Public Water Management Research Articles

Laying the groundwork for a Legionella pneumophila risk management program for public drinking water systems

ABSTRACT Legionella pneumophila is different from traditional drinking water contaminants because it presents a latent public health risk for public and private drinking water systems and for the building water systems they supply. This paper reviews information on the likelihood of occurrence of L. pneumophila in public water systems to lay a foundation for public water systems, as a stakeholder in public health risk management, to better manage L. pneumophila. Important to this approach is a literature review to identify conditions that could potentially promote L. pneumophila being present in drinking water systems at either an elevated abundance or at an increased frequency of occurrence, and/or water quality and supply conditions that would contribute to its amplification. The literature review allows the development of an inventory of hazardous conditions that a public water system could experience and, therefore, can be used by water systems to develop control and monitoring strategies. However, effective L. pneumophila risk management programs are hampered by significant data and knowledge gaps. Priority research to advance public water system's risk assessments and management of L. pneumoaphila is proposed.

A rapid on-site loop-mediated isothermal amplification technology as an early warning system for the detection of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli in water.

Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) is an important waterborne pathogen capable of causing serious gastrointestinal infections with potentially fatal complications, including haemolytic-uremic syndrome. All STEC serogroups harbour genes that encode at least one Shiga toxin (stx1 and/or stx2), which constitute the primary virulence factors of STEC. Loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) enables rapid real-time pathogen detection with a high degree of specificity and sensitivity. The aim of this study was to develop and validate an on-site portable diagnostics workstation employing LAMP technology to permit rapid real-time STEC detection in environmental water samples. Water samples (n=28) were collected from groundwater wells (n=13), rivers (n=12), a turlough (n=2) and an agricultural drain (n=1) from the Corrib catchment in Galway. Water samples (100 ml) were passed through a 0.22 µm filter, and buffer was added to elute captured cells. Following filtration, eluates were tested directly using LAMP assays targeting stx1, stx2 and E. coli phoA genes. The portable diagnostics workstation was used in field studies to demonstrate the on-site testing capabilities of the instrument. Real-time PCR assays targeting stx1 and stx2 genes were used to confirm the results. The limit of detection for stx1, stx2 and phoA LAMP assays were 2, 2 and 6 copies, respectively. Overall, stx1, stx2 and phoA genes were detected by LAMP in 15/28 (53.6 %), 9/28 (32.2 %) and 24/28 (85.7 %) samples, respectively. For confirmation, the LAMP results for stx1 and stx2 correlated perfectly (100 %) with those obtained using PCR. The portable diagnostics workstation exhibited high sensitivity throughout the on-site operation, and the average time from sample collection to final result was 40 min. We describe a simple, transferable and efficient diagnostic technology for on-site molecular analysis of various water sources. This method allows on-site testing of drinking water, enabling evidence-based decision-making by public health and water management authorities.

Assessing Public Water Management Efficiency in North-western Mexico with a Two-stage Bootstrap Data Envelopment Analysis Model

Purpose: Mexico faces severe water availability problems, resulting in higher stress on its distribution in many states. To resolve the increasing water demand, it is essential to evaluate public water management to ensure the success of any decision-making policies to decrease the water pressure in the country. Methodology/Approach: For water management systems, benchmarking their performance relative to others can be an appropriate way to identify possible improvements. Using data from the National Census for drinking water and sanitation in 109 municipalities in the northwest region of Mexico, this analysis aims to evaluate the water management efficiency based on a two-stage Bootstrap Data Envelopment Analysis model with intermediate variables. Findings: The study found average efficiency in water system management but very low efficiency in system improvements. Additionally, no relationship was identified between the two stages or population size and density. Research Limitation/Implication: The study highlights the need for transparent water policies to address the country's shortage. Adjusting municipal public water system management operations and designing future strategic planning is essential. Originality/Value of paper: The presented analysis investigates a relationship between water management and water system improvements.

Assessment of Levels of Selected Heavy Metals in Borehole Water in Zuru Metropolis, Kebbi State Nigeria

This paper assesses the concentrations of specific heavy metals in borehole water within Zuru Metropolis, Kebbi State. Utilizing rigorous sampling and analytical methods, the study aims to provide insights into the potential health risks associated with heavy metal exposure in the local water supply. Twenty different borehole water samples were assessed for Zn, Pb, Hg, Mn, Cr and Cd levels (mg/l). The results revealed that only few boreholes water samples had concentration levels of heavy metals that are not within WHO recommended levels. While chromium and cadmium levels are below detection limits .The findings contribute to the understanding of water quality in the region, offering valuable information for public health interventions and water management strategies.

Gas extraction governmentality: The depoliticization of Groningen's extractive territorialization

The Dutch Northeastern province of Groningen has attracted national and international attention for being situated on top of Europe's biggest gas field. Decades of gas extraction have caused human-made gasquakes that have become highly politicized as they have resulted in the damage of thousands of houses, messy compensation policies, unsafe living situations, an intense situation of social and psychological desperation, and deep political distrust. An issue that has, however, been mostly absent from political debates is the fact that the gas extraction has also caused land subsidence with major implications for the area's water systems. In this article, we investigate the depoliticizing governmentality techniques of Groningen's extractive territorialization. In doing so, we differentiate how the same governmentality techniques have mostly depoliticized gas extraction-land subsidence while they have failed to depoliticize the gasquakes. We nuance the complex power dynamics (i.e., simultaneous de- and re-politicization), socio-material transformation processes (i.e., land subsidence and gasquakes), and institutional dynamics (i.e., public water management and private compensation organizations) evoked by extractive transformations. We argue that the extractive alliance's land subsidence-governmentalities reflect a subtle re-ordering of territorial control. Yet, we also highlight the limits, contestations, and contingency of extractive governmentalization. We unravel how an understanding of power as simultaneously unintentional and intentional informs our analysis. We show how the extractive alliance benefits from the interplay of power strategies, yet not without being strongly contested by local inhabitants and social movements.

Performance, Challenges and Policies, Food Security in India

Food availability is a necessary condition for food security. India is more or less self sufficient in cereals but deficit in pulses and oilseeds. Due to changes in consumption patterns, demand for fruits, vegetables, dairy, meat, poultry, and fisheries has been increasing. There is need to increase crop diversification and improve allied activities. It may be noted that the slowdown in agriculture growth could be attributed to structural factors on the supply side, such as public investment, credit, technology, land and water management, etc., rather than globalization and trade reforms per se. Access to food can be increased through employment due to growth in labour intensive sectors and/or through social protection programmes. The malnutrition problem is much broader than that of access to food. The South Asian Enigma (levels of malnutrition in Asia are higher than in Africa) is well known. India has malnutrition levels almost the levels double those of many countries in Africa. This problem needs a multi-disciplinary approach covering diet diversification including micronutrients, women’s empowerment, education, health, safe drinking water, sanitation, and hygiene. India has government programmes such as TPDS including AAY, nutrition programmes like mid-day meals, and ICDS to improve food and nutrition security. NREGS and self employment programmes can also increase access to food and nutrition. Social protection programmes in India helped in improving incomes and providing protection from shocks for the population, particularly the poor. However, there are a number of gaps and inefficiencies in social protection programmes. Under national food security law, the government wants to provide rice and wheat to the poorest of poor at Rs. 3 per kilogram. This is too narrow an approach for implementation of the Right to Food. The Right to Food campaign specifies several other things to be included, apart from universal PDS, under the Food Entitlements Act. This research paper examines performance, challenges, and policies in food security in terms of availability, access, and absorption or nutrition.

Assessment of Levels of Selected Heavy Metals in Borehole Water in Zuru Metropolis, Kebbi State Nigeria

This paper assesses certain heavy metal concentrations in borehole water within Zuru Metropolis, Kebbi State. Utilizing rigorous sampling and analytical methods, the study aims to provide insights into the potential health risks associated with heavy metal exposure in the local water supply. Twenty different borehole water samples were assessed for Zn, Pb, Hg, Mn, Cr and Cd levels (mg/l). The results revealed that only few boreholes water samples had concentration levels of heavy metals that are not within WHO recommended levels. While chromium and cadmium levels are below detection limits .The findings contribute to the understanding of water quality in the region, offering valuable information for public health interventions and water management strategies.

Proposal of a Model for Water Usage: Revenue Estimation in Brazil Hydrographic Basin

In order to improve the quality of aquatic ecosystems, a water collection instrument was established in the National Water Resources Policy (PNRH), with the purpose of collecting and allocating resources to the management of water systems, as well as stimulating the conscious and efficient use of water, with the direct finality of reducing the rates of waste and pollution of water sources. This instrument guided the definition of the objective from the present research, which is to estimate the collection of the Pianco-Piranhas-Açu Basin, located between the State of Paraiba and Rio Grande do Norte, to be calculated with a mathematical model of collection by the multiple water uses that consider volumes consumed, captured and for the discharge of effluents. To do so, it was analysed the main collection models adopted in Brazil to finally define the best algorithmic basis. Analysing the results, it was observed that the planned resources still do not provide a sustainable application of the real situation of the analysed basin, requiring further research to better understand the peculiarities of the region, given that the estimated collection is insufficient to provide the necessary infrastructure for Pianco-Piranhas-Açu (Brazil) river’s basin management system. Therefore, this situation serves to alert public water management bodies about the modelling to be used and the urgency of implementing the charging instrument, given that it could improve the quality of the hydrographic basin studied.

Intersectoral health governance during floods: a qualitative case-study into the Dutch 2021 flood

Abstract Background With the planetary crisis comes an increasing risk of flooding events. As shown during the 2021 floodings in Limburg, these can have disastrous consequences for the public health system and healthcare organisations. Historically flooding events are often treated as either affecting public health or acute care, but the 2021 events showed the necessity of an intersectoral governance approach. In this study, we investigated how governance actors from different domains collaborate and perform shared sensemaking processes to ensure patient safety continuity of (public health) care. Methods For the past months, we conducted a qualitative case-study in the Dutch region of Limburg where we interviewed governance actors from public health, acute healthcare, water management, and safety and crisis management. We also observed and analysed crisis exercises and hospital crisis management meetings, including relevant paper trails. All data were abductively coded and thematically analysed. Results Our analysis shows that during and after the flooding event, actors were confronted with numerous vulnerabilities about decisions to evacuate hospitals, care homes, or even villages. These include decisions about what are public health risks, and what are not. To curb such uncertainties, intersectoral sensemaking proofed essential with a central role for the public health crisis system. In our presentation we highlight how such sensemaking was done in practice. Conclusions To deal with the effects of the planetary crisis on healthcare, events such as floodings must be approached intersectorally. The public health system plays a central role in perceiving the vulnerabilities in a crisis from all angles. Key messages • Floodings are more likely to affect the public health and healthcare system. • Highly complex crises, such as floodings, require an intersectoral governance response with the public health system in a central role.

Machine learning-based detection of irrigation in Vojvodina (Serbia) using Sentinel-2 data

ABSTRACT With rapid population growth and the high influence of climate change on agricultural productivity, providing enough food is the main challenge in the 21st century. Irrigation, as a hydrological artificial process, has an indispensable role in achieving that goal. However, high pressure and demand on water resources could lead to serious problems in water consumption. Knowing information about the spatial distribution of irrigation parcels is essential to many aspects of Earth system science and global change research. To extract this knowledge for the main agricultural region in Serbia located in the moderate continental area, we utilized optical satellite Sentinel-2 data and collected ground truth data needed to train the machine learning model. Both satellite imagery and ground truth data were collected for the three most irrigated crops, maize, soybean, and sugar beet during 3 years (2020–2022) characterized by different weather conditions. This data was then used for training the Random Forest-based models, separately for each crop type, differentiating irrigated and rainfed crops on the parcel level. Finally, the models were run for the whole territory of Vojvodina generating 10 m resolution maps of irrigated three crops of interest. With overall accuracy for crops per year (2020: 0.76; 2021: 0.78; 2022: 0.84) results showed that this method could be successfully used for detecting the irrigation of three crops of interest. This was confirmed by validation with the national dataset from Public Water Management Company “Vode Vojvodine” which revealed that classification maps had an accuracy of 76%. These maps further allow us to understand the spatial dynamics of the most important irrigated crops and can serve for the improvement of sustainable agricultural water management.

Use of Water and Hygiene Products: A COVID-19 Investigation in Indonesia

This study examines the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on hygiene practices and water consumption in Indonesia. Data were collected through an online survey, supplemented by the official national socio-economic survey. The findings indicate an increase in hygiene practices, particularly handwashing, aligned with health protocols. This behavior led to higher water and hygiene product usage, unaffected by socio-economic factors. Respondents’ perception of COVID-19 and compliance with health protocols drove the increase, with older individuals preferring handwashing with water and younger individuals favoring hand sanitizer. Access to improved drinking water remained stagnant, while bottled water consumption rose. This highlights challenges in achieving the SDG 6 targets for safe drinking water. This study stresses the need to address COVID-19 perception to promote better hygiene practices and raises concerns about increased water usage, domestic pollution, and wastewater management during and after the pandemic. These insights could inform policymakers, researchers, and practitioners working in public health and water management to achieve SDG 6 goals amidst the pandemic and beyond.

Smart Water Tank Level Detection

As the world around, us transforms and becomes more linked and digitalized, public water management is expected to provide in way. How far are we from achieving a true Smart Water Tank Level Detection, from cutting-edge technology to comfort, safety, reliability, and maintain. We notice that cleanliness of the surrounding area in Water Tank is also important because many people using by water stoaring tank, so how much west water is collected in the any other tank. As a result, we are implementing this approach and developing a green and complete water management city. Because of the day by day by many variant viruses in water and clean water is minimum available of sources, the smart water tank finder is primarily focused on human health, The human body will be affected, and the human life span will be reduced. So, by employing this system, the amount of human power necessary will be minimized, and you will be notified automatically on your mobile screen when a water tank needs to be disconnected supply or when an order is detected. Another sensor, ultrasonic sensor

Freshwater Wild Swimming, Health and Well-Being: Understanding the Importance of Place and Risk

Spending time in or around bodies of water or ‘blue spaces’ can benefit human health and well-being. A growing body of evidence suggests immersion in blue space, e.g., participating in ‘wild’ swimming, can be particularly beneficial for both physical and mental health. To date, wild swimming and health research has primarily focused on the experience of individuals who swim in the sea. Empirical studies of the health-promoting potential of swimming in freshwater environments, such as lochs and lakes, are lacking, despite the popularity of this practice in many countries and the vastly different physical and hydrological properties of freshwater and coastal environments. The aim of this study was to explore the relationship between loch (lake) swimming and health and well-being for adults living in Scotland and determine the importance of perceptions of place and risk in this relationship. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with twelve wild swimmers who regularly swim in lochs in Scotland. Interview data were analysed thematically using Nvivo. The findings suggest loch swimming has a variety of health and well-being benefits that can be categorised over three domains of health: physical, mental and social. Of these domains, mental health benefits e.g., mindfulness promotion, resilience building and increasing one’s ability to listen to their body, were particularly prominent. Our findings also highlight important physical and hydrological characteristics of loch environments, e.g., calm water conditions (relative to the sea), which contribute to positive wild swimming experiences. Finally, the perceived risks of loch swimming and mitigation strategies for these risks are established. Collectively, our findings further support the notion that wild swimming is a unique health-promoting practice. Our findings also highlight differences (in terms of experience and perceived risk) between swimming in freshwater and coastal environments, which can inform public health and water management policy.

Infrastructure under pressure: Water management and state-making in southern Iraq

Water infrastructure is an active element of state-making in southern Iraq, although major failings in water governance have in recent years triggered violent protests. Informed by scholarship on state clientelism and the political ecology of infrastructure, I examine the conflict-affected trajectories affecting public water management in Basra governorate. The degraded water treatment network manifests a post-2003 political system structured by embedded clientelism and politically sanctioned corruption. However, broad categorisations of clientelism can miss context-laden political effects produced by the spatial and technological configurations of infrastructure. I consider the state effects of water infrastructure practices in Basra governorate–how water supply networks and treatment technologies project state (in)capacity by means of volumetric and qualitative control over water flows. The empirical focus is on compact water treatment units (CWTUs), which are the main technology of public water supply in Basra governorate. I undertake an analysis of the deployment and management of CWTUs, as experienced by local actors responsible for, or politically contesting, the workings of water infrastructure in Basra city. Clientelist practices targeting public procurement and maintenance contracts have disrupted and delayed the upgrading of water infrastructure; yet these practices were enabled by neoliberal state-building that promoted the privatisation of public resources. Shortfalls in state capacity to provide clean drinking water in Basra are compounded by the growing hydro-climatic unpredictability of water flows.

Roertunnel: Tunnel elements constructed in building pit for in situ part of tunnel

The construction of the A73 highway from Venlo to Maastricht (the Netherlands) involved the construction of the 2.4 km long, dual two lane Roertunnel near the city of Roermond. The Roertunnel consists of a somewhat deeper part crossing the quite small River Roer and its 1 km wide flood Valley, continued by a 1.4 km long shallow tunnel alongside the southern part of Roermond. The water levels in the River Roer vary from low water (summer conditions) to high water levels and possibly flooding of the Valley (spring conditions). Environmental conditions were severe, prohibiting amongst other for dewatering.The project was tendered the Ministry of Public Works and Water Management (Rijkswaterstaat RWS as a design and build contract. The tender documents included a reference design developed by the client for the crossing of the Roer Valley. This design consisted of a cast in situ piled cut and cover tunnel constructed in a building pit formed by temporary sheet piles and closed off at its bottom by a unreinforced concrete slab supported by tie down piles. This concept was designed to avoid dewatering of the building pit.In view of the ground conditions, an immersed tunnel was a more cost effective solution compared to the proposed reference design. However, an immersed tunnel appeared at a first glance not to be feasible as the small depth and width of the River Roer does not allow transportation of tunnel elements over the River from any remote dry dock, and as a dry dock in the vicinity of the tunnel location could not be created as dewatering was not allowed. The careful analysis of the geotechnical data indicated the local presence of a 5 m thick silt layer of low permeability over a length of 350 m along the tunnel alignment at the eastern side of the Roer Valley. This offered the opportunity to create a dry dock of length of about 350 m along the alignment of the tunnel by means of sheet piles reaching into the silt layer, avoiding any dewatering. The dry dock has been used for the construction of the four immersed elements of a total length of about 600 m in two batches. Finally the dock was used to construct the remaining part of the crossing of the Valley as a cast in situ tunnel.A gravel bed foundation consisting of nine berms per tunnel segment has been preferred above sand flow to mitigate the risk of weakening of loose sand in case of earthquake.The paper describes the concept and the various aspects of the design of the immersed tunnel constructed in a dry dock along the tunnel alignment. A section of the paper is devoted to the interaction of structural design and gravel bed design.

Interview article: water movements’ defense of the right to water. From the European arena to the Dutch exception

ABSTRACT In 2012 public service trade unions and water activists started a European Citizens’ Initiative to get the human right to water implemented in European law. It became the start of the “Right2Water” movement that successfully defended drinking water supply in the European Union against European Commission plans for liberalisation, marketisation and the subsequent threat of privatisation. In countries with a good functioning public water system, resistance against privatisation of water was high, especially in Germany, Austria and Belgium, but surprisingly this level of resistance was absent in the Netherlands, which has a similarly good and well-known public water supply system. In this article we interview two persons that have both experience in European as well as in the Netherlands’ water policies and legislation, and in water services provision. We investigate how the right to water is defined, legally decreed and socially interpreted and defended at different levels. We also investigate the apparent paradox with regards to water in the Netherlands, where people seemed very committed to and proud of their public water management, but did not stand up against a privatisation threat, whereas around the globe water privatisation plans are met with great resistance.

Open questions for public water management: Discussions from Uruguay's restatization process

In Uruguay, potable water services—privatized during the neoliberal period—were set to return to the public sphere in the mid-2000s. This was a promising scenario as it entailed a wide scope for development. However, over a decade after this process was set in motion, the results are discouraging. The new problems in public water management have to do with outsourcing key areas and covert privatization processes. Furthermore, rate reforms transferred the problems created in natural water basins to mass users, which implies a form of water privatization as the entire society subsidizes the environmental costs of pollution (Ribeiro, 2006).There is a wide variety of gray areas between the public management model, where service provision is a common good and a state responsibility, and the private management model, where the service becomes a commodity.This paper analyzes the restatization and public management of drinking water services in Uruguay according to a state logic and its inertias in the transition from neoliberal to progressive administrations. Institutional inertia is critical in these experiences because it renders services the joint and complex result of combining a state logic and a privatization logic, where public oversight and community participation are mentioned by some government authorities but excluded in practice. This is what Gautreau and Perrier have called neoliberal resilience (2019). These logics intertwine perversely in key management areas, such as rate structures.

Faecal bacterial contamination of rivers: Evolution, suitability, and health risk implications for recreational use

AbstractThe suitability of rivers for recreational purposes is an important issue in public health and water management. A quantitative microbial risk assessment was conducted using a dataset of E. coli concentrations in three Sinaloa rivers from 2013 to 2018 to define the level of faecal contamination and estimate the risks of acquiring gastrointestinal infections (GI) from recreational exposure. Faecal contamination was conditioned by river flow or time (p > 0.05) and increase during summer in urban areas. The national laws classify these rivers as suitable for recreational activities. However, the dose‐response model estimated the probability of acquiring GI during recreational use (>1.0 × 10–4), which implies the occurrence of 283 and 788 GI annually in adults and children, respectively. This research exposes the risk for the development of GI in the population of the region, especially in children; and justifies the controlling microbiological quality of rivers used for recreational use.

Sustainable and Reliable Information and Communication Technology for Resilient Smart Cities

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is at the heart of the smart city approach, which constitutes the next level of cities’ and communities’ development across the globe. Thereby, ICT serves as the gluing component enabling different domains to interact with each other and facilitating the management and processing of vast amounts of data and information towards intelligently steering the cities’ infrastructure and processes, engaging the citizens and facilitating new services and applications in various aspects of urban life—e.g., supply chains, mobility, transportation, energy, citizens’ participation, public safety, interactions between citizens and the public administration, water management, parking and many other cases and domains. Hence, given the fundamental role of ICT in cities in the near future, it is of paramount importance to lay the ground for a sustainable and reliable ICT infrastructure, which can enable a city/community to respond in a resilient way to upcoming challenges, whilst increasing the quality of life for its citizens. A structured way of providing and maintaining an open and resilient ICT backbone for a city/community is constituted by the concept of an Open Urban Platform. Therefore, the current article presents the activities and developments necessary to achieve a resilient, standardized smart city, based on Open Urban Platforms (OUP) and the way these serve as a blueprint for each city/community towards the establishment of a sustainable and resilient ICT backbone.

Cobalt-iron zeolitic imidazolate frameworks (ZIFs) as microfibers for the effective detection of hydroquinone.

The monitoring of pollutants has received significant attention from researchers in recent years owing to their hazardous nature and their toxic effect on the environment. Among them, water pollution plays a major role and results in dominant diseases along with life-long health problems. Hydroquinone (HQ), the major metabolite of benzene, is an industrially used organic compound which causes symptoms associated with nervous related disorders, such as faintness, therefore the research community has been inspired to detect sources of this carcinogenic agent. In this work, cobalt-iron based zeolitic imidazolate framework microfibers (CoFe-ZIF-MFs) were used for the selective detection of HQ. Micro-structured CoFe-ZIF fibers were fabricated using the wet chemical and electrospinning method. The electrochemical response of the prepared composite revealed an excellent redox behavior towards HQ and does not suffer from interference resulting from other analytes. The proposed sensor exhibited a wide linear range of 1 μM-1 mM with a detection limit of 230 nM, resulting in a good stability of up to 88%, even after 250 cycles. The designed sensor showed an exquisite performance for real sample analysis which indicates the device mechanism is reliable for use in environmental monitoring, public health care, industrialized areas and waste water management systems.