Category: Water

“Water is essential for life and for all human activities but also for preserving the environment and its resources” (Benedini & Tsakiris, 2013). In many countries around the world water scarcity is a growing issue, with factors such as urbanisation, population increase, intensification of agriculture, and climate change putting increasing stress upon existing supply’s of fresh water. For much of human history, the focus of water management has been heavily upon issues regarding water quantity rather than water quality. It is only since the 1960s that concern for and understanding in water quality dynamics has began to play a bigger more important role in the assessment of fluvial systems (Abbasi & Tareen, 2012). In the present day, it can be said that water quality has acquired as much importance as water quantity. However, access to safe water for consumption and other uses is still not available to billions of people globally, with the United Nations estimating that 3,800 children die everyday as a result of unsafe water and lack of sanitation (Benedini & Tsakiris, 2013). This shows that much work is still needed on a global scale to address issues of water quality. The scientific field of water resources management is key to attaining the sustainability of water resources and the environment. This can be achieved through guided and efficient management of water resources development, usage and treatment (Benedini & Tsakiris, 2013). Despite the efforts in recent decades to publicise the vital importance of water quality, many fluvial systems in developed countries such as the UK are still subject to issues regarding water quality.

The Irwell catchment covers an area of 793km2 and is located in the south east of the North West River Basin District. It extends from the moors above Bacup to the Manchester Ship Canal. Predominantly rural areas are found to the north and west of the catchment, with the former industrial towns of Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Salford, and Manchester found in the southern and eastern reaches of the catchment. These urban areas make up roughly 30% of the total catchment area. Rapid industrial development, mainly in the late 19th century, resulted in many of the watercourses located in the Irwell catchment being heavily modified. A large proportion of the catchment is modified with walled banks, weirs, and culverts as a result (Environment Agency, 2009). Climate in the catchment area is wetter than the UK average, with 1,456 millimeters of rainfall per annum.

The River Irwell travels a distance of 63km from its source in Deerplay Moor, near Bacup at an altitude of 400 meters, to where it feeds into the Manchester Ship Canal. Downstream of its source the rivers Roch and Croal merge with the Irwell before it is further fed by the rivers Irk and Medlock once in Salford. This stretch of river forms the boundary between Manchester and Salford. From here it feeds into the Manchester Ship Canal, which is then joined by the discharge from the River Mersey as it travels towards the sea.

The river is split into the Upper Irwell and the Lower Irwell, with each area comprising of different topography as well as land use. In the Upper Irwell Pennine moorland, pasture, and steep sided valleys dominate, with improved pastures, rough grazing, and small settlements a little further south. The Lower Irwell flows through a landscape of low lying flatter land, much of which has been developed into heavily urbanized areas over the past few centuries. This high level of urbanization has resulted in the catchment being one of the least naturally wooded areas in the north west (Environment Agency, 2009). Despite this, there still remain multiple nature conservation sites of both national and international importance. These include 14 Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs) such as Nob End, Longworth Clough, Oak Field, and the Tonge River Section (Environment Agency, 2009).

The Irwell catchment is predominantly comprised of rocks dating from the Late Carboniferous period, during which deposits of mud and sand were laid down from the shallow sea that covered much of south-east Lancashire. A high proportion of the catchment is relatively impermeable, creating short lag times from rainfall to discharge, as only a small proportion filters into groundwater stores (Environment Agency, 2009). Glaciation during the Pleistocene period eroded much of the landscape, leading to the deposition of pebbles, boulder clay, and sand once the glaciers had retreated. Evidence of this glaciation can be seen in the Lower Irwell where fluvioglacial ridges were formed (Hindle, 2003). Well-developed peat bodies also occur in much of the Upper Irwell area.

Today the Irwell catchment is populated by over 2 million people, a mixture of recreational activities and industrial use occurs along much of its watercourses. Sewage and urban runoff arguably are responsible for the largest concern to river pollution, with outdated Victorian sewage systems still present in some of the catchment. Public water supply is sourced mainly from the Upper Irwell area, where multiple tributaries are extensively reservoired. While the Lower Irwell area is used predominantly for industrial usage.

“The Manchester urban area evolved rapidly in the early 19th century from a series of small towns to a major industrial conurbation with huge material flows and worldwide trade connections.” (Douglas et al., 2002). Rodgers (1987) describes Manchester as an urban prototype, being the first of a new generation of big industrial cities developed in the Western world. In order to understand and discuss present day water quality dynamics of the River Irwell, it is first key to note the expansive changes that have occurred in the Irwell catchment over the last few centuries.

The River Irwell was historically one of the main transport links in the North West of England, and in addition provided the main source of drinking water for Manchester and Lancashire until just over a century ago. This made it an invaluable resource both before, but especially during the onset of the Industrial Revolution in the 18th and 19th centuries. In Manchester and the surrounding areas this period saw rapid, and mainly unregulated expansion in both industries, and urban extent, as well as drastic increases in population. Factories and mills became common on the banks of the river, making use of the water not only as a resource, but also as a supply of both energy and transportation. Cotton mills made up a large proportion of this new industrial development, with Manchester becoming a global hub for cotton production. By 1835, 90% of the British cotton industry was concentrated in Manchester and surrounding areas (Douglas et al., 2002), peaking in 1853 when 108 cotton mills were active in the city. Lack of regulation and knowledge of water quality issues meant that large quantities of pollutants were discharged directly into the River Irwell and its tributaries. As a result of this the river became severely polluted, leading to negative implications not only upon the human population of the surrounding areas, but also upon plant and animal life depended upon the water source.

Appreciation and understanding of the importance of water quality has come a long way since the industrial revolution, as has the condition of the Irwell catchment. However the legacy of pollutants left behind from the industrial revolution still impacts upon the system today, along with new modern day pollution inputs that threaten to further degrade water quality in the Irwell Catchment.

Water is a vital part of the natural environment, as well as providing a multitude of goods and services to people and industries. Agriculture, manufacturing, ecosystem health, and leisure activities are but a few examples of why water is such an important commodity. The estimated value, provided by The Office for National Statistics, of freshwater services in the whole of the UK was £39.5 billion. The scientific field of water resources management has come a long way in recent decades. The importance of sustainability and the incorporation of it to management and policy decisions has played a key role in the development of the field. Sustainability, also referred to as sustainable development, has become a common term across the world, mainly since the release of the Bruntland Commission report in 1987 (World Commission on Environment and Development: Our common future, 1987). This report stated that “Sustainable Development aims at ensuring that humanity meets its present needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs” (Bruntland, 1987). This report helped to lay the foundations for much needed reform in the fields of environmental management and policy making.

It was until only a few decades ago that that governments and countries based their development upon an approach of single-purpose planning (Benedini & Tsakiris, 2013). This narrow-minded approach often meant that consequences in other sectors were seen resulting from decisions made in another. In the 1980s the definition of water resources management referred to all activities aiming to fulfil the present and future water requirements with water of sufficient quantity and appropriate quality (Benedini & Tsakiris, 2013). While this definition does consider the needs of the future helping to make decisions sustainable. It did not take into account the need for environmental protection. Instead its focus is upon meeting demands for water resources. It was in the late 1980s that individuals and governing bodies involved in the water sector (e.g. NGOs, scientists, policy makers, and stakeholders) began to incorporate a new approach of “integrated or comprehensive water resources management (IWRM) (Benedini & Tsakiris, 2013). This was an important step in the evolution of water resources management, and one that lead to the development of multi-objective management systems that incorporated economic, environmental, and social objectives. More importantly however, this change saw the inclusion of water quality in the management models for the first time (Quentin Grafton & Hussey, 2011). At first efforts to improve water quality were focused primarily on addressing the point sources of pollution to water courses (e.g. sewage treatments works or industrial discharge). However this approach has since developed into catchment-based approaches, where issues are researched and addressed in correlation with the catchment as a whole (Priestly & Barton, 2018). These developments have been integral to the evolution of water resources management, and in the present day it is now widely understood that activities and processes in the watershed are inherently linked together in a interconnected system of pressures and impacts (Benedini & Tsakiris, 2013). The modelling of these connections and how each variable reacts is therefore key to achieving a stable relationship between them.

In the UK, recent decades have seen the further development of many river corridors, both for commercial and residential usage. In addition to this the popularity of freshwater-based recreational activities has been increasing. The need for effective and sustainable multi-objective catchment management is therefore greater than ever. For the general public frequently exposed to freshwater sources, the implications of poor water quality can result in multiple negative health impacts. Humans in contact with polluted water are at risk of contracting bacterial, viral, or parasitic diseases. Diseases such as respiratory disease, cancer, diarrheal disease, neurological disorder and cardiovascular disease have all been linked to sources of polluted water (Ullah et al., 2014).

In 2000 the European Parliament and Councils Conciliation Committee came to an agreement setting out guidelines for the improvement of European water bodies. This provided a common international framework for water resources management and protection in Europe. From what had previously been a fragmented and inefficient policy area, this new integrated approach established river basin management systems tasked with the protection/ improvement of all aspects of the water environment (Priestly & Barton, 2018). This includes all rivers, lakes, estuaries, and coastal waters, as well as groundwater stores.

The classification of surface water status under the WFD is measured both by ecological and chemical status. The status is then categorised against a scale of high, good, moderate, poor, and bad. Ecological status is assessed using three criteria, biological quality (composition and abundance of freshwater species), hydromorphological quality (river continuity, channel patterns, dynamics of flow or substrate of the river bed), and physico-chemical quality (temperature, oxygenation, pH, nutrient conditions and the concentrations of specific pollutants). Chemical status is assessed by reference to environmental quality standards for chemical substances at European level. This comprises of specific or priority pollutants set out by the EU, along with maximum annual average concentrations for each pollutant. The WFD works so that if just a single section of a water body fails on any of these criteria, the water body will fail to achieve/ lose good status.

River Basin Management Plans (RBMPs) are another aspect of the WFD. RBMPs must be created for each river basin district, where objectives are then set for the water bodies contained within, as well as a plan set out for the measures needed to achieve them. The UK contains 16 river basin districts, with these all subject to corresponding RBMPs. The RBMPs must be updated every 6 years, with the first cycle occurring between 2009-2014, and the current cycle occurring between 2015-2021.

The initial aim of the WFD required all member states to achieve ‘good’ status in all water bodies by 2015. However this deadline was not met by the UK, as well as many other member states, with the WFD realising that due to a multitude of specific and limiting circumstances it was unrealistic that the targets would be met. Instead waivers to the deadline were allowed in the form of either extensions, or the adaption of objectives to meet lesser targets. The extension of these deadlines comes with the application of new planned objectives for the achievement of ‘good’ status. Only a further two cycles of RBMPs are allowed from the initial deadline of 2015 to achieve the required status, given that there are no exceptional conditions that prohibit the achievement of these goals within the time limit. Therefore, 2027 is now the new proposed deadline for the achievement of ‘good’ water status in all UK water bodies.

A report by the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) in 2018 reported that in 2017, UK surface water bodies had achieved statuses of 5% high, 30% good, 47% moderate, 14% poor, and 3% bad (JNCC, 2018). While improvements in this classification have been notable since the beginning of the WFD, a small decrease was seen between 2012 and 2017 in the total number of water bodies in the UK achieving high or good status. 36% achieved this in 2012, compared to the 35% seen in 2017 (JNCC, 2018). The issue for the UK, as well as other member states enrolled in the WFD, is attempting to balance the achievement of water quality objectives, while accepting that for some of the water bodies within the country, the achievement of the same aims are unattainable within time limits set. The Defra Secretary of State voiced this issue in 2018, stating that due to high pressure from industry, human population, and agriculture, as well as the legacy of watercourse modification, around one quarter of England’s water bodies would not be able to achieve good status by 2027 (Environmental Audit Committee, 2018). Due to this, lower objectives have been set for these water bodies where technical feasibility or disproportionate costs limit their ability to achieve good status. It was also stated that due to the ambitious aims of the WFD, and the heavily modified state of may water courses within the EU, there will be pressure upon the EU Commission to revise or extend the current deadline and subsequent objectives that are set to be achieved by 2027 (Environmental Audit Committee, 2018). A more realistic estimate of what can be achieved by 2027, is the achievement of good status for 75% of UK waters, taking into account the factors discussed above.

It is also important to note that in the context of Brexit, the government has stated that it will not weaken any environmental protection guidelines currently in place within the EU framework. Any EU environmental requirements will be transferred to domestic UK law following exit from the EU. In 2018, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) published the 25 Year Environment Plan, which proposes the government’s long-term plans for the improvement of the environment. Within this, similar to what is currently deemed achievable within the WFD, is the aim for England to have achieved the restoration of at least 75% of waters to as close to their natural state as possible (Defra, 2018). This plan sets out how the government plans to continue achieving the commitments currently made within the WFD. It plans to achieve this through: reducing damaging abstractions of water from rivers and groundwater, achieving or surpassing objectives for rivers, lakes, coastal and groundwater’s that are protected for biodiversity or drinking water, supporting OFWAT’s targets for the reduction of leakage in the water industry, and reducing as much as possible by 2030 the concentrations of harmful bacteria in designated bathing waters (Defra, 2018).

Pollution is defined as the contamination of water, land, or air by substances that can adversely impact the environment and human health (American Heritage Dictionary, 1982). Or as Holdgate (1979) more simplistically describes it as “something in the wrong place at the wrong time in the wrong quantity”. Pollutants can be introduced into river systems through a highly diverse range of sources. These include domestic sewage, urban runoff, industrial effluent, and agricultural runoff/ waste. Two different categories of sources can be defined when studying pollution, diffuse sources, and point sources. Diffuse sources are where no specific point of discharge can be determined, and are often active over large geographical areas making them difficult to manage. While point sources, under the definition of Hill (1997), are “any single identifiable source of pollution from which pollutants are discharged, such as a pipe, ditch, ship or factory smokestack”. Both point and diffuse sources of pollution are responsible for the contamination of surface water bodies in the UK. The most common sources of point source pollution are discharge from factories and sewage treatment plants. Some examples of factories often responsible for discharging polluting effluents include textile factories, oil refineries, car manufacturers, and paper mills. While some factories treat waste products before they are discharged, others discharge effluents directly into river systems, resulting in high concentrations of contaminants. Sewage treatment plants are responsible for the treatment of human waste. Although treatment means the resulting effluent is markedly better than raw sewage, unnaturally high levels of contaminants still results from the eventual discharge into watercourses. Both factories and sewage treatment plants in some instances also dispose of their waste by mixing it with urban runoff in a combined sewer system (National Ocean Service, 2017). Urban runoff is storm water trapped on the surface due to impermeable surfaces. This runoff in turn is responsible for the transportation of pollutants from road surfaces, construction sites etc. into sewer systems. During periods of excessive rainfall, combined sewer systems can become overburdened with the volume of water. Once they surpass capacity, a mixture of the urban runoff and raw sewage overflows from the system, getting transported directly into the closest water body before it is treated (National Ocean Service, 2017). These instances, while much of the pollutant load is from a diffuse area, are defined as point source pollution due to the nature of the input into watercourses.

A report by the Environment Agency in 2018 (‘The state of the environment: water quality’) assessed which current pressures upon water quality are the largest contributors to poor water quality in the UK. They concluded the three main sources as being: diffuse pollution from towns, cities, transport, and rural areas; pollution from waste water; and runoff from abandoned mines (Environment Agency, 2018). They also concluded that the main activities currently preventing UK water bodies from reaching good status were:

• “Agriculture and rural land management (31% of reasons for water bodies not achieving good status)
• The water industry (28%)
• Urban and transport (13%)” (p. 9)

Agricultural Diffuse Pollution and Nutrients:

Diffuse sources of pollution are far harder to monitor and manage than point source pollution. Globally, agriculture is one of the main sources of diffuse water pollution, contributing a diverse range of pollutants to surface water bodies (Priestly & Barton, 2018). Among the most common of these pollutants is nutrients (e.g. nitrogen and phosphorus), pesticides, and sediment. Implications to the environment from agricultural diffuse pollution are often slow to appear, meaning that issues can develop in the long term (Baldock, 1992). Significant pollution incidents reported by the Environment Agency in 2018 suggest that agriculture is the greatest contributor responsible. The effects of this pollution can be highly damaging, however the overall number of water pollution incidents has been reducing in recent years, falling two-thirds between 2001 and 2016 (Environment Agency, 2018). The mobilisation of pollutants from agricultural land is linked to numerous factors, such as land use, soil texture/ composition, fertilisation, crop rotation, and effluent disposal (Vinten & Smith, 1993). It is possible that agricultural intensification as a result of increasing population growth in the UK could reverse the trends seen in recent years. Increasing inputs of nutrients, along with other agricultural effluents into water bodies poses a serious threat to the health of UK water bodies. In order to combat this, The Reduction and Prevention of Agricultural Diffuse Pollution (England) Regulations 2018 has been set out, and came into effect in April 2018. This new set of guidelines aims to encourage good farming practices, such as steps to prevent manure and fertiliser from entering water bodies (Environment Agency, 2018). In addition to this, Defra does provide a level of financial assistance to farmers, to help them reduces levels of pollution on their land.

Nutrient pollution can have serious implications upon water bodies and their ability to provide their services, both in terms of human use as well as for the surrounding ecosystems. Braga et al. (2000) states that the main contributors to nutrient pollution are derived from domestic and industrial waste, agricultural practices, and nitrogen deposited from the atmosphere. Infiltration of nutrients into surface water bodies can come from both diffuse and point sources, which makes the monitoring and management of nutrient pollution difficult. The main problem arising from excess nutrients in water bodies is the onset of a process called eutrophication. Nixon (1995) defined eutrophication as “the processes of increased organic enrichment of an ecosystem, generally through increased nutrient input”. This process results in the excessive growth of algae (algal blooms), and plants, which in turn uses up large amounts of oxygen creating dangerously low levels for other organisms present in the water body. While eutrophication does occur naturally, its occurrence and severity has been greatly increased through anthropogenic activities. High levels of nutrient inputs into water bodies can lead to the negative impacts such as the depletion of drinking water supplies, the onset of eutrophication, and subsequent damage to water ecology as a result of the algal blooms created. The highest levels of nutrient inputs into surface water bodies often comes from lowland environments, where high population densities and intensive agricultural practices are found (Neal et al., 2008).

In the UK, the main nutrients that affect water quality are phosphorus and nitrates. Monitoring published in the 2018 report by the Environment Agency, found that phosphorus was the most common reason for rivers failing to achieve good status in 2016. They found that out of the assessed freshwater bodies in England, 55% were at less than good status in terms of concentrations of phosphorus. The potential implications of this pollution was also found, with 56% of the same water bodies deemed to be at less than good status for plants and algae (Environment Agency, 2018). Phosphorus is the main cause of eutrophication in English rivers and lakes, with sewage effluent and runoff from agricultural land being the main sources contributing to pollution. UK concentrations of phosphorus in rivers has been falling since the mid 1990s, with the decrease closely attributed to improvements made to sewage treatment works (Environment Agency, 2018). The primary source of nitrates in the UK comes from agricultural land. Runoff processes transport nitrates to watercourses after they are applied to agricultural land for the enhancement of crop yields. Since 2000 slight declines in nitrate levels in UK rivers has been seen (Environment Agency, 2018). The Nitrates Directive 1991, was set out in order to attempt to reduce the input of nitrates into water bodies from diffuse agricultural sources. This directive, implemented by the Nitrate Pollution Prevention Regulations, required member states to identify nitrate vulnerable zones (NVZs), being areas of land that drain into water bodies currently polluted by nitrates (Priestly & Barton, 2018). These zones at present incorporate 58% of England. Objectives and plans for their achievement are to be devised for each of these NVZs, with good agricultural practises key to achieving any aims set.

Potential hydrogen (pH) is a measure of the concentration of hydrogen ions in water. Put more simply, it is a measure of acidity and alkalinity of water. The logarithmic scale varies from 14 (highly alkaline), to 0 (highly acidic), with a change in one unit representing a ten-fold change H+ ion concentration (Ward & Robinson, 2000).

The beginning of 2022 on 01.01.2022 is the first day of the beginning of 2022. Fraser Hill is located above the Titiwangsa range with a cooling temperature of 17 degrees celsius to degrees celsius On 01.01.2022 is a public holiday for all Malaysians. On that day, I and my family, father, mother, sister, and brother were. We had discussed going to the waterfall two days before going to the place we wanted to go. I and my family went to Fraser Hill waterfall, Pahang Malaysia. We went there on a ride in dad’s new car.

By the time we got to the place, people had arrived because it was a holiday. I and my family kept looking for a suitable place to put food and carry-on items. The atmosphere at the waterfall was very lively. The scenery at the waterfall was very beautiful. The water there is very clear and desirable, and the air there is also very comfortable. I can see much colorful little fish swimming in the water freely. The 6-meter high waterfall has a natural pool area and is ideal for children to play. Moreover, as soon as we put the things away, our children continued to have fun in the water even though some were shivering from the cold. Although the waterfall was a bit deep, the presence of several other groups of visitors at that time made me not feel lonely and isolated. The area to put picnic items is quite limited however we were lucky to get a beautiful spot by the water. Glad our kids came to eat and play.

After eating, my siblings and I strolled around the waterfall area. there are various types of beautiful and unique flora. We have taken the opportunity to take pictures there as memories. Even though the waterfall is not heavy, with its relatively high position of about 50 meters, it makes the waterfall spill very looking, in addition when shot by sunlight.

Not only is the river water clean and cool, but the area is also full of greenery and quite soothing. The area also has facilities such as food stalls, prayer rooms, bathrooms, and toilets. Its falling waterfall is like a raindrop that falls like a raindrop and when light penetrates it makes it like a falling pearl. The situation left visitors so restless that some did not seem to want to go home and enjoy the dishes prepared.

As the sun was setting, we packed up to go home. I felt very reluctant to leave the waterfall. However, dad promised to take us to Fraser hill falls again in the future. Beautiful walkways are built along the waterfall area. There is a suspension bridge that spans the waterfall. Several rest huts for family picnics are also available. Even by the waterfall pool, tents can be set up to store items and copy clothes. Visitors can spread mats and picnic by the waterfall. A refreshing cool waterfall bath. To reach the foot of the impressive waterfall, visitors have to climb the hill but the journey is not difficult. The feeling of tiredness when climbing the hill may not be felt when seeing the greenery in the surrounding area that will make you feel like you are in your own small world the trees around and from the top of the waterfall make the area quite beautiful.

is a concept by James Renée Black. It refers to our daily activities that include drinking, bathing, and other uses of water. All living things need water for basic survival; we live, feed, and breed in environments with limited sources of clean water. Living things use this water for many daily functions. For example, the body cannot survive devoid of food and other resources. Without it, our vital organs could not function properly. As our health progresses, it requires more water. And so, as humans, we have evolved a range of needs including access to safe and sustainable water for survival. We also have learned how to live with less water, and how to conserve and reuse available water resources. The following article describes how these water resources contribute to the health and well-being of individuals in developing nations.

Water is important for life on earth. Almost every cell relies on water for its metabolic activity, cellular respiration, photosynthesis, and growth. However, too much or not enough water can cause severe consequences. If it’s not readily accessed or supplied, the cells will stop working. People do often lack adequate water for bathing and washing their hands. In some parts of Africa, the population has no means of proper sanitation. With poverty, there are only two options for people who seek them. Either they go hungry on the streets in hopes of finding something else, or they get into prostitution and sell their bodies to buy some. In a desperate state of mind, the choice is obvious: they either become a prostitute or they stay stuck in an un-safer life.

Water supply is essential for agriculture. Agriculture is one of the major drivers of economic development. It accounts for almost half of the world’s GDP (gross domestic product) and over 80% of total employment. Food production is crucial for most livelihoods. Today, nearly 75% of the global population needs water for irrigation and farming to grow. Only about 22% have access to fresh water for their agricultural activities. While in the past, agriculture was widely used in African countries, today there is very little access to land for cultivation. Agricultural lands are scarce in both quantity and quality. There is growing evidence indicating that climate change can be harmful to crops causing famine and dry spells.

The relationship between land and water is complex, but increasingly we see how much water-dependent land and land-based activities are linked and interdependent. Some studies have found links between agricultural runoff water and deforestation, and others see the opposite link. This makes the question of what role water plays and whether it can be improved. One interesting trend I noticed with my work is that while many researchers continue researching and publishing research related to freshwater resource management, few actually delve deeper than just a handful of key topics. A good example of this is the recent study conducted by Dr. Charles Pollard at Pennsylvania State University (PSU). Pollard’s paper was published last year “Water Risk Assessment: Managing Water Resources in Developing Countries” where he discusses how local ecosystems may be changing due to the increasing amounts of runoff and water pollution from agricultural areas and industrial mining. His discussion centers around rural and urban communities using natural resources in developed countries. To better understand his discussion, we must review the current ways in which environmental issues affect the way that people live in developing nations.

People are becoming aware of climate change, one of the biggest crises on Earth. They are also realizing the importance of protecting the environment. An increased amount and type of rainfall is leading to an increase in surface water in several continents and affecting the ability of animals to swim, fish to swim, and amphibians to move around in the water. Due to climate changes, sea levels are rising, and as such, large parts of coastal regions, which in turn will lead to increased flooding of towns and villages. When an individual lives in a place like India, where it rains all day long and never really seems to deplete, one should also consider how vulnerable they will be too extreme weather events. Climate change, combined with rapid population growth and urbanization, is making many communities extremely vulnerable. Thus, environmental protection is an urgent concern.

I can’t imagine ever going through life without water. Every single one of us is affected by it in one way or another. When the water level falls in your lakes, you may notice a significant difference. Likewise, when the temperature rises, the water will slowly evaporate off and cause you to lose your ice cover. This is especially true for those areas that are experiencing drought, or an emergency situation such as having floodwaters coming after a heavy downpour or strong wind. Unless we adapt and learn how to cope with new water-related risks, communities like Indian society will continuously struggle to make ends meet with inadequate access to clean water. Our future depends on how we manage the water of the planet.

Introduction

Water is a transparent and colorless inorganic substance mainly composed of hydrogen and oxygen (Marques, de Matos Jorge, and Jorge, 2016). According to Marques, water exists in a solid, liquid, and gaseous state, and forms the main component of the earth’s hydrosphere. Interestingly, 97% of the water on the earth’s surface is salty, and only 3% of the water on the earth’s surface is fresh and usable. Quoting Marques, 2% of earth’s freshwater is in ‘glaciers and caps as solid ice. This means that only 1% of freshwater is available for agricultural, industrial, and household purposes. This academic paper provides a detailed analysis of the chemical characteristics of water and the biological role of each characteristic in sustaining life.

Chemical characteristics of water:

(a) Water as a polar substance

According to Al-Mashagbah (2015), each water molecule is made up of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom held together by covalent bonds. In the formation of this molecule, the oxygen atom has 6 electrons from its outermost electron shell, which are shared in two places with two hydrogen atoms. During sharing, slightly positively charged hydrogen atoms are attracted to the negative oxygen atoms. This attraction leads to the formation of hydrogen bonds. The hydrogen bond in water molecules is the key reason why water has a high boiling point when compared to other chemical substances with the same molecular mass.

Despite the overall neutral charge of the water molecules, there is a small distribution of both positive and negative charges on the outside of each water molecule. According to Al-Mashagbah (2015), the distribution of these charges is the reason behind the polarity characteristic. Water is a polar substance because it can be attracted to both positive and negative charges in solutes. For example, when water reacts with sodium chloride, the water molecules surround both sodium ions and chloride ions in a process known as solvation. Water being a polar substance will only dissolve polar substances. This means substances that do not ionize in water are non-polar and cannot dissolve in water.

(b) Latent heat of vaporization of water

According to Tanvir, Jain, and Qiao (2015), an increase in temperature within the water molecules lead to an increase in the absorption of heat energy. This rise in temperature leads to a breakdown of hydrogen bonds giving room to the free movement of water molecules. To speed up this movement of molecules, a lot of heat energy is required. For instance, to convert liquid water into vapor, sufficient heat energy must be supplied to increase the movement of water molecules, and to allow the evaporation of water molecules from the surface of liquid water. This high energy requirement in changing from one state to another explains why water has a high latent heat of vaporization.

(c) Cohesive forces of water

The cohesive force of attraction is a liquid property where molecules of the same kind stick together because of mutual attraction (Ji et al., 2015). In solid water, these forces are evident despite the formation of hydrogen bonds at relatively greater distances. Ideally, water molecules intertwine to form six-sided hexagonal shapes. Each oxygen in the water molecule alternate above and below the water molecule ring forming a flat sheet. These flat hexagons extend beyond the plane towards the front and backside, creating a large sheet of hexagons (Ji et al., 2015). This chemical property describes the formation of an open structure, similar to a honeycomb, in ice explaining the reduced density of water in the solid state.

The biological functions of the chemical properties of water:

(a) Water as a polar solvent

Water is the main component in all living organisms and accounts for 75% of total body mass (Tros et al., 2017). Water is involved in almost all biochemical reactions within the living cell. For instance, water is an essential component in the hydrolysis and condensation reactions, which involves the addition and removal of water. Water is also important in photosynthetic light-dependent reactions, which are the main source of energy. As a polar solvent, water can dissolve a wide range of inorganic and biological chemicals into solutions, which can easily be transported within a cell. In particular, the polar character of water is responsible for dissolving sugars, polar molecules, and salt compounds in both plants and animals (Tros et al., 2017). Notably, the hydrogen bonds responsible for water polarity are common in all living organisms. For example, hydrogen bonds are found in DNA, which is responsible for guiding the genetic instructions and the coding of proteins within the cells.

(b) Thermoregulation function of water

High heat capacity is the other chemical property of water (Tros et al., 2017). The heat capacity of water is relatively higher than other substances of similar nature. This quantity of heat is essential in raising the temperature within living cells. According to Tros, the specific heat capacity of water is one calorie per gram. This property makes water resist sudden fluctuations in temperature, which makes water an exceptional habitat for organisms living in an environment that experiences temperature fluxes. Moreover considering that many living cells comprise a relatively higher percentage of water, the high heat capacity of water enables living organisms to regulate their body temperatures effectively. For example, the body temperature of a polar bear is different from the external temperature because the heat capacity of water is used to distribute heat within the body leading to an even body temperature.

(c) Insulation and transport functions of water

According to Al-Mashagbah (2015), hydrogen bonds are responsible for providing water molecules with surface tension and cohesive forces. The cohesive property of water is responsible for the transportation of water in the xylem vessels. Without this property, it would be impossible to transport mineral salts from the soil up to the plant. According to Al-Mashagbah (2015), the cohesive property is also responsible for the surface tension in water. This feature is crucial because it enables insects to walk on water, enabling them to colonize both aquatic and terrestrial habitats. Ice has an unusually lower density when compared to liquid water. This property makes ice float on water-insulating lakes and ponds from low temperatures below 4 degrees Celsius.

Conclusion

Each water molecule is made up of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom held together by hydrogen bonds. Some of the chemical properties of water include the ability to combine with polar substances, high latent heat of vaporization, low density in the solid state, and the ability to form cohesive forces. The biological functions associated with these chemical properties include thermoregulation of body temperatures, insulation against cold temperatures, transportation as well as the ability to dissolve a wide range of chemical compounds. Without a doubt, water is life.

Reference List

1. Al-Mashagbah, A., 2015. Assessment of surface water quality of king Abdullah canal, using physicochemical characteristics and water quality index, Jordan. Journal of Water Resource and Protection, 07(04), pp.339-352.
2. Ji, K., Rui, X., Li, L., Leblond, A. and McClure, G., 2015. A novel ice-shedding model for overhead power line conductors with the consideration of adhesive/cohesive forces. Computers & Structures, 157, pp.153-164.
3. Marques, B., de Matos Jorge, L. and Jorge, R., 2016. Chemical properties and water absorption kinetics of transgenic corn grain (2B587 Hx) and its conventional isoline (2B587). Journal of Cereal Science, 71, pp.93-98.
4. Tanvir, S., Jain, S. and Qiao, L., 2015. Latent heat of vaporization of nanofluids: measurements and molecular dynamics simulations. Journal of Applied Physics, 118(1), p.014902.
5. Tros, M., Zheng, L., Hunger, J., Bonn, M., Bonn, D., Smits, G. and Woutersen, S., 2017. Picosecond orientational dynamics of water in living cells. Nature Communications, 8(1).

Pakistan is facing a lot of water shortage that is going to break the limit in the country in the coming years. Recently, the Indus River System Authority highlighted that the Indus irrigation system was the world’s largest irrigation system for the summer season but because of the crisis it was critical and it had delayed the growing of the country’s main cash crops which includes cotton as well. Pakistan’s water demand increased from 1990 to 2013. Pakistan is right now at an emergency stage because of water crisis the glaciers are melting and the crisis of water is at an alarming rate according to the resources the availability of water has decreased a lot like per person since 1951. Just because of the lack of reservoirs, Pakistan is losing its market value in an economy of about 10 billion RS per annum and it is a high period to take the issue of water shortage as a matter of death and life just for the sake of the economy of Pakistan. Finally, we recommend that the government has to take some action on this matter they have to make dams and should improve canal water supply management to save the future of Pakistani people.

Introduction

When someone cannot access clean water for drinking that person is called water insecure but when a majority of people in a city started being water insecure for a long time then the city is called water scarce. Water scarcity does not have an easy definition but it is one the most disastrous realities that’s going to be done shortly and will be faced by mankind if they do not understand the value of water.

The scarcity of water can be called a water shortage, or water crisis. There are several reasons for the water shortage it may occur due to climate change for example floods, weather, or increased pollution last but not least the overuse of water by humans.

The reason behind conducting the research is to make a public service awareness short film. There are different emotions and different treatment when it comes to social awareness films so in this whole report I am going to look into different academic journals and articles to collect information regarding different techniques moods and emotions for a public service message.

Water shortage in Pakistan

Pakistan stands amongst those countries that have negative consequences due to un conditional climate change. Pakistan is the 9th largest country in the world and the growth of population and the downfall of agricultural, urban, and development sectors increasing pressures in the environment along with the unconditional climate changes affecting agriculture and the economy of Pakistan as well.

The problems are flooding, weather behavior and sewage system. It is declared that climate change is the biggest problem because of that all progress targets from human life to education, and work. Along with that one of the major problems is the wastage of water by humans. Mostly Pakistan’s water source is a canal irrigation system. Pakistan’s major Region like Sindh Punjab and Baluchistan are dependent on river water

Reasons of the Study

Right now, Pakistan and some other countries are facing a water crisis as it’s important to showcase this matter globally, so I have decided to make a short film on it so everyone can be aware of the situation these days. Well some of my reasons for the study are

• a. To know how the water shortage is affecting Pakistan?
• b. What possible reasons are to relate my film to this issue
• c. To investigate in what ways the water shortage is affecting our lives

Research Question

Studying water scarcity the research question will be What are the problems that cause water shortage in Pakistan? How to make a social awareness film that can relate the whole theme to the audience?

Literature Review

Once upon a time when Pakistan was a fully resourceful country but now the country is deficient by the water crisis. The water resources of Pakistan mainly depend on the Indus River system. The lack of rainfall and unconditional weather is a barrier to agriculture.

Iram Khalid and Ishrat Begum (2013) in their paper study present the situation of Water crisis that water is the most essential gift from god for sustaining life on earth. The availability of food and for good healthy life fresh water is really important. Iram Khalid and Ishrat Begum indicate that the quantity and increasing demand of fresh water has made a huge gap between its availability and demand the only way is to construct additional water reservoirs such as dams. Because this problem is getting bigger day by day every province is phasing the rift. The Kalabagh dam will be constructed in Punjab the dam will be of 38 million feet of water dropping to sea. But the other problem is that three other provinces Sindh, K.PK, and Baluchistan are not in favor of Kalabagh dam for their royalty-related issues. Sindh province believes that storage of Indus water can seriously affect their ecosystem. People of provinces just do not want to share their water and they always keep their own interest over the national interest Irma Khalid and Ishrat Begum said that Pakistan has also failed to have any kind of water policy that is why it is an alarming situation for Pakistan. The current availability of water in Pakistan is about 1000m3 which clearly shows the scarcity in Pakistan. This is a show called Notice for Political Vision, pragmatic Policies, and an affective river regulation in Pakistan.

Iram Khalid and Mazhar Abbas Khan (2016) in their study present the current water scarcity as A major human security challenge to Pakistan.

Iram Khalid and Mazhar Abbas Khan (2016) say that water is an essential ingredient for the preservation of life on Earth. The quality of life of human beings, businesses, agriculture, and medicines all are connected with freshwater accessibility. The lack of water has made the demands high. Including Pakistan there are many other countries of the world especially in Asia the high population rates, climatic changes, governance malfunctions have made over stressed the water resources of the country. Iram Khalid and Mazhar Abbas Khan said that water is not the only threat to Pakistan. The water-stressed conditions in the country are always misused by some pressure groups within the country to exploit the people on their agendas. Iram Khalid and Mazhar Abbas Khan said in their paper that these factors recommend some suggestions for both the state and the public to face the challenge by doing more with something else.

Abdul S. Khan, Shuhab D. Khan, and Din M. Kakar (2013) in their paper study the declining water resources in the Quetta Valley region of Pakistan. Quetta is a city of province Balochistan and in water shortage, land subsidence, and water quality problems. It’s one of the largest populated cities in Balochistan. The major crops grown in Queeta include Dry fruits, grapes, apricots, apples, and wheat. The main source of water access in this region is groundwater for both domestic and agricultural use. Abdul S. Khan, Shuhab D. Khan, and Din M. Kakar found that this work presents global positioning system (GPS) data and assessment of different variations in water levels. The Quetta valley has vegetation and several types of plants along with a wide range of shrubs on the hills and nearby areas. Abdul S. Khan, Shuhab D. Khan, and Din M. Kakar found that agriculture is growing and groundwater is the main source of water for agriculture in Queeta but the water is declining and in action, additional wells made just to save the agricultural use, and the water was used by farmers.

Iftikhar and Chaudhry (2010) figured out in their studies. Pakistan has had only two major dams since its independence 1. Mangla and 2. Tarbela. These dams are losing their storage capacity due to stagnant water resources the water availability is decreasing. Iftikhar and Chaudhry also highlighted the problems in the agriculture sector and the lives of people. They also highlight the proposed and ongoing water projects and are said to have a proper plan and management to fulfill future requirements by managing solutions for water.

Pakistan is a country where food is arranged by agriculture and agriculture depends on water accessibility. A lack of water resources can have serious impacts on the country’s economy. The amount of water is declining also because of population growth. Pakistan is said to be one of those countries which are dealing with water scarcity.

Magsi and Salman (2012) in their report of a study raise a point on mismanagement and failed water distribution policies because of the social conflicts and inter-provincial occurred. The report is based on several issues where Magsi and Salman try to evaluate the crisis of water in Pakistan province. Magsi and Salman said that there is a need to develop the Indus river system policies.

Water is the best product of nature and every individual has to take care of that in a report from the United Nations they had already warned us that the glaciers are melting because of global warming. In a country like Pakistan, it’s really important to take this statement seriously because the increasing population and manufacturing companies are expanding day by day so the water demands are great each time. Pakistan will be the country that is going to be the victim of the melting of glaciers along with that it’s already facing the problem of water shortage.

David Passig, Sigal Eden, and Mally Heled (03 April 2007) state that the study was examined under (VR) Virtual reality technology. The new immigrant student in a country was called for that. They divided students into two groups an experimental group where they chose the local students who would watch the life of a new immigrant student abroad and other was a control group means immigrant students who watched the movie on the same subject as that David Passig, Sigal Eden, Mally examined another group of teen immigrants who gives them the result that they wanted. Right after that, they ask all groups to fill up the questionnaire and conduct personal interviews as well both before the experiment and after the experiment. David Passig, Sigal Eden, and Mally Heled found the results that show the experience of a virtual reality is based on emotions and social experiences of new immigrant students but after the movie intensified the social feelings were found only in the control group.

During Natural Science classes, the topic of water resources and their accessibility to people around the globe remains open and causes a variety of reactions. After watching the movie Flow: For Love of Water, I was deeply touched by a number of existing water-related problems that millions of people fail to identify and understand. This essay aims not just to prove that water concerns must be solved but to explain why it is high time for the population to treat water resources as a universal issue and develop a commitment to preserve water and think about its possible absence each time a tap is turned on.

Regardless of the level of awareness and the intentions to study the world around, not many people comprehend how dangerous and life-threatening the lack of water can be. The point is that the population in developed countries does not directly face a water problem, and the population in developing or low-income countries cannot find a solution to this concern. On the one hand, our planet is a massive body with water as its basis that covers more than seventy percent of the surface.

This amount of water seems to be enough to meet the needs of the globe. On the other hand, approximately two million people die because of water-borne diseases annually, meaning that the quality or the presence of water is not as perfect as it has to be, and new ways for its protection and sanitation have to be developed.

In Flow: For Love of Water, its authors underline the fact that people do not think about the sources from which water comes. I was moved by the part where experts say that although more than $400,000,000,000 is spent in the water industry, water privatization cannot be stopped, and many children from South Africa or South America do not have access to water sources the same way American or European children do. Water is not a property, but a natural resource and every person has the right to use it at any time.

Water scarcity is not a problem of the past or the future. It is today’s problem with no definite solution being made. Instead of thinking about the ways to provide the population with water, the government and special organizations focus on the obligation to pay taxes, promote public discussions, and give promises that cannot be fulfilled even within the next ten or twelve years.

I believe that the combination of financial and social aspects of water-consuming has to be engaging for me, as well as for other students and citizens, because of our common potential to contribute to the solution of the problem. There is a chance for people to develop initiatives with the help of which less water can be used at different levels. I understand that it is time to interfere and make society realize how dangerous the absence of water can be regarding the experiences of poorly developed countries.

Universal impact solutions are to improve the decisions people made every day in regards to water consumption and promote knowledge about water scarcity in different countries. When young people are educated about the world and its needs, they are in a position to help, offer new ideas, and choose future careers to prevent the development of new water-related problems.

With my new, increased awareness on the subject of water consumption and deficit, I am going to develop a plan and an idea of loving water as a citizen and as a human. Water conservation should be based on theoretical and practical aspects. First, it is expected to educate people on how to monitor the use of water, develop new strategies for water management, and explain the main ways of water consumption. Second, it is important to divide countries as per their access to water resources because there is no universal impact solution to deal with water scarcity in all regions in the same way. Solutions usually vary between nations regarding their economic positions and governmental participation.

Volunteering in developing countries where people are challenged by the lack of water can be encouraged. The organization of clean water initiatives is a step forward to water scarcity. Donation with personal time, skills, or finances can be either effective as water-related solutions. It is not enough to use social media websites to talk about water problems. Thematic conferences and open meetings may be organized for people to share the wisdom of water conservation and harvesting.

Special technologies to recycle and conserve water may be offered to the population. For example, rainwater recycling can prevent scarcity and save some money. Many companies continue producing water-saving nozzles that may be applied to all taps and reduce the use of water. Future technologists, researchers, and inventors should focus on this problem and offer crazy but effective decisions for nations with different incomes.

In general, the problem of water use is a global environmental issue with no clear solution. Although people are in burning need of water, some of them do not appreciate a chance to using it whilst many of them try to survive by drinking dirty and unsafe water. After watching Flow: For Love of Water, I went to the two of the taps in my house and checked if there was any leak. In addition, I start observing how often the members of my family and friends use water and keep taps turned on without any need. I automatically close all of them and believe that if at least several people do the same, some progress can be achieved with time. Even if this step can hardly be recognized globally, it may be a serious achievement for me as a human.

Water transportation is one of the oldest methods of transfer of goods, people, and services between two points in the world. Watercraft were used as an economic and effective means of transport in ancient times. For instance, it is believed that ancient human populations migrated from Eurasia to the Americas through watercrafts such as rafts and crude boats (Hills 14). Also, the history of water transport is recorded in ancient times, which indicates that this method provided the societies with the most convenient methods for the transfer of goods in bulky. Moreover, it provided these societies with transportation methods over long distances such as from one continent to another.

Water transportation refers to the process of moving goods, people, and services from one location to another using watercraft such as rafts, dhows, boats, sails, or boats, which move over bodies of water such as seas, lakes, oceans, rivers, and canals. In the modern context, the water transpiration system is complex, with huge investment and technologies allowing the development of expansive components. For instance, cruise ships, tourist ships, corporate and merchant ships, military and space objects are launched on large bodies of water. Most of these objects are in form of large ships that float freely on deep waters. Nevertheless, canoes and smaller boats are still the major forms of the water transportation system in various societies, especially in places where rivers and lakes form boundaries between communities.

Despite the size and function of the various components of water transportation, it is worth noting that the physical principle of floatation applies to the entire marine and water vehicles. The principle of buoyancy is important in designing and operating watercraft. For a water body to be navigable, all vessels must remain floating on water. This principle means that the hull is the dominant aspect of designing, constructing, and maintaining water vessels.

The development of the three and four Masted ships in the 16^th century was a major event in the history of the water transportation system (Dix 66). These ships had a larger capacity to withstand storms and heavy winds. Also, they made navigation easier. Moreover, technology increased the carriage capacity for vessels, which made it possible for international navigation and exploration.

Before the 1800s, water navigation was the main mode of transport that linked continents. Nevertheless, the principle of using wind as the driving force was limiting. The development of the steam engine in the 1700s marked a major development in the water transport system (Hills 46). Thomas Newcomen developed the first commercial steam engine in 1712, but it was used in mining. However, it initiated a major trend towards developing steam engines for all modes of transportation. The SS Savannah, an American steamship, was the first of its kind to cross the Atlantic. The steam engine increased the speed and horsepower of vessels and reduced reliance on wind energy in navigation.

The establishment of the iron ship, as compared to wooden bodies, marked another major event in the history of water transport. Combined with the steam engine, iron became an important material for building large ships with the capacity to withstand waves, bullets, and other forces on water. SS Britain was the first iron ship driven a propeller. It was launched in Britain in 1843.

Shipbuilding technologies

The major technology transfer that led to the development of various facilities is iron-making technology. Shipbuilding and gun manufacture provide the best examples of products of transfer of iron technology. Considered a hard technology, iron making is an old industry that was common in ancient China, Egypt, Asia, and Europe. In Japan, for instance, the Kojiki and Nihonshoki chronicle record some events that led to the transfer of metalwork technology from China to Japan and Korea (Williams 23).

Technology transfers in ironwork enhanced the economic development of the western world between the 15th and 18th centuries. In Europe, iron-making technologies advanced significantly during this era, which led to the massive development of industries for gunpowder, guns, and ship making. Although ships were not made of iron, the technology allowed shipbuilding industries to develop large factories, cutting of wood for raw materials, and hoisting of large shipments (Williams 54). This enhanced trade between European nations, Asia, and the new world.

The transfer of iron making technologies in Europe also led to a rapid economic boom because the gun and the shop allowed navigation from Europe into the new world. For instance, with better ships and guns, European navigators and explorers were able to conquer various areas in the Americas and Africa, which were the major producers of raw materials for the booming European industries (Pacey 79). It led to the age of discovery, during which Europe made a major impact on other parts of the world.

In the 17^th and 18^th centuries, technology transfer in shipbuilding and gun making reached the Far East from Europe (Pacey 124). Japan adopted these technologies and joined the international trade of the time. Guns allowed Japan to conquer various areas in the region, including China. For instance, the Bukufu established a monetary system, navigation centers, and gun building industries to enhance the economic and military prowess in the region. In Europe, technology transfer in shipbuilding and gun making improved the transatlantic trade. Also, it improved slave trade and agriculture in the south and North America, which benefitted Europe and American colonies at the time.

Works Cited

Dix, Frank L. Royal River Highway, A History of the Passenger Boats and Services on the Thames. London: David & Charles, 2005. Print

Hills, Richard L. Power from Steam: A history of the stationary steam engine. Cambridge: New York: Springer, 2009. Print.

Pacey, Arnold. Technology in world civilization: A thousand-year history. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 1991. Print.

Williams, Derry. A short history of technology. New York: Clarendon Press, 2003. Print.

This brief aims to set the stage for the implementation of saline water treatment technology in bores of Cape York, Queensland. Engineers without Borders partners with Australian and New Zealand universities to motivate students to participate in the annual EWB Challenges. In 2020, the Challenge is meant to be implemented in the Cape York area. Its main goal is to provide a sustainable living for Cape York local communities, including Indigenous people (2020 EWB challenge design brief, 2020). Cape York area has 15 catchment regions that provide water to the population (Cape York water atlas, 2020). However, bores collecting water from underground sources began to pump out more saline water and could no longer provide local communities (Design area 5: water management, 2020). Therefore, the population of regions where bores are the primary source of freshwater needs to introduce saline water purification technology. Installation of membrane filters can be one of the aesthetic and straightforward solutions.

Background on EWB Challenge

The EWB program is an educational initiative to support the development of engineering thinking among students in Australia and New Zealand. Since 2007, when the first EWB Challenge started, more than 100,000 students took part in EWB Australia’s engineering educational programs (Over ten years of engineering education, 2020). The main advantage of the EWB Challenge is to provide students with the opportunity to develop engineering skills through engaging with authentic, real-world projects aimed at introducing positive change in communities. The 2020 EWB Challenge works in partnership with the Center for Appropriate Technology. CfAT non-profit organization supports Australian communities and Traditional Owners who live in Wthe Cape York and other remote regions (Our story, 2020).

Selected Challenge Project

The EWB challenge this year is set in the Cape York region. This design brief will focus on the Water treatment system project for saline bores in Design Area 5: Water Management (Design area 5: water management, 2020).

Background on Cape York Region

The Cape York region is a sparsely populated area of Far North Queensland with a unique climate, geography, and culture. It has 15 catchment regions covering almost the entire area of ​​the region and managing the surface waters. Part of Traditional Owners’ culture is respect for land and water, which helps preserve high biodiversity and vast relatively-undisturbed landscapes. Flow regimes in many catchments are undisturbed, with many river systems and wetlands remaining in pristine condition (Cape York water atlas, 2020). Cape York has a few urban and community centers, mining, grazing, agriculture, and tourism activities.

Water supply in the region is legally regulated by the state Water Act 2000, which sets out water management plans (Cape York water atlas, 2020). The latest government initiative is the Great Artesian Basin and Other Regional Aquifers Water Plan 2017, developed following the mentioned law. Notably, this plan regulates groundwater management across the Great Artesian Basin and groundwater linked to it, which extends into the Cape York area. Cape York has a tropical climate with distinct wet and dry seasons. The eastern Cape York region’s topography is steeper, so run flow is fast in this region. The peninsula’s western side is flat with dry savanna woodland, the current is slow, which leads to more filtration of water in the soil and underground aquifers. It is noteworthy that recently the Australian government officially returned the land which had never been transferred to the Indigenous communities.

Solar-powered bores are the central water supply system in remote indigenous communities. Water from bores provides the population with water for domestic purposes and private agricultural use – for example, for watering trees or giving water to livestock. The water purification system for saline bores has good potential; in addition, the need for such a system is critical. Recently, bores have been pumping increasingly saline water in some areas (Design area 5: water management, 2020). Therefore, local communities are in dire need of a project that will offer inexpensive water treatment mechanisms that will purify saline water to meet drinking water standards.

Stakeholders Initial Identification

Providing the population with fresh and drinking water is essential for all community members. As the water is now becoming more saline and unsuitable for serving needs, there is an immediate need to install purifying systems.

Identified problem statement

As mentioned above, the most acceptable solution is to install purification filters based on existing bores and pumping stations. This idea meets the criterion of simplicity and aesthetics, implied as necessary criteria for a successful project within the EWB Challenge. Besides, the installation of filters will help to supply clean water during the rainy and flood seasons and the dry season. Since flooding occurs in the region regularly, the existing well systems have been designed with this in mind. One of the aesthetic and straightforward solutions for saline water purification can be the installation of membrane filters.

Reference

Design area 5: water management (2020) Web.

Over ten years of engineering education (2020) Web.

Cape York water atlas (2020) Web.

2020 EWB challenge design brief Web.

Our story (2020) Web.

Introduction

The essay is a case study analysis for project management of Sydney Water Company. The company decided to develop a project that would improve its customer services.

The first section entails the pre-contract planning, business and functional requirements. The second part highlights the tracking of the project against the business case. The third part is on project planning and key milestones. The final part is a table on PMBOK knowledge areas.

Pre-contract Planning, Business Requirements and Functional Requirements

With regard to pre-contract planning. Sydney Water unveiled the importance of the Customer Information Billing System (CIBS) project to its operations. The project would make the customer services better, supplement the existing information systems and provide efficiency in business.

This is how important the CIBS project would have been to the organization. The company did not carry out sufficient planning and specifications regarding the project. This later on resulted to numerous requests for changes and eventually led to colossus extra costs and delays.

Prior to getting into the contract with Price Water Coopers, a competent project team should have been set up to do the work. This should have comprised of one member with intimate knowledge in the subject of the project.

However, the selected team lacked competencies in handling the work meaning there were no proper mechanisms put in place to select a capable team to do the work.

Although Sydney Water realized the significance of a business improvement process, it resorted to the utilization of a computer system during the project. The project was not implemented via a company information technology.

After coming up with the project, they realized that the computer architecture of the CIBS project was incompatible. Consequently, a functional requirement was not met. It was a business requirement for the company to continue with a project requirement that was integrated. However, this did not materialize.

Although testing was a functional requirement, it really delayed and was not done adequately. Relevant documentation was not provided by Sydney Water which made it difficult to have a full access to the selection of a contractor.

Nonetheless, apparently, Sydney Water was able to select and evaluate the contractor in a thorough manner. The administration of the contract was inadequate resulting to single variation to the contract leading to a transfer or roles and risks to Sydney Water from Price Water Coopers.

Some business requirements were not available for the project. These include important contingencies, hard ware and soft ware that were not included in the initial budget. Besides, from the start of the project, there were unclear procedures on how the project was to be reported to the board of directors.

The information given was not clear enough to make the board of directors make a decision or assess the position of the project. Such insufficiency made the board not to be fully informed regarding important aspects and risks pertaining to the project.

Management of risks is a very important aspect in any business venture, and more so, in a business project. It is a critical business requirement prior to beginning any project. This is because every project or business is always susceptible to risks.

It was therefore a requirement for the project team to identify main risks to the project and come up with sufficient mechanisms of managing the risks.

Nonetheless, it did not happen by both the company and the project team. The culture of this organization reveals that all project risks have to be transferred to the contractor when outsourcing of the organization’s key projects.

The Tracking of the project against the Business Case

A business case is a document whose purpose is to provide the project’s baseline by elaborating the benefits of the business as a result of the project (Gregory, 2009, p. 138). Apparently, there was no support of the CIBS project from a strong business case.

The company did not provide a version of the business case that had been endorsed by the board of directors. Even though it was an obvious fact that costs were escalating and benefits were reducing in the course of the project duration, the board never asked for the preparation of a revised business case.

The board had the mandate of overseeing the project including making some directions for the business case to be revised. However, the board did not direct the GM-Finance to do a review on the business case of the project and to be responsive on the project’s fiscal matters.

The evidence of choosing CIBS project over other alternatives was not adequate. For instance, there was a discrepancy between the cost of upgrading the existing system in comparison to the budgeted cost of the CIBS project.

There are changes that were made on the contingency cost by both the DMR and the board. The business case was not revised accordingly to reflect these changes.

This was in spite of prompts from several parties alluding to the revision. For example, in 2001, after the DMR findings, the GM – customer services realized the necessity to make some revision on the business case.

The director of Sydney Water project made inquiries with respect to the duration required to complete the project and a budget that the board could accept. Within the same year (2002), the internal audit suggested a formal revision of the business case.

This was a reflection of the project management’s belief that what really mattered was the successful implementation of the remedy and that costs were flexible.

For example, the recommendations to access the business case from the internal audit to the Sydney Water management were embraced and addressed after six months. This did not materialize and the management reported that it was more concerned with the positive results from the project.

An increase in costs seems to have been accompanied by a reduction in benefits during the time the project has been in progress.

At almost the close of the project, there were ninety people from the CSD performing several duties on CIBS. This required adoption of several strategies for maintaining business services. These would include outsourcing functions, hiring staff temporarily and beginning business improvements.

The extent at which staff reduced due to CIBS was less in comparison to the benefit outlined in the business case.

After a multiple revisions on the R3 benefits realization, still the stakeholders failed to approve it. There were some areas of benefit that varied from the initial business case. These include for instance, e-commerce, closure of some offices and ownership changes.

One of the views held by the Sydney Water people was that in the public sector, it was possible for projects of this nature and size to not only go over budget, but to also delay. This could be one of the reasons behind not updating the business case.

Project planning

This is a task that should be done by the steering committee. Their role should be to assess the feasibility of the project, develop the project’s business plan and take responsibility regarding the project outcomes.

The steering committee also ensures that there is an alignment between the scope of the project and what the stakeholders require.

The scope of the project is supposed to be defined by the business plan of the project which should be owned by the steering committee.

In the project undertaken by the Sydney Waters, this was not adequately captured. This is due to the absence of the steering committee to devise a business plan which should outline the project scope.

Second, the CIBS project manager did not come up with a specific Project Execution Plan which should have outlined the responsibilities of the project team.

The project manager should plan for the project effectively by forming sub-projects to help in the delivery of the project. This took place since the CIBS project was sub-divided into three: release 1 release 2 and release 3.

Third, effective project planning requires the presence of a competent project team. The team should work according to what has been laid down in the Project Execution Plan. Representatives from different units affected by said the project should be part of the project team.

The team should also comprise of members with requisite skills. The project team for the CIBS project did not have all the required skills to handle the job meaning that there was no plan in place regarding the selection of the members of the team and their specific qualifications. These skills should be part of the process of project planning.

The Sydney Water project fell under the customer services division. However, this division did not have a clear channel of communication with the project team. Also, during the project planning in 2000, input was not sought from Sydney Water by PWC.

Moreover, due to the dissatisfaction by PWC’s general project plan, Sydney Waters insisted on improvements. This negatively affected the project success. Thus, there was inadequate project planning in this respect.

Key Milestones

A milestone is a mark of progress that indicates when important points in a project have been attained. Milestones are embedded within the project’s time frame and show the important path towards the ultimate output. It is the end of a certain stage that shows a work package or phase has been completed.

It is often marked by a high profile review meeting, endorsing of some documents and a completion event. There are several aspects in the CIBS project that point to the way in which the management of the project milestones was conducted.

The CIBS project was mainly subdivided into three phases: release 1 (R1), release 2 (R2) and release 3 (R3). R1 and R2 were fully implemented even though R2 was not fully functional. R1 had been scheduled to be completed in August 2000 but it took longer than this.

The implementation date for R2 was also changed due to technical issues and phased roll out. Implementation of R3 was also delayed from March – September 2002. This was due to requests for change in closure of price negotiations. All these delays were due to inadequate project planning and specifications

Another key milestone in the CIBS project was the testing of the solution. It ended up taking a longer time than was anticipated. This made the project to take longer than was planned. Testing also produced numerous errors.

Correction of errors took longer than expected because changes were to be sent to the STS in the UK and the feedback was not immediate. The management ought to have known this in advance and use another system that would be in line with the project’s time frame.

PMBOK Knowledge Areas

Reference

Gregory, P.H., 2009. CISA Certified Information Systems Auditor All-in-One Exam Guide. NY: McGraw-Hill Professional.

Overview Of The Dialysis Water Purification System

Water used for medical purposes must be clean, safe and devoid of any chemicals. Treating raw water for medical use requires the extraction of impurities in different stages. In the dialysis process, water purification is a critical factor.

Clean water devoid of any chemicals and impurities must be supplied to ensure that the water injected into the body is clean. The plant under study in this case used two main processes for purification of dialysis water; these are distillation and the reverse osmosis process. These are discussed below

Distillation process

This is the first stage of the treatment process. The main equipments for the distillation process include:

Feed pump: this is used to feed the water into the tank and ensure that the correct pressure is maintained throughout the purification system.

Boiler: the boiler is used to heat the water. The boiling process kills most bacterial and also eliminates chemicals with boiling points higher than that of water.

Heat exchanger: the evaporated water from the boiler is passed through the heat exchanger where it loses heat to the working fluid/feed water in the heat exchanger. The heat exchanger allows condensation to take place.

Reverse osmosis (RO) treatment

This is the second stage of the treatment process, the main equipment include:

Reverse osmosis feed motor: this pump ensures that water is pumped to the right pressure throughout the reverse osmosis plant.

Sand filters: sand filters are used to remove all the sediments and particles in the water. A series of slow and fast sand filters are used. Normally, water is passed through a sand bed to remove suspended particles.

Carbon filtration: since the reverse osmosis plant cannot remove chlorine and chloramines, carbon filters are used to remove them.

RO plant: this is at the heart of the treatment plant. It uses reverse osmosis to remove impurities from water.

Ultraviolent (UV) disinfection: the UV disinfectors are used to remove bacteria and other pathogens not filtered by the RO system. Other sterilizations methods are also used to ensure that all bacteria and viruses are removed.

Storage tank: clean water is stored and then passed through sterilizers before be used for dialysis.

Shell And Tube Case Study

Introduction

One of the main components of the water purification system was the shell and tube heat exchanger. This heat exchanger was used to transfer the heat from steam to the feed water causing condensation. In the shell and tube heat exchanger, the heat energy in the fluid is exchanged. That is, heat in steam is transferred to the feed water flowing through the heat exchanger.

The process of distillation is slow and uses a lot of energy due to the boiling and condensation taking place. It is therefore prudent to improve the efficiency of the shell and tube heat exchanger so as to ensure effective cooling process and utilization of energy. In this case study, an evaluation of the shell and tube heat exchanger was done so as to identify inherent problems and develop solutions to improve efficiency.

Description of the shell and tube heat exchanger

The shell and tube heat exchanger allows heat transfer between two different fluids. Normally, the feed water or the coolant flows through a series of small tubes running axially along the exchanger. The steam on the other hand, flows inside the shell. As the feed water passes on these small tubes, it extracts heat from the steam causing cooling and condensation. Figure 1 below shows the sketch of shell and tube heat exchanger used.

Figure 1: Sketch diagram of the shell and tube heat exchanger that was analyzed

Problem identification

During the internship, I studied the heat exchanger so as to identify some inherent problems with the system. Reduced cooling efficiency was found to be the biggest problem with this heat exchanger. It was observed that the cooling rate was not sufficient and the final water temperature was high.

Full condensation was not attained as evidenced by a little amount of steam escaping through the condensed water outlet. The heat exchanger was therefore not efficient. Further evaluation revealed that the main problems with the heat exchanger were:

The flow of dialysis water in the tubes

It was noted that the flow of water in the tubes was not optimal. It is important that the water being distilled flows at an optimum rate so as to ensure that most the heat is extracted from the steam to cause condensation and cooling to the right temperature.

The flow of cooling water inside the shell

The flow of the cooling water inside the shell was not optimized. The flow should be optimal so as to ensure that it extract all the heat from the water being purified.

The tube and shell materials

The tube and shell materials did not allow a complete exchange of heat between the feed water and steam being distilled. This shows that the heat exchange between the materials was not optimum.

Solutions to the problems

In order to improve the efficiency of this heat exchanger, several solutions were developed. These solutions are discussed below:

Optimization of the steam flow rate

For efficient cooling, the flow rate of steam should be optimized. The steam flow rate should allow maximum transfer of heat from it to the coolant (feed water) circulating inside the shell.

Optimizing the flow rate of the coolant inside the shell

To improve the cooling, the coolant should be circulated at an optimal rate. This will ensure that the cooling fluid extracts heat from steam.

Increasing the number of baffles

Increasing the number of baffles in the shell enables the steam to pass over the tubes a number of times. This will increase the cooling rate and increase the efficiency of the cooling process. This is shown in figure 2 below

Figure 2 showing the shell tube with many baffles. The increase in the baffles will increase the flow of steam on the tubes increasing the heat exchange surface area. This will increase the efficiency of the exchanger

Increasing the number of passes (from double pass to four pass)

The current heat exchanger was a double pass shell and tube heat exchanger. In this process, feed water passed through the system only twice. To increase efficiency, the feed water should pass through the exchanger four times so as to increase the efficiency of cooling process. This is shown in figure 3 below.

Figure 3 showing the suggested improvement changing the shell and tube heat exchanger into a four pass boiler allowing the feed water to extract more heat from the steam during distillation

Increasing the number of baffles and the times feed water passes through the pipes.

Another method of increasing the cooling efficiency is to increase both baffles and the number of times the feed water passes through the exchanger. Increasing the two will increase the contact between the cooling water and the steam been used for the distillation process. This is shown in figure 4 below

Figure 4 Increasing the feed water and the feed water circulation path.

Cleaning of the tubes

Normally, the surface of the tubes forms the heat exchange point between the steam and feed water. If the coolant flowing inside the shell is not clean, impurities are deposited on the surface of these tubes. These impurities are bad conductors of heat and they reduce the heat exchange process and efficiency.

It is recommended that regular cleaning of the exchanger be done. The surface of the tube also becomes oxidized due to corrosion. It is therefore important to use chemicals when cleaning so as to remove these oxides.

Reverse Osmosis Membrane

Reverse osmosis system

Reverse Osmosis (RO) membrane uses the principles of osmosis to perform the filtration. In osmosis, a semi permeable membrane allows some molecules to pass through and shield other molecules from passing through. In the natural osmosis process, water molecules pass through the membrane to a salty concentration. In the reverse osmosis process, the water is pumped out of a more salty solution.

In the RO process, energy is applied to a salty solutions and this is used to push the water molecules through the membrane. During the process, salt, pathogens, organic materials and bacterial don’t pass the semi permeable membrane. After active pumping, only water passes this membrane.

This allows the filtration of salts, pathogens, inorganic materials, organic materials and bacteria. The reverse osmosis membrane acts as a sieve that prevents water contaminant from passing through. The RO system can be described by the schematic diagram shown in figure 5.

Figure 5: Schematic diagram for the reverse osmosis plant

From the diagram, the motor pumps contaminated water to the membrane which only allows water to pass leaving the contaminants. RO is able to remove 99% of the contaminants in water. The efficiency of the extraction process depends on the RO membrane, the size of the particles and the charge.

Contaminants with great ionic charge are easily filtered by the RO system as compared to those with a one charge such as sodium ions. Though RO is an effective filter, it does not remove all bacteria’s and viruses due to size. Gases also percolate through the membrane. The resulting water has low pH due to the presence of CO₂ gas. To determine the performance of the RO system, the following parameters are important

• The pressure of concentrate, feed and filtered water
• The conductivity of feed and filtered water
• The flow of the feed and permeate water.
• Temperature of the system

Successive filtration

Some RO systems have the first and second stage extraction. In these systems the feed water is purified in the first stage and clean water extracted. The rejected water is passed through another filter that further removes clean water. RO can have up to six filtration membranes.

RO parameters

RO has a number of parameters that determine is efficiency. Some of these factors include:

Salt rejection: It determines how efficient the salt extraction process is.

Salt rejection =

Where C_f is the conductivity of feed water and C_p is the conductivity of the permeate water. High salt rejection means that the system is efficient in removing the contaminants.

Recovery rate: it measures the water being recovered. The higher the recovery rate, the lower the water wasted to the drain.

Recovery rate% =

where P_f is the permeate flow rate and F_f is the feed water flow rate. Most RO have a recovery factor of 60-85%.

Appendices

Typical reverse osmosis plant for treatment of dialysis water (with no distillation plant)¹

Footnotes

¹ Source: Blue Water Technologies, White Paper – Monitoring Dialysis Water Treatment Quality. Pdf file. Web.