Understanding community receptivity to water re-use: Ku-ring-gai Council case study.

This social research project investigated community receptivity to using rainwater and greywater as alternative domestic water sources. It was focused in the Ku-ring-gai local government area in northern Sydney, and involved a household questionnaire followed by community leader interviews and resident focus groups. Trends, such as a prolonged drought and increasing population, compound the current crisis and concern facing Sydney's available water supply. Substitution of domestic potable water has been promoted as part of the solution. The research results revealed that community receptivity was highest for external uses, such as watering gardens and flushing toilets, and progressively decreased with increasing personal contact. Receptivity to greywater reuse fell more rapidly with the community believing there was a higher health risk associated with its use. Gender and cultural background were revealed as significant variables and give insight into the design of strategies to target these demographic groups. This evidence provides a reliable stocktake of current receptivity revealing that the community has good awareness and positive association with water reuse for many household activities. This now needs to be harnessed through programs targeted at developing skills, resources and motivation for new water reuse practices and technologies across diverse social groupings.     

Assessing and Modelling the Influence of Household Characteristics on Per Capita Water Consumption

Sustainable urban water supply management requires, ideally, accurate evidence based estimations on per capita consumption and a good understanding of the factors influencing the consumption. The information can then be used to achieve improved water demand forecasts. Water consumption patterns in the developed countries have been extensively investigated. However, very little is known for the developing world. This paper investigates per capita water consumption resulting from water use activities in different types of households typically found in urban areas of the developing world. A data collection programme was executed for 407 households to extract information on household characteristics, water user behaviour and intensity and the nature of indoor and outdoor water use activities. The rigorous statistical analysis of the data shows that per capita water consumption increases with income: 241, 272 and 290 l/capita/day for low, medium and high income households, respectively. Additionally, the results suggest that per capita consumption increases with the number of adult female members in the household and almost one-third of consumption is via taps. The collected data has been used to develop statistical models using two different regression techniques: multiple linear (STEPWISE) and evolutionary polynomial regression (EPR). The inclusion of demographic parameters in the developed models considerably improved the prediction accuracy. Two of the best performing models are used to forecast the water demand for the city, using four future scenarios: market forces, fortress world, policy reform and great transition. The results suggest that the domestic water demand would be highest in the fortress world scenario due to the increase in population and size of built-up area.     

Quantifying Household Water Demand: A Review of Theory and Practice in the UK

Socio-economic change, severe droughts, and environmental concerns focus attention on sustainability of water supplies and the ability of water utilities to meet levels of service. Traditionally, water management has been supply-side dominated and long-term demand forecasting has received relatively little attention. However, it is increasingly recognised that water demand management could be a ‘low regret’ adaptation measure (both financially and environmentally) given large uncertainties about future non-climate and climate pressures. This paper begins with a brief history of household water demand management in the UK. We then review approaches to water demand estimation and forecasting over the short- (daily to season) and long-term (years to decade) and note the paucity of studies on weather and climate. We discuss peak household water use behaviours identified from metering trials, micro-component diary-based studies, and statistical techniques for long-term demand forecasting. We refer to the Anglian Water Services (AWS) ‘Golden 100’ data to illustrate the significant practical and conceptual issues faced when mining household water use data for weather signals, especially when the data are noisy and originally intended for other applications. Further research is needed into the relationships between climate variables and household micro-component water use, especially for peak demands.     

Developing Novel Approaches to Tracking Domestic Water Demand Under Uncertainty—A Reflection on the “Up Scaling” of Social Science Approaches in the United Kingdom

Climate change, socio-demographic change and changing patterns of ordinary consumption are creating new and unpredictable pressures on urban water resources in the UK. While demand management is currently offered as a first option for managing supply/demand deficit, the uncertainties around demand and its’ potential trajectories are problematic for water resources research, planning and policy. In this article we review the ways in which particular branches of social science come together to offer a model of ‘distributed demand’ that helps explain these current and future uncertainties. We also identify potential strategies for tracking where the drivers of change for demand may lie. Rather than suggest an alternative ‘demand forecasting’ technique, we propose methodological approaches that ‘stretch out’ and ‘scale up’ proxy measures of demand to inform water resources planning and policy. These proxy measurements could act as ‘indictors of change’ to water demand at a population level that could then be used to inform research and policy strategies. We conclude by arguing for the need to recognise the co-production of demand futures and supply trajectories.     

Thai Rural Domestic Water Consumption: A Case Study of a Village Community With No Organized Water Supply System

ABSTRACT

Thai rural domestic water consumption of 282 households for 59 villages in Amphoe Nong Sua, Pathum Thani Province, Thailand, is examined in this study. The paper describes the pattern of rural domestic water use and evaluates the factors which affect per capita rural water consumption. Stepwise regression analysis was applied to assess the variables which were postulated to be associated with per capita rural water consumption. The variables that were found to be significantly associated with per capita rural water consumption were household size, average household age, level of education, average household income and number of baths per day.     

Water Consumption in the Kitchen – A Case Study in Four European Countries

As there is a limited availability of information on the domestic water consumption through kitchen taps, data collected in a study on dishwashing habits in four European countries has been analysed to gather common habits in the water end-use of households. This paper provides empirical data based on water consumption measurements in 81 households. With the help of a simultaneous webcam observation of the kitchen sink, it was possible to assign the metered consumption data to a specific water use, such as cleaning, drinking or cooking. Water end-use has been analysed with this approach at a very deep level. The study shows that there are, in some measure, large country-specific differences in diurnal water use, as well as in the composition of kitchen activities. Furthermore, the research findings indicate that small households use much more water per person and day than bigger households. This is rather important as demographic shifts are causing a decreased average household size - particularly in urban areas - and, therewith, a growing demand. Water-saving measures at the household and individual level should meet this trend. This paper, therefore, also provides information on to what extent particular kitchen tasks are influential for water consumption in the kitchen, respectively, which activities are important to concentrate on for consumer advice regarding water conservation.     

Factors Influencing Per Capita Water Consumption In Urban Areas Of Developing Countries And Their Implications For Management,With Special Reference To The Khartoum Metropolitan Area

ABSRTACT

The fast growing population in Third World countries and the limited physical resources in rural areas have led to the dramatic expansion of the urban areas of these countries. It is now recognized that when planning for the development of these areas, early consideration must be given to the difficulties and cost of providing potable water equitably to all users. Detailed studies are necessary for particular situations so as to provide a basis for better management practices.

Khartoum, a growing urban area in Sudan, has been chosen as a case study. A proposed framework and technique of analysis is shown. Factors influencingper capita consumption are correlated and mathematical models have been generated for the two distinct classifictions of consumers: (1) consumers with piped supply and (2) consumers obtaining water from water vendors or from standpipes (squatter settlements).

The most significant factors affecting the consumption appear in the fitted equations. Of these factors, the number of occupants in the household influences the per capita consumption but at a decreasing rate. Price has a significant impact on demand: price elasticities of about -0.60 and -0.78 are obtained for households with piped connections and squatter areas respectively. Water utility authorities can use price as a tool to ration or discourage water consumption in the piped connection households and to increase the rate of consumption in the squatter areas.     

Influence of disaster risk,exposure and water quality on vulnerability of surface water resources under a changing climate in the Haihe River basin

A function model was used to quantify the vulnerability of the Haihe River basin on the basis of sensitivity, adaptability of the water resources system, exposure and drought disaster risk. Surface water resources vulnerability was assessed for a benchmark year (2000) using the function and indicator models and for modelled future climate scenarios using only the function assessment model. In the results, surface water resources vulnerability was greater when exposure, disaster risk and water quality factors were considered. Both models gave the result that vulnerability of water resources in study area was high; all the regions were rated ‘highly’, ‘strongly’, or ‘extremely’ fragile.     

有闸控制湖泊分期分级旱限水位研究

干旱灾害是主要的自然灾害之一,严重影响了居民生活、工农业生产和生态环境用水安全.旱限水位是做好水源工程抗旱调度决策的重要依据.本文综合考虑湖泊上游来水、区间用水、通航等因素,提出了有闸控制湖泊分期旱限水位和旱枯水位的划分方法,并以女山湖为典型区域开展应用研究.结果表明:旱限水位和旱枯水位的划分基本符合女山湖的实际情况,...     

Adoption of More Technically Efficient Irrigation Systems as a Drought Response

Adoption of technically efficient irrigation systems can mitigate the effects of drought by allowing irrigators to maintain water consumption with reduced applications. This paper uses survey data from the worst drought in Colorado's history to examine how drought conditions affect the choice of irrigation system by irrigators. Results indicate that drought conditions did significantly increase the percentage of farms using more efficient sprinkler systems relative to gravity systems. The key factors affecting the decision were land tenure, farm scale and available water supply, suggesting that those enterprises with the most owned land, the highest number of acres and the most reliable water supplies are most likely to invest in more efficient irrigation systems during severe droughts.     

南水北调受水区生活用水影响因素与节水潜力

为持续推进水资源节约工作,保障南水北调受水区经济社会可持续发展,开展居民用水习惯问卷调查,分析 南水北调东线和中线受水区各省（直辖市）居民家庭用水现状及差异特点,识别生活用水的主要影响因素,设计节 水情景模拟家庭节水潜力。结果表明,受水区居民用水习惯呈现较明显的地域性差异,其中：天津市和河北省居 民整体节水意识较高,河南省和山东省现状人均日用水量比北京市、安徽省和江苏省低 12%;从用水行为上看,家 庭洗浴日均用水量浮动范围达 30%,是造成用水差异的主要环节。节水情景模拟结果显示,通过进一步提高居民 节水意识、替换高等级节水器具、增强家庭内部废水循环利用等措施,受水区居民人均日用水量可下降 12%～29%。根据受水区各省 (直辖市) 针对其生活用水特点,提出了进一步开展节水器具普及工作、完善节水管 理体制机制、提升居民节水意识以及合理利用废水等节水建议,因地制宜持续推进节水工作。     

Determinants of Water Connection Type and Ownership of Water-Using Appliances in Ireland

Developing optimal policies on management of water resources, investment in relevant infrastructure and the protection of the environment requires data on the current and likely future demand for water services. In jurisdictions without water metering, information on the factors influencing demand tends to be limited. Microdata from household surveys can provide some relevant information. Domestic water demand is influenced both by the number of households and their characteristics, in particular the extent to which they employ water-using appliances. This paper focuses on domestic ownership of water-using appliances in the Republic of Ireland, a country where rapid economic and demographic change have put pressure on water and sewerage infrastructure but where there is little domestic metering. Using a large household micro-dataset, we use regression analysis to examine the determinants of the water and sewage mains connection status of Irish homes and to identify the characteristics of households that are associated with having larger or smaller numbers of appliances. Our empirical results suggest that Ireland will have a rising share of mains water and sewerage connections in the future. Household income, house price, dwelling types other than ‘detached’, younger dwellings, and urban location are all positively associated with having a mains connection. The number of types of water-using appliance in a household is positively associated with income, house price, number of residents, owner-occupation, having children (or, to a lesser extent, multiple people) in the household, having a detached house, being located in a rural area and living in a dwelling built after 1997.     

A Methodology to Model Water Demand based on the Identification of Homogenous Client Segments. Application to the City of Barcelona

Water management has become a vital concern for both water supply companies and public administrations due to the importance of water for life and current scarcity in many areas. Studies exist that attempt to explain which factors influence water demand. In general, these studies are based on a small sample of consumers and they predict domestic water consumption using ordinary least squares regression models with a small number of socioeconomic variables as predictors, usually: price, population, population density, age, and nationality. We have followed a different approach in two ways; one, in the scope of the study: we have included in the study all consumers of the Barcelona area and as many socioeconomic variables as possible (all the available data from official statistics institutions); and also in the methodology: first, we have segmented clients into homogeneous socioeconomic groups that, as we show later in the Barcelona case, also have homogeneous water consumption habits. This allows for a better understanding of water consumption behaviours and also for better predictions through modeling water consumption in each segment. This is so because the segments’ inner variability is smaller than the general one; thus, the models have a smaller residual variance and allow for more accurate forecasts of water consumption. The methodology was applied to the Barcelona metropolitan area, where it was possible to construct a database including both water consumption and socioeconomic information with more than one million observations. Data quality was a primary concern, and thus a careful exploratory data analysis procedure led to a careful treatment of missing observations and to the detection and correction or removal of anomalies. This has resulted in a stable division of the one million water consumers into 6 homogeneous groups and models for each of the groups. Although the methodology has been developed and applied to the Barcelona area, it is general and thus can be applied to any other region or metropolitan area.     

大型灌区骨干水库分期旱限水位研究

水库作为常见的重要水利工程设施,在区域水资源承载力水量、水质、水生态和水流更新等要素调控中具有举足轻重的地位和作用,在降水径流减少的枯水季节显得尤其重要。旱限水位是水库在低水位调度运行的控制性特征水位,其合理设置与科学运用对区域水资源高效利用意义重大。为此以淠史杭灌区梅山水库的来水特性和用户需水特性为基础,首先采用Hausdorff维数分形方法划分了梅山水库入库径流干旱预警时段,进而通过不同水平年各预警期内来水、供水调节计算了初始旱限水位:旱警水位和旱枯水位,并以水库灌区水资源系统长系列模拟模型及优化模型为依托,优化确定了梅山水库不同预警期的旱限水位,最后分别从水库运行、灌区灌溉、生产生活供水、生态用水以及水力发电等多角度评估了旱限水位的合理性,为水利部门指导水库灌区抗旱运行,制订相应抗旱预案提供技术参考。     

Determinants of Small-Area Water Consumption for the City of Phoenix,Arizona

Rapid population growth in the face of an uncertain climate future challenges the desert city of Phoenix, Arizona to consume water more prudently. To better understand the demand side of this important issue, we identified the determinants of water consumption for detached single-family residential units using ordinary least squares regression (OLS). We compared the results from the OLS model to those of a geographically weighted regression (GWR) model to determine whether there are spatial effects above and beyond the effects of the OLS variables. Determinants of residential water demand reflect both indoor and outdoor use and include household size, the presence of swimming pools, lot size, and the prevalence of landscaping that requires a moist environment. Results confirm the statistical significance of household size, the presence of a pool, landscaping practices, and lot size. Improvement of the GWR over the OLS model suggests that there are spatial effects above and beyond the effects for household size and pools – two of the four determinants of water demand. This means that census tracts exhibit water consumption behavior similar to neighboring tracts for these two variables. Model parameters can be used to investigate the effects of policies designed to regulate lot size, pool construction, and landscaping practices on water consumption and to forecast water demand in areas of new construction.     

Drought Concepts and Characterization

Abstract

A better knowledge of droughts is required to improve water management in water scarce areas. To appropriately cope with droughts, there is the need to adopt adequate concepts relative to droughts and water scarcity, to properly use drought indices that help characterize them, including ones relative to their severity, and to develop prediction tools that may be useful for early warning and that may reduce the respective lead time needed for appropriate response. In this paper, concepts relative to drought and other water scarcity regimes are discussed aiming both to distinguish droughts from other water scarcity regimes and to base a common understanding of the general characteristics of droughts as hazards and disasters. Three main drought indices are described aiming at appropriate characterization of droughts: the theory of runs, the Palmer Drought Severity Index (PDSI), and the Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI). Their application to local and regional droughts in the region of Alentejo, Portugal is presented focusing on the respective comparison and possible adequateness for drought monitoring. Results indicate some difficulties in using the theory of runs, particularly because it requires a subjective definition of thresholds in precipitation and does not provide a standardized classification of severity. Results show that draught characterization with the PDSI and the SPI produce coherent information, but the PDSI is limited relative to the SPI because it requires more data to perform a soil water balance while the SPI needs only precipitation data, which are more easily available in numerous locations. It is concluded that adopting the SPI is appropriate, but there is advantage in combining different indices to characterize droughts.     

泉州市城镇居民综合生活需水预测方法研究

本文采用定额法、趋势分析法、年均增长率法、回归分析法等需水预测常用的方法,对泉州市城镇居民综合生活用水进行预测分析,经多种预测结果比较得出泉州市2030年城镇居民综合生活需水量为8.62亿m 3。其中定额法、回归分析法预测结果较好,趋势分析法和年均增长率法更常用于经济社会发展指标的预测。随着中国城镇化水平不断推进,居民综合生活用水量的影响愈加多元化、横向化,建立多元回归预测分析模型来预测用水量是很好的选择,该研究可为其他城市预测规划水平年居民生活用水量提供借鉴。     

旱灾的生态学影响因素——以云南省旱灾为例

介绍云南省水资源和旱灾情况,分析引起云南省旱灾的因素,认为造成云南省旱灾的客观因素和主观因素中,气候变化和地质状况等客观因素不是造成云南旱灾的罪魁祸首,只是在一定程度了加重了旱灾的灾情;而主观因素,如,云南省森林和湿地等生态系统遭到破坏,却一方面使旱季无涵养水源的补给,另一方面引起土壤侵蚀,造成水库泥沙淤积,有效库容减小,蓄水功能降低,它们才是云南省旱灾的主要原因。     

Re-Framing Environmental Social Science Research for Sustainable Water Management in a Changing Climate

This paper considers aspects of environmental social science research in the UK and explores an obvious bias towards the development of instruments to manage demand as an adaptation to climate change, and consequently the predominance of interest in the customer from a demand-side perspective. In the case of water, this has resulted in an inappropriate mixing of individualist research methods designed to measure public perceptions of risk and water-based practices, with mass consumption data that cannot be specifically linked to the individual. This mixing has a tendency to reinforce a long-standing blame culture that drives interest in the development of behaviour change initiatives while the relatively unchallenged hydraulic mission to provide safe drinking water and sanitation progresses. With this in mind this paper reviews examples of water use research from California, Australia, and the UK and highlights the more effective routes to understanding water customers and developing behaviour change initiatives that utilise stages of change models and grounded techniques incorporating qualitative and quantitative data from individual sources. A secondary aim is to argue for re-framing the relations between various actors in a changing climate to allow the development of new policy approaches, learning, and openness, from industry, regulators, and customers, based on new theories from the field.     

世界水危机及对策探讨

由于人口增长、水污染、跨国水体管理不善、水供需系统低效运行等因素的综合作用,世界人均可用淡水量正在持续下降,水资源短缺日趋严重。避免潜在的水危机需要我们用全新的思考方式和态度对待水问题,找到更科学、更高效、更完善的水的计划、生产、配置、节约和管理策略。介绍了目前世界淡水资源的可利用量、抽取和消耗状况;强调了促使未来水问题更加复杂化的一些主要因素;尝试性提供一些防治未来水危机和实现水可持续利用的综合性对策及建议。