New Tool Helps Great Lakes Cities, Businesses Predict Harmful Algae Blooms

Last year’s record-setting Lake Erie algae bloom hurt many tourism businesses like charter fishing and resorts that depend on clean water and beaches. The high concentrations of toxins from the blue-green algae also meant cities like Toledo had to spend more money to clean up drinking water. This summer, federal researchers unveiled a new tool for forecasting seasonal algae blooms. Independent producer Karen Schaefer reports that scientists are hoping it can help cities and businesses across the Great Lakes and the nation plan ahead.

SCHAEFER:  This year, the thick ooze of green slime that coated docks and bays in western Lake Erie in 2011 is gone. That’s largely thanks to the drought, which reduced rainfall and nutrient runoff from farms and cities. But National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration researcher Rick Stumpf was taking no chances back in July, when he tested the water near Put-in-Bay in Lake Erie for chorophyll and phycocyanin, the pigment that’s produced by toxic blue-green algae.

STUMPF: This is a porometer…We get a bucket, pour it in here and we get a reading…So first I’ll test for chlorophyll. And it’s reading. Reading…

SCHAEFER: Stumpf is demonstrating how local data collectors at Ohio State University’s Stone Lab will be testing the water for signs of the algae bloom in coming years.

STUMPF: We came up with one microgram of chlorophyll, which is low – which is not surprising considering how clear the water is. Now I’ll read for phycocyanin. Reading.. Reading…

SCHAEFER: Harmful algae has been once again plaguing Lake Erie. But last year’s bloom was literally off the charts, as bad or worse than the 1970′s, when Lake Erie was unofficially declared “dead.” Mark Monaco, director for NOAA’s Center of Coastal Monitoring and Marine Assessment, says blue-green algae, also known as cyanobacteria, emits harmful toxins that last year exceeded public health warnings.

MONACO: Some of the concentrations we’ve seen in the lake last year, you probably wouldn’t want your dog swimming in it, based on World Health Organization recommendations. In addition to the economic impact of people not going to the beach and people not wanting to put their lure into the green slime. This isn’t just a fun little science study, these have real economic impacts on how people use the lake.

SCHAEFER: Using ten-years of water quality data from Heidelberg University in Ohio, along with satellite photos showing previous blooms, NOAA scientists predicted that this year’s Lake Erie algae would be only a tenth the size of the 2011 record. And they were right. Rick Stumpf says this is NOAA’s first national attempt at a seasonal algae forecast. He believes local businesses will benefit from the advance notice.

STUMPF: It provides an opportunity for planning, for governments to plan to decide what resources to use, if it’s a utility, if it’s a person planning for vacation, if it’s charter boat captains, so they have some idea what to expect in a season. And we’ve heard from various managers how it’s an incredibly important thing, because given the budget challenges that state and local governments have now.

SCHAEFER: Recreational businesses like Cedar Point, a Lake Erie amusement park, say they’re thrilled to have a tool that that lets them alert consumers to beach closings and swimming prohibitions. But Jeff Reutter, head of Ohio’s Sea Grant program, believes it’s equally important that the new forecasting tool applies to other algae-infested areas, from Traverse City, Michigan and Green Bay, Wisconsin, to the Potomac River, Chesapeake Bay, and parts of Florida and Texas.

REUTTER: There are many other places, not just in Ohio or across the country, but around the world, where the same information ought to be applicable. In some places…it will be where people like the NOAA guys can take their model, make a few tweaks to it, and make it work in a totally different ecosystem.

SCHAEFER: NOAA scientists say what will make this Lake Erie model work in different places, including smaller inland lakes, is the systematic collection of water quality data over a period of years. They believe that local data will not only help in assessing harmful algae blooms, but will also assist in monitoring other ecological impacts, such as climate change. For Great Lakes Echo, I’m Karen Schaefer.

By Karen Schaefer@greatlakesecho.org

Pour Your Energy into Clean Water Worldwide

We need the energy and resources of the fluoridation crusaders and the fluoridation naysayers devoted to a much more serious water problem: the lack of clean drinking water around the world. Since we have so many people in the area who've either won or lost the recent fluoride fight and who are clearly passionate about the need for healthful drinking water, those involved in Portland's great water debate are a natural fit for this larger issue that is harming and killing people around the world. And with the Portland City Council's vote for fluoride this month, these people have inherited some time -- though some have vowed to continue the saga. 

I've been following the cholera outbreak in Sierra Leone, which, thankfully, is easing: The United Nations' Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reports that between late August and mid-September, new cholera cases per week have dropped from 2,110 to 1,418 in Sierra Leone and from 1,152 to 346 in neighboring Guinea. Water and sanitation infrastructure and education are doing good things. They are excellent at combating the cycle and spread of disease and poverty. 

But access to clean water remains a problem. And although the world is ahead of schedule in meeting a 2015 goal of substantially lowering the number of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water, the World Health Organization reports that 783 million people in the world still do not have access to safe drinking water. That's about 11 percent of the world's population. And improved sanitation access is still a far-off target. 

In Portland we recently heard a lot about possible damages to our kids if there is a minute level of fluoride in the water, despite the widespread medical advice to fluoridate water to help kids. But the U.N. reports the hard truth that an estimated "1.8 million children die every year as a result of diseases caused by unclean water and poor sanitation." 

The numbers are staggering. Living Water International keeps them in my face all year long, as I have supported that quality organization in the past, but reading the various numbers at the same time I was reading coverage of the city of Portland's fluoride fight has been an experience. I kept shaking my head and wondering whether folks realize how fortunate we are to be able to have this fluoride discussion instead of dealing with a cholera outbreak that is killing our children. We have clean water that doesn't make us sick! And we have an option to put something in our water that medical experts advise. What a gift. 

I understand that we aren't Rwanda. We aren't Haiti. We aren't Sierra Leone. Can you imagine having a water scarcity? I have read estimates that the average North American uses 200-400 liters a day for drinking and for the household and garden, compared with about 10 liters a day for a person in the developing world. Our standards are different, our governments are different and our goals for public amenities get to be higher. But with some perspective, we have got to move on. This fluoride fight was picked up by The Associated Press and has been featured on National Public Radio and by ABC and CBS. It's been highlighted in The New York Times, The Huffington Post and USA Today. It has hit culinary and brewery websites. Will it hit "Portlandia"? I'm out of that loop. 

I fear that fighting about fluoride in our water must make us look a little off and a bit overprivileged. In America, our nonprofits and our valuable government safety nets can keep even the poorest people fed and our children vaccinated. And as a nation we have the ability to keep water clean and safe to drink. In other parts of the world, starvation and a lack of access to clean water are life-threatening, everyday dangers. 

We need to help when it is in our power to act. Contact the Red Cross, Living Water International or a handful of other organizations to learn what can be done about getting safe drinking water to everyone. We can do this thing. Just look at the amount of attention, passion and comedy Portland was able to bring to the issue of fluoride in water. 



By Elizabeth Hovde@oregonlive.com

Solar Water Disinfection (SODIS) in the Philippines

SODIS is an alternative water treatment method designed for use at the household level. the technology is simple in terms of the procedure yet effective in eliminating water borne related pathogens,it is very affordable and utilizes locally available material. 
SODIS STEPS:


1. Prepare empty PET bottles- transparent plastic bottles from softdrinks and bottled water(1.5 to 2 liter). Wash PET bottles including the cap using soap with soft material like cloth. Rinse


2.Fully pour PET bottles with water 


3.Place prepared SODIS bottles horizontally under direct sunlight for a minimum of six hours (termination of water borne related pathogens). you can place it anywhere, as long as there is enough sunlight.


4. Harvest the SODIS water, set aside to cool.drink

Delhi Inaugurates Its First Solar-Powered Water Treatment Plant

A government school in New Delhi, India is now home to the city’s first solar-powered water treatment plant. The plant will use solar power to treat brackish water and produce 5,000 liters of water everyday. The water will be used by around 750 families of the economically weaker section living around the school.

The plant, which will cost around $45,000 to set up, will use solar panels to power the micro-ionising water purification equipment. The water produced from the plant meets the potable water standards of the World Health Organization.

The plant has been implemented by an NGO — Social Awareness, Newer Alternatives (SANA) — which has transferred the ownership and maintenance of the plant to the students of the school. Senior students of the school have been trained in special workshops to help them understand the operation of the plant.

The plant will also help offset carbon emissions, as the water would have otherwise been treated through the use of fossil fuels like charcoal. This makes the plant even more significant, as millions of people in India still lack access to potable water.

Such a model can be and should be implemented in other parts of the country as well, especially in the rural areas where people have to travel for several kilometres to get drinking water. Such a project in the rural areas would also provide employment to local people. The technology can also be used for coastal cities at a large-scale reducing dependence on limited freshwater and depleting groundwater resources.

The cost of such plant is still very high, as a result its development is currently restricted to the development sector. Hopefully, private companies will soon realize the potential of this technology and implement such projects at large-scale in a more cost-efficient manner.

BY MRIDUL CHADHA@cleantechnica.com

The Environmental Benefits of Filtered Water

The downside of bottled water

Ironically, bottled water not only wastes water in production, it wastes other resources, as well. As one expert pointed out, about a half a pound of greenhouse gases are produced, just to bottle and transport a one-liter bottle of Fiji water to another part of the world.

Some other drawbacks to consider:

• It takes three times the amount of water to manufacture the bottle as to actually fill it
• Though most water bottles are recyclable, only one out of six is recycled
• In a single year, the United States consumes millions of barrels of oil just in the manufacture of water bottles
• It takes just a few minutes to drink the contents of a plastic bottle, but about 1,000 years for it to biodegrade

A greener alternative

Most communities have clean, safe drinking water. If you have concerns about your tap water, ask your local water utility company for a report. With the right water filter, you can remove pollutants from tap water and make your water taste and smell better. And unlike bottled water, filtering tap water is actually good for the environment. Not only does it decrease the need for expensive and wasteful bottled water, home filtration is virtually pollution free. One filter can clean hundreds of gallons of water which means less trash in the landfill and less fuel used to transport water to and from your home (and  to and from the bottling company).

With so many advantages to using a home filtration system you may wonder why you’ve ever purchased bottled water to begin with. There’s no doubt that it’s convenient, and an occasional bottle isn’t going to destroy the ozone layer. Cutting down on bottled water, or cutting it out completely, is good for your health, good for your budget and good for the environment. Don’t buy the hype or the bottle. Drink clean, safe filtered water from home and you’ll be doing yourself, and the planet, a big green favor.

And don’t forget that simply consuming less water for other household tasks can save a lot of water, too.

Reduce your water consumption by using it wisely:

• Run the dishwasher or washing machine only when there’s a full load
• Turn off the faucet when brushing your teeth
• Install a low-flow shower head – or better yet, take a bath, which uses less water than a shower

The actions you take every day in your home can either harm or help the environment. So start making small changes that, over time, could lead to a healthier environment.

greenerideal.com

Simple & Cheap Solution to India's Grave Water Crisis: Waste Water Recycling

India’s coming grave water crisis has a simple, cheap solution: wastewater recycling. But for private capital to get into this, public policy must challenge perception biases against recycled water.

Where will India get its water from in the coming years? The water challenge is already grave and could get graver. By 2050, for instance, it is estimated that demand would go up to 1,180 million cubic metres, 1.65 times the current levels, a situation that would be made worse by fast dwindling fresh water resources.

That's why desalination — removing salt from seawater to make fresh water — is increasingly catching the fancy of administrators. Two of India's most industrialised states, Tamil Nadu and Gujarat, are the keenest among the lot. A water-scarce Tamil Nadu, already running one desalination plant, is working to complete a second plant and planning for the third. Gujarat is also said to have desalination plans.

"The industrial sector's preference toward desalination is expected to increase with the growing demand for processed water. Many of the coastal municipalities are also keenly looking to invest in desalination," says consultancy Frost & Sullivan's environment technologies expert Sasidhar Chidanamarri. India, along with the US and China, is seen contributing quite a bit to a global doubling of desalination capacity between 2010 and 2025, says Frost & Sullivan. Of course, the biggest contributor would be West Asia, which would by then account for half the world capacity.

But the question that experts are increasingly asking, at a time when a draft water policy is being debated, is this: is desalination the best option?

Treating Waste Water

Countries the world over, while being bullish about desalination, are equally bullish about other means, notably waste water recycling. Not India. Only about 31% of municipal wastewater can be recycled. That would be more than 75% in China. In a recent working paper titled "Water Supply in Chennai: Desalination and Missed Opportunities", researcher Sridhar Vedachalam of the New York State Water Resources Institute at Cornell University wrote that "desalination may provide a reliable supply of water to a city with chronic water shortage, but it is hardly the best option for more than one reason".

"Desalination, while being a source of fresh water, does nothing to address the challenge of managing those extra million litres of wastewater," says Vedachalam. "Recycled water, on the other hand, solves the twin problems in a single shot."

When Tamil Nadu launched its first desalination plant in 2010, at Minjur, 27 km from north of Chennai, the benefits seemed apparent. Tamil Nadu's water challenge is historically well chronicled. Now, it houses 6% of the country's population but only has 3% of its water resources. Also, Tamil Nadu gets an annual rainfall of 792 million metres versus the national average of 1,250 million metres. The per capita availability at 800 cubic metres in the state is just a third of the national average.

"Why not go further and pick a more futuristic technology — one that addresses problems of water supply and wastewater management, is ecologically compatible — and lead the way for the rest of the country and even the world. Reuse can be implemented anywhere (not just in coastal areas) and, therefore, has a much bigger market allowing future improvements in technology and reduction in cost," says Vedachalam.

Rs 25/litre Difference

For Sam Yamdagni, managing director of the Indian arm of the $3.8-billion US-based water technology company Xylem, there is no way waste water treatment can be missed. "Even when you are creating water through desalination, you have to look at creating waste water treatment because again you are going to generate waste."

But ecological compatibility isn't the only reason. There's a compelling cost reason favouring waste water treatment.

R Raghuttama Rao, managing director of Icra Management Consulting Services, points out those cases. He says, "Desal is more expensive upwards of Rs 50 per kilo litre compared to Rs 25-35 per kilo litre for recycled sewage. Desal requires more power and is energy intensive."

Chidanamarri estimates the capex for desalination plants to be two-and-a-half times that of a conventional treatment technology. "Clearly, desalination is an expensive proposition. And the government is contemplating to offer tax incentives for industries which would help them in recovering the high costs." (He also points out, though, that improved technologies have over the years brought down the cost of water from desalination.)

Given this, Vedachalam had argued in his analysis, "Reliance on such expensive technology [desalination] does not augur well for a city [Chennai] that already does not collect revenues that match its expenses." A report in 2005 estimated that only a fifth of the water sold in Chennai was metered. The rest of the country may not be vastly different in this respect.

Data supports this view. According to a presentation available on the Ministry of Urban Development Website, the average cost of wastewater treatment is Rs 4.5-6 a kilo litre, and this can be used for agriculture or gardening purposes. If treated for drinking use, the cost does jump to Rs 12 but this is still far less than what metros in India spend to bring potable water to its residents. Here are the numbers: from Rs 20 per kilo litre in Delhi to Rs 40-60 in Chennai.

Perception Problems

The other significant side of the story is India's growing demand for water. Nowhere is this as evident as in the industrial sector, which now consumes about 50 billion cubic metres of water annually. That figure will jump to 120 billion cubic metres by 2025, says Frost's Chidanamarri.

Given this, going in for waste water recycling aggressively should be a no-brainer. But that's not been the case. There's a reason why the actual scope for use of recycled water is far less. "From a mindset perspective, people are more ready to drink desalination water relative to treated waste-water," says Icra's Rao.

Rajiv Mittal, managing director of water treatment company VA Tech Wabag, agrees about the mindset issue. "In Singapore, the prime minister of Singapore campaigned for safety of recycled water for drinking and he was the first one to use this." Mittal says in Singapore they call it reusable water, not waste water.

Icra's Rao says indirect potable use (where recycled treated sewage water is pumped into water bodies/river streams which is conventionally treated again) is becoming more popular. Singapore already does this. Bangalore was planning such a project but that has not happened so far, he says.

But the low-hanging fruit in waste water isn't in challenging strong perceptions of the people but actually is in the industrial sector. Already, there are examples of treated sewage being used by industries in India. In Chennai alone, wastewater is supplied to companies such as Madras Refineries, Madras Fertilisers and GMR Vasavi Power for reclamation and reuse.

Thirsty Industry

The industrial potential is already evident through desalination. VA Tech's Mittal knows that well. His company is the one building the second desalination plant in Chennai, some 45 km away at Nemelli. It is eyeing a big opportunity in the desalination space. Between 2005 and 2010, about 63% of the 5.3 lakh cubic metres per day of desalination capacity was accounted for by the industry. The municipal segment accounted for the rest.

He reckons the way to go about it is this: waste water treatment for industrial use and desalination for domestic use. Europe does it well. It recycles about 60% of the domestic sewage generated and it is consumed for non-potable applications such as boiler feed water, cooling tower, landscaping, gardening and flushing.

Anand Chiplunkar, a director of urban development at the Asian Development Bank, says, "Wastewater treatment can generate revenues and thereby not only reduce the operating and maintenance costs but also recover capital costs [when recycled to industries]." Therefore, he says, "it has the potential to attract private sector investments in properly structure projects".

Rao says, "Waste-water recycling would be particularly attractive to address requirements of industrial use, if the demand is concentrated [eg SEZs]." That's one way to meet India's growing water needs.


 By Sanjay Vijayakumar@economictimes.com

India Water Policy 2012: Design for Water Loot

"Indians going to bed hungry or, many times, dying hungry while food grains in huge amount do rot in government godowns is a fact known to all. If the designed water policy is implemented and corporate players are allowed to have rightful access to the water resources, the country is to see incidents of thirst deaths of Indians who are unable to afford to a glass of pure water owned by corporate houses."

We know the story of loot in the un-liberated India. British came here to do business. However, instead of doing a fair business, they engaged themselves in unparalleled plunder of India’s wealth. Freedom struggle aroused hopes in people’s mind that this plunder would stop after independence. But this could not happen. India became free, but the loot continued rather increasingly day by day. The shape and form of the loot has changed. New avenues are being searched. Along with exploitation of labour, industrial manufacturing and service sector, natural resources have also come under this loot. Coal, minerals, petroleum, gas, water, land, biodiversity, forests are being openly looted. Some of these sources are so perilous that they would end for ever if exploited.
India’s Policy Design for Water Loot Water, which is the most basic thing for life and the nature’s cycle, which is naturally available everywhere on earth and which is made available for all by the mother nature is now being treated as a marketable commodity in India. Now, the private property right is to be extended over ground water enabling anybody to extract, buy and sell ground water under this right. Once it happens, any individual or company can have ownership right over any river, lake, pond or underground water and sell this right to any other person or company in lieu of handsome profit. May be, it can also restrict common users and people from using water from sources owned by private owners. Usually we understand water business by the business of bottled drinking water. But it is not so now. It is on sale for everything, from mining to industries, that requires water. A new water industry is taking shape in the country. Land has already become a marketable commodity. Land ownership rights gave birth to a system that made corporatisation of land easy. The same way, water is being converted into a tradable commodity. Ownership rights over water will give rise to a new kind of Panidari (system of ownership and trading of water) and clear the way for its corporatisation. A new legal system from top to bottom to facilitate this corporatization is being designed. Many states of India have formulated new water policies and laws. Several of them have already passed them to facilitate loot of water by capitalists and corporate houses. Water cycle causes rain which every year gives us over and underground water in certain quantities. If measured, a colossal amount of water is made available to us every year by nature. India gets about 4000 billion cubic metre (BCM) rain water annually. After evaporation, 1869 BCM water remains is our rivers and other water sources; and only 1123 BCM water (690 BCM over ground and 433 BCM underground) finally remains usable for us. So, usable water is limited. In India a total of 688 BCM water is needed for agriculture while the drinking and necessary domestic need is about 56 BCM leaving 69 BCM water for other use. India’s large water reserve, limited water availability and increasing demand, all these factors are being used by corporate houses to establish, through the help of World Bank, their control over water and its commercial utilisation. World Bank’s Water Resources Strategy Report discusses in detail various issues related to privatization of water in the world on the basis of Dublin Principle, which includes structural reforms in use of water as a commodity, determination of all other areas of water use, including irrigation, based on cubic metre measurement system adopting singular vision for both over ground and underground water, ending subsidies on water for irrigation. Private-Public Partnership, encouragement of private sector in water management and distribution, water literacy, data bank for water related statistics etc – all these issues are discussed in the strategy report which finally gives directions to the World Bank to take a role in it. Water Policy 2012 Indian government’s water policy-2012 makes it clear that India’s policy is completely in accordance with World Bank guidelines. This is a good case of World Bank’s direct hand in Indian policy making. World Bank has also tried for inclusion of water in central list so that a single water policy and accompanying laws could be implemented in the whole country. But it could not be possible, so far, as power of making laws for water related policies are vested with the states. Some states of the country have made their water policies and related laws according to Water Policy-2002. Other states are almost forced to implement such policies as condition for getting loans. Three major Acts placed as guiding laws for States to implement water policies are: 1- Water Resources Regulatory Authority Act. 2- Management of Irrigation systems by Farmers Act. 3- Ground Water Act. Water Resources Regulatory Authority is to sell water rights and decide prices of water while the other two acts are to oversee the management of water resources, through water committees and consumers’ organizations, and the recovery of cost of water. A new legal system is also established for corporate houses to manage their Water business – meaning, corporate control over water is almost legalised. Using that system a company will sell water taken from river, ponds, lake or its own tube-wells through cubic measurement system for household use, agricultural use or for industrial use. And to show that all is being done by people and communities directly, Consumer Forums and Water Committees are being organized and these organizations will facilitate maintenance and management of water supply system, and recover the cost from the users and hand it over to the company. So, more likely to that of British tax systems of the colonial days, people and communities are to engage themselves as agents of corporate houses for no benefit but against the rights of their own (of people and the communities) over the natural resources. Initially these projects will be started on PPP model and slowly handed over to private companies. Rights over Natural Resources Shifting Now to make further way for the World Bank’s intentions, Draft Water Policy – 2012 has come. For making corporatization of underground water easy, an amendment in Indian Easement Act-1882 is being proposed. Water will be made a national property so that the central government holds all rights lawfully to sell water ownership to individual or companies. It is believed in India that water is life. In Indian psyche, its importance is related to purity and divinity offered by nature itself. For all forms of life, it is freely available anywhere and everywhere. But now it will not be free. It is now a commodity for sell, some thing which is unthinkable for any Indian! Corporate houses and World Bank have done this through their intrigues. It is interesting that Indians are still not aware of what is happening on such a sensitive front. Corrupt politicians, bureaucrats and some NGOs of our land are also helping the foreign agencies to fulfil their interest in India’s water resources. World Bank’s declared aim is to eradicate poverty from the world through development. But, behind this pious aim, World Bank has always worked for strengthening capitalist system and serving the interest of corporate houses. By installing its own persons on the top and then building pressure to formulate national policies to legalise illegal to promote loot of the country that is unethical and unlawful as per the existing laws. This is World Bank’s modus operandi. In India, World Bank has also done the same to gain direct access to county’s natural resources and make way for corporate powers to loot them. Now it has become clearer that World Bank’s strategy and India’s changed policies and laws are based on that strategy with regard to water. Thus in India people’s right over a natural resource are being snatched away and handed over to global corporate and commercial players. Not only this, the system is now in place to make loot of people through water exploitation. The water, on which people had right till yesterday, has now gone into the hands of corporates. No person or farmer of the land can now use water without paying the cost. Rather in case of any such free use, the user may be sued and in the court. Water related laws have turned the existing and natural laws upside down. Ruled by greed! How much loot of Indian people will take place in this water business is not easy to assess now. But some projections can be made today. Those who take water directly from sources for their domestic use or for agricultural purposes are definitely not to pay the least. Only service charges are taken in places where this system is public. Today, service charges for drinking water are nearly 1.5 (one and help paisa) paisa per litre. If this charge is raised two times then the cost of 56 BCM water, which is required for drinking purpose, will go to 1 lack 68 thousand crores rupees (1,68000 crores). Besides this, 12 rupee per bottle and 1.5 rupee per litre canned water are being tried. In this way companies will collect more than 200,000 Crores of Rupees annually from the pockets of the common people. Alongside, the 69 BCM water, required for industries and other similar purposes, will again cost rupees 200,000 crores. If fruits and vegetables growing practices increase and it requires more water, the costing would be nearly rupees 100,000 crores further, annually. Thus, total 500,000 Crores of rupees is set to go to the corporates from common man’s pocket every year. This calculation may differ depending more upon how much companies are charging from the users. Companies’ interest in more and more profit may also influence the use by changing the priorities of using water. More water will go where more profit is at hand. It seems, the amount of money involved is a good reason for the greedy corporate players and their agent World bank to to influence the whole process of policy making in India to get access to water in the country. Not only Hungry, Indians to die Thirsty as well Corporatisation of water may lead to an ironic situation as it squeezes People’s right over water and, on the other hand, the same water is to be sold to them. Increase in the rate of water would trouble Indian masses to a great deal. But India’s prime minister and an ex-servant of the World Bank Dr Manmohan Singh is also echoing with WB’s dictates that imposing a cost on water use is necessary to check waste of water and its inefficient use. But is it true that three fourth (3/4) of the population who toil hard to earn two square meals are wasting water? Or, those who are affluent make wasteful use of water for a lavish and extravagant living? Is there any example of rich people, using life necessities, make responsible use of these necessities due to their rising cost? Indians going to bed hungry or, many times, dying hungry while food grains in huge amount do rot in government godowns is a fact known to all. If the designed water policy is implemented and corporate players are allowed to have rightful access to the water resources, the country is to see incidents of thirst deaths of Indians who are unable to afford to a glass of pure water owned by corporate houses. By Vivekanand Mathane@hotnhitnews.com

Bacteria in Tap Water can be Traced to the Water Treatment Process

                                                      Which pathogens are in your drinking water?


Most of the bacteria that remain in drinking water when it gets to the tap can be traced to filters used in the water treatment process, rather than to the aquifers or rivers where it originated, University of Michigan researchers discovered.

The study—a unique, broad-based look at Ann Arbor's water supply from source to tap—could open the door to more sustainable water treatment processes that use fewer chemicals and, as a result, produce lower levels of byproducts that may pose health risks. Eventually, the work could enable engineers to control the types of microbes in drinking water to improve human health like "live and active cultures" in yogurt, the researchers say. The research, led by Lutgarde Raskin, a professor of civil and environmental engineering, is published online in Environmental Science & Technology and will appear in a forthcoming print edition. Over six months, the researchers sampled water at 20 points along its path from groundwater and Barton Pond sources to residents' faucets and several more places in the water treatment plant. They harvested bacteria from each sample and sequenced their DNA. Tap water is teeming with bacteria despite the intensive filtering and disinfection that occur in most of the developed world. That's not necessarily a problem, the U-M researchers say. It could be an opportunity. "A major goal right now in drinking water treatment is to kill all bacteria because there's the perception that all bacteria are bad. But there's a good bit of scientific literature that says there are good bacteria, innocuous bacteria and bad bacteria. If we can better understand the types of bacteria in the microbial community from source to tap and what processes control it, perhaps we can be more effective at controlling which ones get through," said Ameet Pinto, a lecturer at the University of Glasgow who worked on this project as a postdoctoral researcher in Raskin's lab. Most previous drinking water studies have focused more narrowly on disease-causing pathogens, Pinto said. But bacteria such as Legionella, Salmonella, and E. coli don't exist in isolation. Their fate is influenced by the microbial community around them. "The more critical questions are 'Where do they come from?' and 'What determines which ones survive treatment and end up in our drinking water?' These questions have not been systematically asked until now," Pinto said.

The study found that the "activated carbon filters" commonly used to remove suspended particles play a significant role in determining which bacteria are most prevalent in treated drinking water. The relative abundance of Alphaproteobacteria, for example, was found to be around 6 percent in source water, but 38 percent on the filters, and 23 percent of the bacterial community at the tap. This pattern occurred despite regular filter cleaning. These mostly harmless bacteria were able to form biofilms on the filters, slough off into the water and survive the disinfection process. Water suppliers typically add chemicals such as chlorine to drinking water, but these disinfectants can react with naturally-occurring substances in the water to form potentially harmful byproducts, according to the EPA. Many of these byproducts themselves are regulated. "Disinfection can form harmful chemicals in drinking water," said Chuanwu Xi, associate professor of environmental health sciences in the School of Public Health, who participated in this study. "If we can get away with not using so many chemicals and prevent the formation of these byproducts, we should think about limiting their use." The researchers suggest that these filters could serve as early indicators of the presence of beneficial and disease-causing bacteria. They could be regularly tested, and pathogens might be contained there to prevent them from reaching the distribution system. The filters also could potentially be re-engineered to support the growth of beneficial or neutral bacteria. "We hope to begin research to explore how to improve public health by engineering drinking water treatment plants to impact the drinking water microbiome, perhaps by promoting growth of beneficial microbes that outcompete pathogenic microbes," Raskin said. "We think it is feasible to do this in the long run." "Current regulations and engineering practices focus on removing chemical and microbial contaminants from the source water to provide safe and clean water and protect the public from waterborne diseases," Xi said. "In addition to the protection we have already, there is potential to add benefits to the water we consume everyday for improving our health, for example, by having a positive impact on the microbial community in the human gut. More research is needed to evaluate this potential beneficial impact when we move in that direction."
phys.org

Japanese Purifier Cleaning Water in Somali Camps

Using a purifying agent produced by a small Japanese company, an international agency is making water potable for internally displaced people in Mogadishu, the capital of war-ravaged Somalia — often described as a "failed state."

Made by Osaka-based Nippon Poly-Glu Co., the agent has helped lower the incidence of illnesses and diarrhea among children of Somalis who fled their hometowns to escape famine and civil war, local people say.

At a camp teeming with ramshackle tents in Mogadishu, where women and children fill plastic bottles at a water purifying tank, an aid worker shows a small bag. The white powder it contains, the worker says, is used with chlorine to clean the water.

A key ingredient of the powder is polyglutamic acid, the sticky substance of "natto" fermented soybeans. According to Nippon Poly-Glu, it helps quicken the coagulation of impurities in water.

It is not the first time that Nippon Poly-Glu, with a small workforce of about 30, has engaged in humanitarian aid outside Japan. The company has been helping other developing countries where clean water is scarce.

Learning about the company's activities, Chiaki Ito, an official of the International Organization for Migration who is in charge of hygiene in Somalia, asked the company to let it use the agent.

With the support of the Japan International Cooperation Agency, the IOM began providing water cleansed with the agent to some 5,000 internally displaced people in Mogadishu in January.

The aid will continue until next year as the Japanese government has since offered $2 million in official development assistance to fund the project.

Poor sanitation has led to outbreaks of cholera at camps in Mogadishu, which house, according to United Nations estimates, nearly 200,000 internally displaced people. Many people fled the southern part of the country last year due to famine and headed for the capital seeking food and water.

Due to the use of the Japanese-made purifying agent, the incidence of diarrhea and other diseases among those at the camp who used to drink well water has decreased, says Hibaq Ahmed Hashi, leader of the refugee camp where the IOM provides drinking water.

Guards are posted around the clock to protect the water purification tank at the camp due to poor security in the capital even after Islamic extremists left the city.

"We intend to figure out a way to continue the supply of clean water," said IOM's Ito.

Kanetoshi Oda, chairman of Nippon Poly-Glu, said he wants to continue helping internally displaced people in Somalia, who live in desperate conditions.

The Japan Times Online 

Tropical Tree Extract can Clean Drinking Water

The tropical tree Moringa oleifera has a special quality that makes it very suitable for cleansing water. The tree is to be used to cleanse water of eggs from intestinal parasites, which plague more than one billion people around the world. (Photo: J.M. Garg)

A new extract can prevent parasites from entering a person’s intestines. This is an easy and cheap solution to a widespread problem – it can help over a billion people who have worms in their intestines.

There are many reasons why doctors recommend that visitors to Asia or Africa should always drink bottled water. One reason is that drinking water in Asia or Africa often contains the eggs of parasites – which can be an uncomfortable companion to bring back from a holiday or business trip.

The parasites develop and grow in your intestines and some of them can become as thick as a little finger and up to 10 cm long. Others suck blood from the walls of the intestines, while yet another type works its way into the intestinal walls and eats the walls’ tissue.

In Denmark and other western countries your doctor will prescribe medicine that effectively kills the parasitic worms – but you do not have that possibility if you are a poor peasant in Africa or Asia. Here, the parasites can live in your intestines for a long time, resulting in great reductions in your quality of life and ability to work.

“Parasites can accumulate in the intestines, resulting in many complications,” says Mita Eva Sengupta, of the University of Copenhagen’s Department of Veterinary Disease Biology/Parasitology, Health and Development, who has just defended her PhD thesis on parasites.

“Some people can develop anaemia if they have too many blood-sucking parasites in their intestines. Parasites can also provoke an immune response or prevent the intestinal walls from absorbing nutrients – a severe problem for people who are already fighting to get enough food,” she says.

“And parasites have also been associated with a poorer ability to learn. So parasites are a gigantic problem in developing countries and we want to do something effective about the situation.”

Worms should be fought with extract

In her thesis, Sengupta suggests that the problem with intestinal worms can be reduced using a new extract that she has developed.

The extract, which derives from a widespread tropical tree, causes the eggs of the worms to fall to the bottom of a stretch of water, so the eggs do not wash out on to crops and the like and from there to people.

“Parasites cause great problems around the world,” she says. “Parasites are not only transmitted to people when they drink contaminated water but also when they eat uncooked crops such as tomatoes and lettuce – in many countries, farmers often irrigate their land with untreated wastewater, so the parasite eggs enter the intestines in this way.”

In her research, Sengupta studied how parasite eggs behave in water, and she found a handy way of preventing the parasites from being transmitted to crops.

Eggs’ behavior in water of great importance

One of the things she studied was how quickly the eggs settle to the bottom of a stretch of water such as an irrigation channel and how quickly they return to the surface layer of the water if there is a current along the bottom of the watercourse.

These are the first-ever results of such a study and they can be used to improve our understanding of how parasite eggs settle in streams, artificial irrigation channels and wastewater treatment plants.

If the eggs fall to the bottom of the watercourse, they do not enter the drinking water – so the faster they settle, the better.

Sengupta studied how parasite eggs settle in both clean water and dirty water containing large amounts of particles such as mud, algae, plant remains and minerals.

We knew absolutely nothing about how parasite eggs behave in different types of water,” says Sengupta.

“Wastewater treatment plants aim at reducing the amount of nutrients in the water as much as possible, but they have very little knowledge about how infectious agents – and in particular parasite eggs – are affected by the purification processes. There is thus room for improvement in wastewater treatment.”

Extract gets the eggs to settle faster

Following her studies of parasite eggs in different water qualities and flows, Sengupta carried out laboratory tests to find a method to get the eggs to fall to the bottom more quickly from the surface layers where they are more likely to infect people directly, or indirectly through crop irrigation.

Sengupta found a suitable method in the seeds of the tree Moringa oleifera – its English common names include moringa, benzolive tree and West Indian ben; it is also known as drumstick tree (from the appearance of its long, slender, triangular seed pods), horseradish tree (from the horseradish-like taste of the roots, and ben oil tree (from the oil derived from its seeds).

The tree is found everywhere in the tropics, and the extract from its seeds binds particles together in water, so they settle more quickly.

The extract is easy to prepare, as it is simply a matter of grinding the seed capsules to a fine powder, adding the powder to water in a soft-drink bottle and shaking the bottle thoroughly. 

After it has been filtered through a piece of cloth, the extract is ready for pouring into polluted water.

Here, the extract works as a coagulator, collecting mud, algae, plant remains, minerals and parasite eggs in large lumps, which quickly fall to the bottom.

Easily made extract

Parasite eggs in water treated with the Moringa oleifera seed extract settle almost twice as fast as they do in water not treated with the extract.

“My trials show that it is easy for the individual farmer to make the seed extract, and it works well,” says Sengupta. “A farmer can use the Moringa oleifera seed extract in water collected in a barrel and then use the water to irrigate his crops without the risk of transferring the parasite eggs to the food that his family must live from. In addition, the Moringa oleifera seed extract is quite harmless to people.”

Sengupta’s research also showed that the dirtier the water, the more effective the seed extract is in getting the parasite eggs to settle.

The next step on the path to helping the more than one billion people suffering from intestinal worms is trialling the Moringa oleifera seed extract in the real world. Sengupta plans to travel to Ghana and conduct real-life seed extract trials with some of the country’s farmers.

By: Kristian Sjøgren@ScienceNordic.com

Mozambique: Only Six Per Cent of Rural Population Treat Water Before Drinking

Only 6.2 per cent of families in living in rural Mozambique are treating their water before drinking it, according to the national household survey conducted last year as part of the National Water and Rural Sanitation Programme (PRONASAR).

The findings of the survey were discussed at a regional seminar on the treatment and safe storage of household water.

In addition, according to Roberto De Bernardi of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), a study of water quality carried out by the Health Ministry, the Public Works Ministry and UNICEF in 18 districts in the provinces of Tete, Manica and Sofala found that 20 per cent of water sources were unfit for drinking.

"This clearly demonstrates the need to strengthen the monitoring of water quality and to develop programmes to promote the treatment of household water", said the UNICEF official.

Organised by UNICEF and the World Health Organisation alongside the Health Ministry and Public Works Ministry, the regional seminar has fifty participants from Mozambique, Malawi and Zambia.

It aims to strengthen national policies, strategies and regulations on the treatment and safe storage of household water and to support the implementation of more efficient and integrated interventions for environmental health.

In her opening speech, the head of the department of environmental health at the Health Ministry, Ana Paula Cardoso, said that the provision of clean drinking water to the population constitutes a big challenge to the national authorities.

"Water is essential for human life. Water from wells, rivers, lakes and lagoons is not safe and is a source of illnesses such as diarrhoea, cholera and intestinal parasites. Therefore the treatment and safe storage of water is important at community level", said Cardoso.

The percentage of people with access to clean water has recently increased to 60 per cent of the urban population and 54 per cent of people living in rural areas.

"The Mozambican government is continuing to improve the coverage of the water supply in urban and rural zones. It is constructing the infrastructure for water and sanitation, and promoting safe hygiene practices. In addition, better water provision substantially reduces the time taken collecting water, leaving more time for income generation and food production", said Cardoso.

The representative of the World Health Organisation, Daniel Kertesz, said that it is estimated that in developing countries the consumption of untreated water causes the death of 1.3 million children per year, about 12 per cent of the total deaths of children under the age of five.

Kertesz welcomed Mozambique's decision to convene a meeting on the prevention of cholera and diarrhoea. He also pointed out that in Malawi the Health Ministry is working with partners to distribute hygiene kits, whilst Zambia is promoting the treatment of water and changes in behaviour.

allAfrica.com 

Good News On Using Recycled Sewage Treatment Plant Water for Irrigating Crops

A new study eases concerns that irrigating crops with water released from sewage treatment plants -- an increasingly common practice in arid areas of the world -- fosters emergence of the antibiotic-resistant bacteria that cause thousands of serious infections each year. The research appears in ACS' journal Environmental Science & Technology.

Eddie Cytryn and colleagues explain that a large fraction of antibiotics given to people or animals pass out of the body unchanged in the urine and are transferred via sewage systems to wastewater treatment facilities. These facilities do not completely remove common antibiotics like tetracycline, erythromycin, sulfonamide and ciprofloxacin and may actually enhance the abundance of antibiotic-resistant bacteria and antibiotic-resistance genes.

Previous studies have suggested that wastewater effluents can expand natural reservoirs of antibiotic resistance, which may contribute to clinically associated antibiotic resistance. Arid and semi-arid areas of the world are plagued by severe water shortages, which are expected to increase as a result of growing population and global climate change. As a result, more areas are turning to treated wastewater (TWW) to irrigate croplands. In Israel, for instance, TWW provides more than half of the water used for irrigation. The researchers wanted to find out if long-term irrigation with treated wastewater enhances antibiotic resistance in soil microbial communities, which could potentially be transferred through agricultural produce to clinically relevant bacteria.

The authors found that levels of antibiotic-resistant bacteria and genes for antibiotic resistance in fields and orchards irrigated with freshwater and TWW were essentially identical, suggesting that antibiotic-resistant bacteria that enter soil by irrigation are not able to survive or compete in that environment. The authors say there is "cause for cautious optimism" that irrigating with TWW is not increasing the prevalence of bacteria resistant to the antibiotics they studied.

The authors acknowledge funding from the Israeli Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Environmental Health Fund.

ScienceDaily.com

EPA Outlines Plan for Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has listed 28 chemicals and two viruses that 6000 public water systems will monitor from 2013 to 2015.

They are part of the agency's program to monitor unregulated contaminants suspected to be present in drinking water, but that do not have health-based standards set under the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA).

EPA will spend more than $20 million on the monitoring, most of which will go to small drinking water systems for laboratory analyses, shipping and quality control. The data collected under the program is expected to show the frequency and levels at which the contaminants are found and help the agency determine if additional protections are needed.

The list includes total chromium and hexavalent chromium, also known as chromium-6, which has been the focus of some EPA concern.

Nancy Stoner, acting assistant administrator for water, said EPA selected the target chemicals from a list of priority contaminants that need additional research and are known or anticipated to occur in public water systems. Some contaminants of concern were selected based on current occurrence research and health-risk factors.

EPA has standards for 91 contaminants in drinking water. The SDWA requires it to identify up to 30 additional unregulated contaminants for monitoring every five years.

Green Infrastructure

EPA and Philadelphia plan a $2 billion program to promote green infrastructure.

Over the next 25 years, the partnership agreement will transform many of Philadelphia's hardened surfaces to green areas to better manage rainwater runoff pollution. The federal–city partnership will promote EPA's Green City, Clean Waters Plan as a national model for cities embracing green stormwater infrastructure.

The agency will help Philadelphia identify and promote green infrastructure designs, provide research and technical assistance, and monitor the effectiveness of the program.

Mayor Michael Nutter said, "Where other cities are challenged by very expensive commitments for tunnels, tanks and other gray infrastructure, we have worked with the state and the EPA to take this greener, more fiscally prudent approach that will realize multiple benefits."

Separately, a report on green infrastructure has outlined practices that promise more cost-effective solutions to lower energy expenses, reduce flood damage, and improve public health.

American Rivers, the Water Environment Federation (WEF), the American Society of Landscape Architects, and ECONorthwest released the study.

Green infrastructure refers to practices like green roofs, rain gardens, bioswales, and pervious pavement that capture and treat rainwater and runoff. These measures reduce the amount of polluted runoff the water that mixes with oil, pesticides, and other pollutants as it rushes over streets, parking lots, and yards into local streams.

Jeff Eger, WEF executive director, said, "Case studies shared in this report should be helpful to communities around the country and are from areas where green infrastructure is already making a difference."

The report noted that New York City's plan to reduce combined sewage overflows will save an estimated $1.5 billion over 20 years by incorporating green infrastructure rather than relying solely on traditional gray infrastructure like pipes.

It said in Baton Rouge, La., a high school spent $110,000 on bioswales and a rain garden to reduce flooding rather than the $500,000 it would have cost to re-pipe the site.

And a Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) report has used Philadelphia as an example of how a stormwater fee and credit system can generate funds for green infrastructure investments.

Climate Change

NRDC has reported that only nine states have taken comprehensive steps to address their vulnerabilities to the water-related impacts of climate change.

It studied four preparedness categories to delineate best-prepared states (Alaska, California, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Washington, and Wisconsin).

The report focused on how state governments are planning and preparing for climate change impacts such as more severe and frequent storms, intense rainfall, sea-level rise, warmer water temperatures, and drought events.

NRDC said "Rising temperatures and more extreme weather events are impacting our families, our health and our pocketbooks. Water is a matter of survival. It powers our lives and industries, and it keeps our natural systems healthy."

The study said states can take proactive steps to minimize climate change impacts, such as: cutting emissions from power plants, vehicles and other major sources of heat-trapping pollution; investing in energy efficiency and renewable energy; conducting vulnerability assessments; planning to address climate risks in all sectors; supporting implementation of those plans; and updating the plan as needed.

WaterWorld