Development of a Master Plan for Water Pollution Control Using MCDM Techniques: A Case Study

Abstract

Excessive demand for water due to a growing population, agricultural, and industrial development, along with climate change and depletion of nonrenewable resources have intensified the need for integrated water resources management and water pollution control. This paper presents different aspects of a master plan for water pollution control and the results of a case study for developing a master plan for water resources pollution control in Isfahan Province in Iran. Different components of the water resources system and pollution sources in the study area were identified and the effects of each of the pollution sources on surface and groundwater resources contamination were investigated. Two Multiple Criterion Decision Making (MCDM) techniques, namely Simple Additive Weighting (SAW) method and Analytical Hierarchy Structure (AHP) were used in order to determine the share of agricultural, industrial, and domestic sectors in polluting the water resources. In the application of MCDM techniques, engineering judgments and the information gathered from brain storming sessions with engineering experts and the agencies' officials have also been incorporated in order to overcome the data deficiency in this region for this type of analysis. Based on this study, several specific major categories of water pollution reduction projects were defined and in each category, several projects were identified. The total cost of implementation of the projects was also estimated and the projects were prioritized based on their potential impact on water pollution control.     

网络技术在水利工程管理工作中的应用

通过介绍网络技术在水利工程管理单位的应用,指出水利工程管理单位实现网络化,通过网络收集信息、处理信息、发布信息是非常必要的,同时这也是水利工程管理单位实现办公自动化的一个极为重要的途径。     

A Sustainable Decision Support Framework for Urban Water Management

This paper develops a decision support framework that assists managers in the urban water industry to analyse a mix of water service options, at the whole-of-city scale. The decision support framework moves decision-making in urban water systems from traditional command and control approaches that tend to focus on an outcome at a point in time to a more sustainable, inclusive and dynamic decision-making process driven by social learning and engagement. While available models and evaluation techniques provide valuable input to decision-making, the complex nature of urban water systems requires more than just social and economic criteria to be considered as part of decision support frameworks. The authors believe that current decision support frameworks need to be presented in a way that incorporates adaptive management and integrated urban water management strengths at the strategic and operational level. The inclusion of social learning and engagement is necessary to achieving this end.     

Exploring the Mechanism of Surface and Ground Water through Data-Driven Techniques with Sensitivity Analysis for Water Resources Management

The over extraction of groundwater in central-western and southwestern Taiwan has resulted in serious land subsidence for decades. For making countermeasures in response to land subsidence, this study collects long-term hydrological data to explore the relationships between surface water and groundwater in various monitoring stations, and then constructs one-month-ahead forecast models by using data-driven techniques for the water resources management of the Zhuoshui River basin in Taiwan. The results demonstrate that the constructed models can accurately forecast monthly groundwater levels. The sensitivity analysis is next conducted on the input variables of the constructed models by using the partial derivative method. The analysis results reveal that streamflow is a predominant factor for groundwater level variation, and therefore streamflow management made by the upstream weir of the river would influence groundwater level variations. This study further implements several scenario analyses based on the interactive mechanism between groundwater and surface water in response to future climatic conditions and weir discharge management, respectively. The results of scenario analyses indicate that the groundwater recharge zone spreads along the Zhuoshui River while lateral and vertical recharge sources would cause different quantities and distribution patterns of groundwater recharge. Besides, an increase in weir discharge would improve groundwater recharge quantities with groundwater level variations at 0.12 m and 0.06 m in wet and dry seasons, respectively. As a consequence, the operation of weir discharge would play an import role in sustainable development of water resources management in the study area.     

Analysis of the Water-Food-Energy Nexus and Water Competition Based on a Bayesian Network

Water Resources Management - Water competition is a key issue in the study of the water-food-energy nexus (WFEN), which can affect water, food, and energy security and can generate notable...     

Hybrid Leakage Management for Water Network Using PSF Algorithm and Soft Computing Techniques

Reduction of leakages in water distribution system (WDS) is one of the major concerns for water industries. This paper presents a hybrid leakage reduction model using pressure management technique, performed by optimizing water storage level in the tank, along with optimized control and localization of pressure reducing valve (PRV) in water distribution system. Pattern Sequence-based Forecasting (PSF) algorithm is used for prediction of flow rate (demand) from the tank for next 48 h, to calibrate the future desire water storage level in the tank. A mathematical tank and pump simulation algorithm is proposed for optimization of water storage level in the tank. A modified reference pressure algorithm is proposed for efficient localization of pressure reducing valve. Multiobjective genetic algorithm (NSGA-II) is used for finding out the optimized operational control setting of the pressure reducing valve for leakage minimization. The proposed algorithm leads to better leakage reduction of 20.81% in modified benchmark WDS, with a reduced number of the pressure reducing valves. Constraints such as maintaining lower hydraulic failure index (<0.01), emergency water storage, etc. is also considered. It can be concluded that the proposed hybrid leakage reduction technique provides efficient as well as cost-effective solution for leakage control.     

Automated Framework for Water Looped Network Equilibrium

In this paper, a novel algorithm is proposed for balancing water looped network in steady state through a fully automated general framework of hydraulic networks regardless of their topological complexity. The model is developed by combining the following two steps, firstly a set of independent loops are identified based on a graph theoretical analysis in a looped network. Further the second step is devoted to the equilibrium process by determining the flow rate distribution within the network ducts and the pressure in the delivery nodes. The above such equilibrium process gives rise to a system of non linear algebraic equations which are solved numerically using both Hardy Cross (HC) and Newton Raphson (NR) methods. In HC method, the flow correction term is modified and a generalized expression is given to consider various possibilities of independent loops selection. Some real networks topologies that were commonly used as benchmarks, for testing various independent loops selection algorithms, are taken as case studies to apply the general automatic framework for hydraulic network analysis. Such network analysis enhances proving the applicability as well as the effectiveness of the proposed approach. Also, during the equilibrium procedure, it is proved that NR method is capable of producing accurate results and it converges more rapidly comparing to the widely used HC method. Moreover, it is demonstrated that NR’s iterative process, contrary to HC’s one, converges to reliable results even with a choice of random initial flow rates which makes a NR algorithm quite simple to implement without affecting the accuracy of the results.     

基于适应性管理的水污染生态补偿体系框架

生态补偿作为水污染控制与管理的手段之一,可以有效减少排污现象,提高水资源的利用效率。基于法律、环境以及经济学角度对水污染生态补偿内涵进行了研究,运用系统工程理论与方法研究水污染生态补偿系统的构成要素与结构,分析该补偿系统的复杂性,并基于应对复杂性和不确定性问题的适应性管理理论,构建了包括前提条件、主体、手段以及载体的水污染生态补偿适应性管理体系框架。通过该适应性管理框架,可以辨识该补偿系统中各参与主体的微观行为机理,调动其积极性,协调相互之间的关系,提高整个系统的学习能力与适应能力,从而合理制定补偿方案,提高水污染治理的效率与效果。     

A Pipe Ranking Method for Water Distribution Network Resilience Assessment Based on Graph-Theory Metrics Aggregated Through Bayesian Belief Networks

Water Resources Management - The resilience assessment is crucial for many infrastructures, including water supply and distribution networks. In particular, the identification of the...     

基于人工神经网络模型的地下水水位动态变化模拟

地下水水位的预测在流域地表水和地下水资源的综合规划管理中起着非常重要的作用。在该研究中,人工神经网络模型被应用于希尼尔水库周边地下水水位的预测中。采用研究区6口地下水观测井资料,用人工神经网络模型进行模拟预测1周后的地下水水位。模型输入因子包括此前1周蒸发量、水库水位、排渠水位、抽水量和观测井地下水位,因此模型有15个输入节点和6个输出节点。将3种不同的神经网络训练算法,即自适应学习速率动量梯度下降反向传播算法(GDX)、LM算法和贝叶斯正则化算法(BR)用于地下水水位预测,并对模拟结果进行了评估。结果表明:3种神经网络训练算法在研究区地下水水位预测中表现均较好。然而,BR算法的性能总体略优于GDX和LM算法。将BR算法训练的人工神经网络模型用于预测研究区未来2、3和4周的地下水水位,虽然地下水位预测的准确性随着时间的增加有所降低,但模拟效果仍然较好。     

A Selective Literature Review on Leak Management Techniques for Water Distribution System

Water Distribution System suffers from leakages causing social and economic costs. There is need of platform to manage water distribution system more efficiently by detecting, localizing and controlling the leakages even before or as soon as they occur, ensuring quality water services to the consumers. Since last two decades, high efforts have been made by researchers for the development of efficient leakage management techniques for reduction of water losses in distribution system. This paper provides a comprehensive analysis on leakage management techniques covering three aspects: leakage assessment, leakage detection and leakage control, with an objective to identify present challenges and future scope in their respected field. Role of smart water technologies for efficient leakages management in pipeline network is also examined and discussed. Conclusion is drawn regarding current leakage management techniques and proposals for future work and existing challenges are also outlined.     

Developing Strategies for Agricultural Water Management of Large Irrigation and Drainage Networks with Fuzzy MCDM

Sustainable water resources management aims at increasing the efficient use of water and achieving food security. This work proposes a generalized novel spatial fuzzy strategic planning (SFSP) in combination with multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) and a conceptual agricultural water use model for determining sustainable agricultural water management strategies. The proposed framework is applied to an irrigation and drainage network in Iran, which constitutes a large-scale water resource system. A spatial strength, weakness, opportunity, and threat (SWOT) analysis of internal and external factors related to agricultural water management is applied in this work. Possible water management strategies were ranked with the MCDM approach that combines the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) and the Fuzzy technique for order-preference by similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS). The AHP estimates the criteria weights and the TOPSIS model prioritizes the agricultural water management strategies. The results of SWOT analysis show that the final scores of the internal and external factors are equal to 2.9 and 2.73, respectively. Accordingly, the most attractive strategic type is a SO (aggressive) strategy, and a combination of structural and non-structural strategies (SO, ST, and WO strategies) are the top-ranked ones. Proposed strategies for water supply and demand management are the development and rehabilitation of the physical structure of water resources system of irrigation network, improvement of operation management and maintenance of water resources system, wastewater management, and inter-basin water transfer within the irrigation network. The results indicate that the total annual volume of agricultural water under normal conditions is about 1.8 billion cubic meters, of which about 1707 million cubic meters (95%) issue from surface water sources and 90 million cubic meters (5%) from groundwater sources. The proposed model and the calculated results provide viable and effective solutions for the implementation of sustainable management of water resources and consumption in large-scale water resources systems.

     

Integrated Approach for Supporting Sustainable Water Resources Management of Irrigation Based on the WEFN Framework

Irrigated agriculture plays a vital role for the socio-economic development of the Mediterranean area, although it has significant impacts on both water and energy resources. Therefore, in a context in which water resources are also experiencing increasing pressures, there is an urgent need for supporting their sustainable management. This may be an extremely challenging task, especially at the local scale, due to the several interconnected dynamics affecting the state of a complex irrigation system. In fact, multiple actors are involved in decision-making processes, and the use of natural resources (and their mutual interactions) strongly depends on their behaviors, which affect the system as a whole. In this context, the present study proposes an integrated methodology, based on the Water Energy Food Nexus (WEFN), specifically focused on the sustainable management of water resources for irrigation. Firstly, a model based on Causal Loop Diagrams (CLD) is developed in order to get a deep insight into the key dynamics behind a complex irrigation system. Secondly, three indices based on the “footprint” concept are identified, in order to synthesize such dynamics. The integration of these two approaches support investigating the whole system and, particularly, understanding the influence of multiple decisional actors on it, as well as the role of a set of key drivers and constraints. This might also allow drawing some relevant conclusions, useful for supporting effective decisions oriented to a sustainable water resources management. Specific reference is made to a case study, the Capitanata irrigation system, located in the Southern Italy.

     

A Neurofuzzy Decision Framework for the Management of Water Distribution Networks

Among the most important components of sustainable management strategies for water distribution networks is the ability to integrate risk analysis and asset management decision-support systems (DSS), as well as the ability to incorporate in the analysis financial and socio-political parameters that are associated with the networks in study. Presented herein is a neurofuzzy decision-support system for the performance of multi-factored risk-of-failure analysis and pipe asset management, as applied to urban water distribution networks. The study is based on two datasets (one from New York City and the other from the city of Limassol, Cyprus), analytical and numerical methods, and artificial intelligence techniques (artificial neural networks and fuzzy logic) that capture the underlying knowledge and transform the patterns of the network’s behaviour into a knowledge-repository and a DSS.     

A BIM-Based Safety Management Framework for Operation and Maintenance in Water Diversion Projects

Timely assessment of the structural safety status of water diversion projects and taking necessary preventive measures are the primary conditions to ensure the safe operation of large-scale diversion structures. This paper proposes an integrated visualization framework based on the Building Information Model (BIM) to support the safety management of water diversion projects. The framework integrates data collection, data analysis, warning issuance, and emergency disposal into an integrated platform, which improves the automation level of safety management and the efficiency of emergency response. On this basis, a prototype system is developed and implemented in a water diversion project in Henan Province, China. The prototype of the system can automatically evaluate the structural safety status of water diversion structures, issue corresponding warnings to managers, and provide visual prompts to support decision-making. The system prototype and its demonstration verify the applicability and effectiveness of the framework.

     

基于GIS的农村人饮供水管网信息系统设计

利用地理信息系统强大的数据查询功能、空间数据分析与处理功能、数据与图形的交互显示功能,以黄河流域某农村人饮供水管网为例,建立基于GIS的供水管网信息管理系统。该系统在一个数据库框架下建立12个图层,分别为供水点、已建泵站、新建泵站、已建蓄水池、新建蓄水池、干渠、已建管线、新建管线、移民项目区、支线、公路、边框。系统可完成供水信息统计、供水点按人口数分类显示、供水支线信息统计、供水支线信息分类管理、专题地图绘制等任务,能提高供水管网管理的质量和效率。     

An Integrated Framework to Evaluate Resilient-Sustainable Urban Drainage Management Plans Using a Combined-adaptive MCDM Technique

Due to the inevitability of urban flood in presence of the rainfalls exceeding design capacity of urban drainage system, resilience approach has been recently considered instead of the conventional urban drainage management. However, acceptance of resilience approach necessitates considering sustainability in the selection of urban drainage projects due to the various aspect of flood impacts. This paper presents a new integrated framework to show how urban drainage plans are resilient and sustainable. The framework consists of several indicators including technical, economic, social, environmental and planning aspects. On the other hand, the selection of suientropy of the probability distribution p _i . In fact, entropy reduces the effect of plan among available suggested plans is complicated in presence of multiplicity of the indicators. A new combined-adaptive multi criteria decision making technique including combination of Adaptive analytical hierarchical process, Entropy and TOPSIS is here introduced to facilitate the decision making process as well as dealing with uncertainties due to the subjective experts’ preferences. Moreover, presented framework are applied on a part of urban drainage system of Tehran, Capital City. Four urban drainage plans are designed and suggested to be evaluated along with existing system in terms of their sustainability and resilience. The results shows the presented framework provide comprehensive information regarding the behavior of the urban drainage plans against urban floods as well as their sustainability for urban managers. In addition, presented framework facilitates and accelerate the complicated process of decision making. Therefore, it can be employed as comprehensive decision support tool for resilient and sustainable urban drainage management.     

A Model-Based Bayesian Framework for Pipeline Leakage Enumeration and Location Estimation

Water Resources Management - With the development of cities, the water resources loss and environmental pollution caused by pipeline leakage need to be solved urgently. In this paper, a...     

The Implementation of a Bayesian Network for Watershed Management Decisions

Recently, the U.S. EPA issued the 303(d) list of impaired waters in Idaho State that contained the causes of impairment. This 303(d) list provides useful information that can be used to determine the Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs). Implementation of TMDLs should result in pollutant reductions, which, in turn can lead to the restoration of these water bodies. Flow alteration is one of the potential sources of impairments in the Big Lost River in south-central Idaho, which have some negative impacts on the water quality and beneficial uses. Flow in the Big Lost River is altered, both in quantity and quality, and this reduces recreation activities, affects the fish assemblage, and changes the composition and relative abundance of aquatic species. The effect of riparian vegetation is another factor that needs to be predicted. In addition, three conservation schemes (construction of upstream reservoirs, downstream reservoirs, and canal linings) were proposed to restore flow in the downstream reaches of the river and compensate for water loss during the low flood seasons. However, there is no single predictive model that can be used to appropriately represent each of these issues as management decisions. In this paper, an expert system in the form of a Bayesian network, a graphical diagram of nodes and arcs, was implemented to examine all significant water management variables and relationships among these variables. Lining the irrigation canals was found to be the best scheme, followed by constructing an upstream reservoir. The TMDLs would benefit the water quality in the watershed but would not significantly increase the water quantity and solve the flow alteration problem. Consequently, this can be used to determine the sequence of decisions that can be taken in the future.     

Functional Structure and Data Management of Urban Water Supply Network Based on GIS

This paper presents an urban water supply network system based on GIS technology. The system will adopt three-tier/N-tier architecture as the application logic structure. Thy system can be divided into six subsystems: the analysis subsystem, the aided design subsystem, the installation and maintenance management subsystem and the customer service subsystem serve data management subsystem. The data management of the system will adopt SuperMap. We present the details of the data management, such as basic data collection, structure framework of the basic geographic information bank, the process to construct GIS basic information bank of water supply network, data conversion and input into banks, data vectorization and input into banks, etc. Then the system database is designed in detail. We adopt object oriented analysis and design methods, and utilize Class Diagram of UML to represent the entity tables and their relations against the core data of the network system, that is spatial dictionary database and spatial database. According to Class Diagram, it can be directly mapped as the database structure and an example is given. Finally, the successful application of the system in Yiyang city of China is beneficial for water supply enterprises to utilize the existing water resource in time, rationally and effectively.