Sydney's Water Sustainability | Biocity Studio
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Transcript of Sydney's Water Sustainability | Biocity Studio
Water Sustainabilitythe emergent ways to address our water crisis
Sydney’s Water System
History:
• Drinking water is essential to human survival therefore water supply influenced location of settlement and the development of Sydney.
• Population growth and lack of potable water (from pollution and drought) in Sydney led to the continuous search for new and larger supplies.
• Health and sanitary issues led to the development of an underground sewerage system to take wastewater away from the city and dump it into the ocean.
Facts of Sydney’s Water System
Now in 2015, our population has reached 4.6 million.151000 litres/person annually OR annual total of 684,460 mega
litres; this equals to around 22 Kilolitres/sec.Sydney’s average annual rainfall is 1217mm, but now we have GLOBAL WARMING issues.
In 2015, Sydney treats 482,020ML/year, or 69.4%
of total water usage. Recycled water only accounts for 10% of water supply.
Sydney Water Crisis
With a population of 4.6 million and long term drought, water restriction itself is not enough. Now we have 520GL of water. If our water inflow is further reduced by 25% to 431GL. This amount is only enough to
keep our water supply for just 2 years. After a long time of drought and with insufficient rainfall, we are experiencing
serious water shortage.Environmentalists call for emergent action to further reduce water use and carry out solutions to achieve water sustainability.
Effects:Immediate effects of water shortages include:• The system becomes less sustainable• Government enforced water restrictions• Crop failure due to lack of water• Import of food increase• Industrial production may decline• Increase in price for water• Water ecology stressed from decreased flows
Mid-term effects include:• Large scale agriculture dies• Local farms close• Certain areas become uninhabitable• Food shortages – increase in import• Increase cost for food• Evaporation rates may increase.
Long term effects include:• Large scale agriculture dies• Local farms close• Certain areas become uninhabitable• Food shortages – increase in import• Increase cost for food• Evaporation rates may increase.
Sydney Water Crisis (continued)
Where can I drink waterSource: http://raviramanathan.blogspot.com/2007/05/water-shortage.html
Source: http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/09/20/2039055.htm
Save me, I am trapped!
Solution and Water Sustainability
Analysis:
• What is the annual shortfall or deficit?
• Where and how much can we obtain the extra water from?
• What can we do with the supply and demand?
• Theoretically, can we achieve water sustainability without rainfall at all?
253.21GL or 37%
Save water?
Save money?
Solution and Water Sustainability (continued)
Possible Solution:
• Reduce water usage
• Desalination
• Recycling
• Management
• Artificial precipitation
• Reduce carbon
Solution and Water Sustainability (continued)
Possible Solution:
• Reduce water usage
- Pricing policies
- Water restriction: conservative?
- Increasing people’s awareness
- Water efficiency products
Resource: http://www.waterrating.gov.au/
Castle Hill STP Rouse Hill STP
Expanding the Western Sydney Recycling Scheme
Source: Metropolitan Water Plan 2006
13 GL33 GL
Similar model at the West Camden, Glenfield, Liverpool and Fairfield inland treatment plants to supply 53 GL of drinking water per year.
53 GL
86,000,000,000 litres of water treated to drinking standards annually
Solution and Water Sustainability (continued)
Possible Solution:
• Recycling
- Case study: Liberal Coalition Water Plan
- Retrofits existing STP to create a new system for recycling
- It is proposed that the treatment plants will recycle 86GL (18% of Sydney’s annual needs) of drinking water and also increase environment flows by 13 GL per year
Solution and Water Sustainability (continued)
Possible Solution:
• Recycling VS Desalination
- Half the price and twice efficient- Desalination plant is already being built
- Recycling plan uses same technology as desalination i.e. reverse osmosis (RO)
• Opportunities
- Modifying the desalination plant: If we divert water which has been treated to a tertiary level from surrounding treatment plants into the desalination plant and use the desalination plant as a final treatment process we could potentially provide more water and use less energy.
http://www.sydneywater.com.au/OurSystemsandOperations/
Desalination RecyclingVolume Yearly 45,000 ML 86,000 MLVolume Daily 125 ML 235 MLCapital Cost $1.9 Billion $0.949 BillionRecurrent Cost of water ($/GL) $ 3,000 / ML $1,000 / MLTime Frame Minimum 26 months 18 – 24 months
Solution and Water Sustainability (continued)
Possible Solution:
• Recycling VS Desalination
BASIX and Dual Reticulation Systems
• Existing BASIX guidelines have been set to reduce water consumption by up to 40% through better design
•“Toilet flushing, watering gardens and car washing accounts for approximately 40% of current total water demand.” – 2006 Metropolitan Water Plan
• Separating recycled water for non-drinking purposes allows residents to conveniently water of lower quality for flushing toilets, washing cars watering gardens and other outdoor activities.
• “On average the Rouse Hill scheme has reduced demand for drinking water by about 40%.” – Sydney Water
• We believe that where feasible all new large scale residential development should adopt this system as it would be easiest to implement the system before construction and to save water in the long run.
Images: Metropolitan Water Plan 2006 p. 36
Beyond BASIX and Dual Reticulation Systems
•Improving natural environment by incorporating stormwater treatment in new developments
• May include Stormwater Quality Improvement Devices for removal of litter and sediments or naturalistic wetlands to filter nitrogen and phosphorus from stormwater
• Dry basins used for storage and controlling downstream flow Images:
http://www.sydneywater.com.au/SavingWater/RecyclingandReuse/RecyclingAndReuseInAction/RiverManagement.cfm
Solution and Water Sustainability (continued)
Possible Solution:
• Management
-Centralise VS Decentralise
Decentralised System
Grey-water recycle systemRoof runoff catchment
Save up to 50%Precedent: UK water management system
Assume that greywater accounts for more than 60% of household wastewater
Constraints
Reduce water usage• Population increase• Effectiveness of the policy
Desalination• Costly• Environment impact• Low efficiency
Recycling• People’s perspective to recycled water
Management• Hard to establish decentralised system over existing urban area