UN “Beyond 2015 Website”
Sustainable Development Solutions Network
http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/beyond2015.shtml
From Water, Sanitation, Hygiene and Health Newsletter N° 158 / 10 August 2012:
A Manual for Economic Assessment of Drinking-water Interventions
This manual describes a practical technique for appraising or evaluating small-scale interventions that seek to provide safer and more accessible drinking-water to rural people. It complements the WHO/IWA publication Valuing Water, Valuing Livelihoods.
http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/publications/2012/economic_assessment_manual/en/
Tracking national financing to sanitation and drinking-water: A UN-Water GLAAS Working Paper
Just published, this full background document produced for the UN-Water Global Analysis and Assessment of Sanitation and Drinking-water reviews current experiences relating to tracking financial flows to WASH. It presents a methodological framework which provides a point of departure for global partners to develop and roll out an internationally agreed method. The full document is available here: http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/10665/75225/1/WHO_HSE_WSH_12.05_eng.pdf
From Sanitation Updates:
UNDP to establish Global Centre for Public Service Excellence in Singapore
Posted: 03 Jul 2012 09:27 AM PDT
6 years of school WASH research have come together!
Oxfam publishes advice on handling a cholera outbreak – but are we right?
Sustainable sanitation experts meet at the SWWW, 31 Aug and 1 Sept
WSSCC announces new Executive Director
Posted: 14 Aug 2012
Water and Sanitation in Schools: A Systematic Review of the Health and Educational Outcomes
WASHplus Weekly – Focus on Menstrual Hygiene Management
(with many further links)
Delegated management of water and sanitation services in urban areas: experiences from Kumasi, Ghana
Posted: 03 Aug 2012
A selection from email alerts:
WATER SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
VOL 66; NUMB 4 (2012)
ISSN 0273-1223
• pp.695-703
Nitrogen and phosphorus removal of locally adapted plant species used in constructed wetlands in China
Yu, X.; Konig, T.; Qi, Z.; Yongsheng, G.
Abstract
This paper assesses the nitrogen and phosphorus removal efficiency of seven plant species (Schoenoplectus lacustris, Vetiveria zizanioides, Acorus calamus, Canna indica, Zizania latifolia, Phragmites communis, and Iris pseudacorus) commonly used in constructed wetland systems in southern China. The investigation considers two aspects that are relevant to determine nutrient removal efficiency: plants biomass production and nutrient content in water effluent. Both assessments are correlated with each other. Three different hydraulic retention times with different nutrient loads have been applied in this ex-situ trial. The plants biomass production correlates positively with the effluents nutrient removal efficiency. Six out of seven species reviewed produce more biomass above ground than below ground (average: 67 of dried biomass in aerial part); only I. pseudacorus produces more biomass below ground. S. lacustris, V. zizanioides, I. pseudacorus, and C. indica have performed best in terms of nutrient removal efficiency (65.690.2 for nitrogen; 67.784.6 for phosphorus).
• pp.704-711
Integrated solutions for urban runoff pollution control in Brazilian metropolitan regions
Morihama, A.C.D.; Amaro, C.; Tominaga, E.N.S.; Yazaki, L.F.O.L.; Pereira, M.C.S.; Porto, M.F.A.; Muk
Abstract
One of the most important causes for poor water quality in urban rivers in Brazil is the low collection efficiency of the sewer system due to unforeseen interconnections with the stormwater drainage system. Since the beginning of the 20th century, Brazilian cities have adopted separate systems for sanitary sewers and stormwater runoff. Gradually these two systems became interconnected. A major challenge faced today by water managers in Brazil is to find efficient and low cost solutions to deal with this mixed system. The current situation poses an important threat to the improvement of the water quality in urban rivers and lakes. This article presents an evaluation of the water quality parameters and the diffuse pollution loads during rain events in the Pinheiros River, a tributary of the Tiet River in So Paulo. It also presents different types of integrated solutions for reducing the pollution impact of combined systems, based on the European experience in urban water management. An evaluation of their performance and a comparison with the separate system used in most Brazilian cities is also presented. The study is based on an extensive water quality monitoring program that was developed for a special investigation in the Pinheiros River and lasted 2.5 years. Samples were collected on a daily basis and water quality variables were analyzed on a daily, weekly or monthly basis. Two hundred water quality variables were monitored at 53 sampling points. During rain events, additional monitoring was carried out using an automated sampler. Pinheiros River is one of the most important rivers in the So Paulo Metropolitan Region and it is also a heavily polluted one.
• pp.858-864
Utilizing settling tests to design a conventional upflow settling tank modified with inclined plates
Saady, N.M.C.
Abstract
This paper examines the relationships between the turbidity removal efficiency (TRE), the surface overflow rate (SOR), and the detention time (Dt) in settling column and jar tests, as well as the performance of a conventional upflow settling tank modified with inclined plates in the upper zone. The experimental results showed that the SOR obtained from the flocculent settling column test can be increased by 30 and the corresponding Dt can be decreased by 75 with a variation in TRE of less than 7. The TRE of flocculent settling in the jar test coincided with the performance of the modified upflow settling tank, while the results of the settling column test were slightly different. For plain settling, the SOR obtained from jar and settling column tests should be divided by 3 and 2, respectively, before possible use in the design of the modified upflow settling tank. Two empirical models with 1.0 error in the TRE predictions were developed to facilitate the design of the modified upflow settling tank.
WATER RESOURCES MANAGEMENT -DORDRECHT-
VOL 26; NUMB 11 (2012)
ISSN 0920-4741
• pp.3153-3171
Water, People, and Sustainability—A Systems Framework for Analyzing and Assessing Water Governance Regimes
Wiek, A.; Larson, K. L.
Abstract:
Freshwater resources might become the most limited resource in the future due to rising demands, climate change, and the degradation of aquatic ecosystems. While the urgency of this challenge is uncontested, water governance regimes still struggle to employ suitable responses. They lack of: taking a comprehensive perspective on water systems; focusing on social actors, their actions, needs, intentions, and norms as drivers of water systems; engaging in a discourse on tangible goals to provide direction for governance efforts; and promoting a comprehensive perspective on water sustainability that equally recognizes depletion, justice, and livelihood issues in the long-term. We present an approach that intends to overcome these limitations by putting the focus on what people do with water, and why, along with the impacts of these doings. First, we outline an integrated approach to water governance regimes, and then, we present a holistic set of principles by which to evaluate sustainable water governance. Solution-oriented research applying this approach integrates natural sciences and engineering perspectives on water systems with social science studies on water governance, while also specifying and applying normative principles for water sustainability. The approach we develop herein can be used to reform and innovate existing water governance regimes as well as stimulate transformative governance research.
• pp.3251-3266
Learning from Collaborative Research in Water Management Practice
Raadgever, G. T.; Mostert, E.; Giesen, N. C.
Abstract:
In order to deal with complex water management problems, it is increasingly claimed that researchers should collaborate with authorities and other stakeholders. According to the literature, such collaboration can enhance cognitive learning about the issues at stake, but there is little empirical evidence for this. In this paper, we assess whether collaborative research leads to more cognitive learning, and which factors may influence this. We first develop a structured methodology for assessing cognitive learning and identifying potential factors. Next, we apply this methodology in a case study on groundwater management in Delft (The Netherlands) and one on long-term flood management in the Lower Rhine area (Germany and The Netherlands). Contrary to some of the literature, our findings indicate that only intensive collaboration enhances cognitive learning. Therefore, we recommend organizing collaborative research only when all intended participants are sufficiently motivated to collaborate and learn. For these cases, we recommend to organise 1) many meetings, 2) intensive discussion of perspectives, 3) active participation in the research, and 4) an equal input in and influence on the research process by all involved actors.
WATERLINES
VOL31 No 3 (JULY 2012)
Theme-Rural water supply
- Taking Stock: Rural water for all – the river may be wide but it can be crossed
pp. 165-169(5)
Author: Danert, Kerstin - District hand pump mechanics associations in Uganda for improved operation and maintenance of rural water-supply systems
pp. 170-183(14)
Authors: Nekesa, Jacinta; Kulanyi, Rashidah - Public-private partnerships in Madagascar: Increasing the sustainability of piped water-supply systems in rural towns
pp. 184-196(13)
Authors: Annis, Jonathan; Razafinjato, Gerald - Solar powered pumping technologies in rural water supply: Case study from Kunene region, Namibia
pp. 197-214(18)
Author: Hjalmarsdottir, Erla Hlin - Rural water usage in East Africa: Does collection effort really impact basic access?
pp. 215-225(11)
Authors: Mellor, Jonathan E.; Watkins, David W.; Mihelcic, James R. - The usage of urinals in Kenyan schools
pp. 226-239(14)
Authors: Freeman, Matthew C.; Snel, Marielle; Yousif, Mohamed El-Fatih; Gitahi, Samuel; Khan, Farooq; Wachira, Samuel; Krukkert, Ingeborg
WATER RESOURCES MANAGEMENT -DORDRECHT-
VOL 26; NUMB 12 (2012)
ISSN 0920-4741
• pp.3367-3378
Impacts and Implications of Major Changes Caused by the Three Gorges Dam in the Middle Reaches of the Yangtze River, China
Sun, Z.; Huang, Q.; Opp, C.; Hennig, T.; Marold, U.
Abstract:
The impoundment of the Three Gorges Dam (TGD) has disturbed the hydrological regime downstream and has directly affected the relationship between the Yangtze River and Dongting Lake. To trace the realistic and potential impacts, this paper examined the changes of the channel morphology and sedimentology caused by the TGD through a field survey on the channel cross-sections and then analyzed the impact on lake water level through BP neural networks. The possible impacts on inundation patterns in lake wetlands were studied based on the lake basin DEM. The results indicate that drastic sediment decline and severe channel erosion are putting considerable pressure on the river and lake. Changing river channels are evident in some monitoring cross-sections. Dongting Lake, for the first time, changed from trapping to supplying net sediment to the Yangtze River. During the water storage periods of the TGD, the water level decreased 2.03 m in 2006 and 2.11 m in 2009 at the outlet of the lake, with extreme decreases up to 3.30 m and 3.02 m, respectively. These changes have inevitably induced alterations in the inundation patterns of the lake wetlands, which in turn have disturbed the ecological function of lake wetlands as habitats for both migratory birds and aquatic fish. The serious droughts in Dongting Lake recent years were largely connected with the above changes. Therefore, proper attention should be paid to this occurrence.