thus, the concentration of hydrogen peroxide plays a crucial role in the extent to which the effectiveness of the combined process is enhanced. The negative effect on reactions of the presence of additional components in the reaction solution was also confirmed. It was therefore concluded that the experimental evaluation of optimum parameters of hybrid processes is a matter of importance. Full article

Drought is considered a serious disaster after floods and typhoons and is tending to increase frequency and intensity due to climate change on a global scale. In addition, droughts also cause large and small fires that occur daily around the world, damaging forests and forest ecosystems and having a significant impact on the economy, society, and people. This paper presents the situation of forest fires in U Minh Ha forest of Ca Mau province, which is the southernmost province of Vietnam. The study used satellite imagery processing, which combined spatial analysis to identify areas of fire sensitivity, in the face of drought risk associated with climate change in the dry season in 2016. AHP hierarchy analysis was performed using factors such as surface temperature, leaf moisture, vegetation cover, vegetation density, the distance to water sources, the distance to residential areas, and the distance to fire protection establishments. The results show that the zone with average fire sensitivity accounted for nearly half of the forest area and is distributed in the south and southwest. The high fire sensitivity area is negligible. The study results are useful for planning strategies to protect forest resources against the drought risk caused by climate change, which is becoming increasingly harsh. Full article

Mathematical models are the basic tool that simulates the operation of the Water Distribution System (WDS). Building such a tool is a complex task that requires as much detail as possible. The information needed to build a model can be divided into two categories: network data and WDS operating data. The first group includes pipe and node attributes, such as pipe length, pipe diameter, pipe roughness, junction elevation, and junction demand. The second category includes data specifying network performance such as pump characteristics, water demand patterns, and controls. The quality of these data will reflect the quality (compatibility) of the model. In WDS modeling—especially dynamic modeling—water demand patterns will have a significant impact on model accuracy. The appearance of each pattern may be different; it depends on the type of consumption (domestic, industrial) or the period analyzed. Consumption patterns define the operational work of the WDSs. Changes in water demand patterns may affect the accuracy of the model calibration. Real WDS models were used in this paper. Three simulations were analyzed, with each corresponding to a different period: one year, six months, and one month. Junction demand and water demand patterns were generated from a GIS (Geographic Information System) and SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) database. Full article