2017 WWW Daily Wednesday_30 August, 2017

WEDNESDAY: WORLD WATER WEEK DAILY
WIN-WIN WITH REUSED WASTEWATER IN JORDAN
In the second session of the seminar
Harnessing opportunities for the safe
reuse of wastewater in agriculture, the
perspective shifted from global to local.
Five presenters showcased examples
from different parts of the world, Loay
Frouk from Jordanian Wastewater and
Solidwater Reuse Organization, being
one of them. In Wadi Mousa, wastewater
from the tourist industry near
DISRUPTIVE TECHNOLOGIES: HOT OR NOT?
David Nilsson
Petra has been reused for fodder
production. The result is enhanced
livelihood for the Bedouin, and an
improved tourism environment.
“Yield has increased from 20 to
30 per cent due to nutrients found
in wastewater. Also, the fodder
has contributed to an alternative
income as well as social stability in
the community,” Frouk said.
Pay Drechsel from IWMI concluded
the session with some final
reflections. Wastewater irrigation in
agriculture is not without risk and
we must learn to ask ourselves the
right questions, Drechsel said.
“Should we try to double the
agricultural area under treated wastewater?
Or, shall we try to reduce the
irrigation already happening with
highly polluted water?”
Speaking at a SIWI Sofa event, exploring how technology
is changing the water and energy sectors, David
Nilsson, director of Water Centre at KTH, said: “drastic
change in the water and energy market” was underway,
changing the business logic of large organizations:
“they’re not making money in the same way they did in
the past.” Operators of water treatment plants now see
themselves as energy producers, said Östen Ekengren,
IVL, Swedish Environmental Research Institute.
WINNERS OF STOCKHOLM JUNIOR WATER PRIZE
Ryan Thorpe and Rachel Chang from the USA received the 2017
Stockholm Junior Water Prize, for their novel approach to detect
and purify water contaminated with Shigella, E. coli, Salmonella,
and Cholera. H.R.H. Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden presented
the prize at a ceremony at Grand Hotel in Stockholm last night.
CALL FOR RESEARCH
ON MICROPLASTICS
The remote Mongolian Lake Khuvsgul
is more than 200 kilometres from the
nearest town, and even further away from
any major city. Despite that, researchers
have found microplastics in its water,
indicating that there is still a lot to learn
about how small, harmful plastic particles
end up in, and are transported through
eco-systems.
The issue was highlighted during a session
yesterday together with a unanimous
call for more research and urgent action
to combat the spreading of microplastics
in our waterways.
USING SATELLITE DATA TO
IMPROVE “SOLUTION SPACES”
At the Contributions of Earth obser vations
and models for improved water sustainability
session, attendees learnt how NASA’s
advanced satellite technologies are used
to improve water management.
“The lack and inadequacy of surface
observations mean that sometimes the
best place to monitor a whole range of
water indicators is from space. Using
satellites, you have local, frequent, and
carbon perspectives,” explained John Bolten,
associate programme manager, NASA.
The purpose of collecting data was to
improve understanding of the water cycle,
Bolten said, and specifically to address
activities such as lake monitoring, river
forecasting, snowmelt modelling, flood
impact assessment, drought response,
terrestrial subsidence, and groundwater
depletion.
Themes echoed by Simon Langan,
from the International Institute for Applied
Systems Analysis, who provided examples
of how data can be used to “develop
scenarios” in the context of sustainable
water use, and on which to base dialogues
with local stakeholders –municipalities,
governments, organizations – thereby
creating the basis for informed decision -
making and “solution spaces”.
NUMBER OF THE DAY
6%
WATER SCARCITY, EXACERBATED
BY CLIMATE CHANGE, COULD COST
SOME REGIONS UP TO SIX PER CENT
OF THEIR GDP. SOURCE: WORLD BANK