Centralised urban wastewater reuse: what is the public attitude?

2006 ◽  
Vol 54 (6-7) ◽  
pp. 423-430 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. Friedler ◽  
O. Lahav

Public support is crucial for successful implementation of wastewater reuse projects. This paper analyses the findings of a questionnaire-type survey (256 participants) conducted to determine the attitude of Israeli urban public towards possible urban reuse options. The paper summarises the support / objection to 13 reuse options and the correlation between support and environmental awareness and perceptions. Results show that a high proportion of the participants supported options perceived as low-contact, such as irrigation of public parks (96%), sidewalk landscaping (95%) and use in the construction industry (94%), while higher-contact reuse options found less support (e.g. commercial launderettes, 60%). No correlation was found between biographical characteristics and support (education, gender, income, age). Based on the results, public campaigns in Israel should focus on disseminating information regarding wastewater treatment technologies, discuss health related issues, highlight the positive economic impact of water reuse and generate a positive public opinion, as these factors tend to influence individuals to support reuse projects.

2003 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 209-216 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. Brissaud ◽  
P. Xu ◽  
M. Auset

In the Mediterranean, the main water reuse application is and will long remain irrigation. Irrigation of public parks, landscape, golf courses, market gardening and orchards is expected to develop rapidly. Such uses require the microbial decontamination of reclaimed wastewater. Extensive reclamation technologies are well adapted to the Mediterranean context for their easy and cost effective O&M; however their ability to reliably meet health related standards have been questioned. The paper reviews the main factors of variations in the bacterial abatement provided by extensive treatment techniques - stabilisation reservoirs, ponds and infiltration percolation. Thanks to advances in the knowledge and modelling of disinfection mechanisms, the predictability of microbial decontamination by extensive technologies is being significantly improved; the development of better design tools leading to reliable treatments is foreseen. However, due to limitations in the microbial removal, extensive techniques cannot meet highly conservative requirements. Extensive techniques will play an important part in the development of water reuse and fresh water savings in the Mediterranean as far as water quality standards only aim at limiting health risks to an acceptable level.


2007 ◽  
Vol 7 (5-6) ◽  
pp. 101-107 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Lee ◽  
G. Pak ◽  
C. Yoo ◽  
J. Yoon

Water cycle analysis was performed for Gunja basin located in metropolitan Seoul using Aquacycle model in order to assess the problems of urban water cycle. From the water cycle analysis of Gunja basin, it was found that 75% of total rainfall occurred in the form of surface runoff, and groundwater recharge only accounted for about 7%. This suggests serious distortion of water cycle which can be attributed to urbanization. Feasibility analysis of reuse scenarios such as rainwater use and wastewater reuse was then performed to examine their influences on improving the water cycle. From the analysis of water reuse options, it was shown that imported water supply savings of 13% can be achieved through rainwater use, and water supply savings of 31% through wastewater reuse.


2018 ◽  
Vol 45 (3) ◽  
pp. 183-189 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Avitzour ◽  
Rani Barnea ◽  
Eliana Avitzour ◽  
Haim Cohen ◽  
Ittay Nissan-Rozen

There is an extensive ethical debate regarding the justifiability of doctors nudging towards healthy behaviour and better health-related choices. One line of argument in favour of nudging is based on empirical findings, according to which a healthy majority among the public support nudges. In this paper, we show, based on an experiment we conducted, that, in health-related choices, people’s ethical attitudes to nudging are strongly affected by the point of view from which the nudge is considered. Significant differences have been found between doctors’ ethical attitude to clinical nudging and that of patients. We show how these differences weaken the argument for nudging from public support. Moreover, our findings raise concerns regarding doctors’ ability to nudge ethically according to their own standards, as they may underestimate the degree of harm medical nudges can cause to informed consent, doctor–patient trust and other important ethically relevant features of health-related choices.


Water ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (7) ◽  
pp. 922 ◽  
Author(s):  
Verlicchi Paola ◽  
Al Mustafa ◽  
Zanni Giacomo

The study deals with the evaluation of the recreational benefit of a reclaimed water reuse project in the municipality of Ferrara, north Italy, by means of the contingent valuation method. It also provides an analysis of the public acceptance of the project, determined by eliciting the willingness of the local people to contribute to the realization of this project in monetary terms (their willingness to pay). The project involves the upgrade of the existing wastewater treatment plant by conventional (rapid sand filters) and natural (constructed wetland) treatments. The latter will be constructed within the urban park surrounding the wastewater treatment plant area and will combine the objectives of both wastewater treatment with recreational services, since they will create equipped green areas open to the public. The study is based on the answers provided by 400 respondents, who are residents in the four districts of the municipality of Ferrara. It emerges that willingness to pay is strongly influenced by the socio-economic characteristics of the respondents, with an amount on average of 48 €/family.


2007 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 35-53
Author(s):  
Derrick I Goodrich

The charge given to a nation’s free press in informing the public of the world around them is immense and essential to a functioning democratic society. A free press functions optimally when it operates independent from the constraining influence of powerful entities within its government, thus, allowing it to fulfil its role as an independent check on government action. As events unfold overseas, papers fill various columns with what is deemed “newsworthy.” If and how these unfolding events are reported back to the public carries tremendous weight in helping to form public opinion that either supports, opposes, or remains indifferent to the policy that governments implement abroad. The boardrooms of a nation’s leading news outlets are filled with individuals who also possess the ability to significantly counter or reinforce government claims concerning the relevance, consequences, or threats encompassed within overseas developments; from their leading headlines splashed across page one to the very wording used to depict a particular event. These abilities, when combined, allow a nation’s media to exert substantial influence on constraining or expanding decision-making options for policymakers who wish to garner public support or avoid potential public backlash. This paper will examine how this influence was exercised within U.S. society and its three leading news sources (The New York Times, Washington Post, and Chicago Tribune) in the reporting of four significant events: the 1960 Sharpeville Massacre in apartheid South Africa, the 1975 Indonesian invasion of East Timor, the Kwangju Massacre of 1980 in South Korea, and the Hungarian Revolution of 1956. The goal of this paper is to recount the historic role the U.S. media has played in its telling of developing international events, and determine whether it has fulfilled its duty to inform the public with the impartiality it lays claim to or whether, at times, it simply mirrors the foreign policy agenda of a particular administration and operates in a manner as to ensure its successful implementation.


2012 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
pp. 227-238 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. R. Adewumi ◽  
A. A. Ilemobade ◽  
J. E. van Zyl

Treated wastewater represents a significant potential source of reclaimed water for some beneficial reuses. However, public concern over the risks/health-related hazards of wastewater reuse has limited the general acceptability of reuse systems in many countries. It is important to manage the operation of recycled water systems in such a way that it will not adversely affect public health and the environment. Management of recycled water involves process control and compliance monitoring. This paper presents proposed unit process monitoring guidelines to classify the performances of treatment units according to the pollutant removal efficiencies and frequency of sampling to test for effluent quality suitable for reuse. The paper also highlights the procedure for proper inspection of treatment facilities to ensure optimum performances. It proposes minimum quality requirements for different reuse activities in South Africa such as domestic (toilet flushing, watering private gardens), irrigation (crops, landscape, public parks and golf courses, cemeteries), industrial (system cooling and process water) and other activities (construction works, street cleaning, fire protection, groundwater recharge). By employing the wastewater treatment monitoring and sampling procedures proposed in this paper, health-related hazards can be minimized while public confidence in reuse schemes will be enhanced.


2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 475-489 ◽  
Author(s):  
Birte Boysen ◽  
Jorge Cristóbal ◽  
Jens Hilbig ◽  
Almut Güldemund ◽  
Liselotte Schebek ◽  
...  

Abstract Industrial wastewater reuse is a major measure to mitigate the depletion of available freshwater resources in the catchments around industrial areas and to prevent possible future water shortages and the resulting problems for industry, economy and society. Combining a set of environmental aspects and economic aspects of different wastewater treatment technologies, the authors developed a model-based approach for planning and evaluating water reuse concepts in industrial parks. This paper is based on an exemplary Model Industrial Park. The results based on data primarily calculated for Germany show that, for the majority of the indicators, the installation of the Water Reuse Plant seems to be beneficial for all examined reuse options. Considering the economic dimension, due to economies of scale, reuse options with larger volumes of treated water are preferable since the costs per m3 of reuse water are reduced by up to 33%. On the other hand, the environmentally preferable option depends on the respective indicator, e.g. for freshwater eutrophication, the higher the reuse factor, the lower the impact, leading to reductions between 8 and 12%. For climate change, the best option is dependent on the reuse purpose leading to reductions between 8 and 52%.


2017 ◽  
Vol 60 (5) ◽  
pp. 1563-1574 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne E. Dare ◽  
Rabi H. Mohtar ◽  
Chad T. Jafvert ◽  
Basem Shomar ◽  
Bernard Engel ◽  
...  

Abstract. Harsh environment, severe aridity, and climate change create chronic water shortages in the Middle East. Technical challenges, socio-economic factors, and competing uses of water have escalated the difficulties in water planning at national and institutional levels. This research identifies opportunities and challenges associated with wastewater treatment systems and the potential for wastewater reuse in the West Bank, Tunisia, and Qatar through the following objectives: (1) identify the factors associated with successful and unsuccessful reuse schemes, (2) compare treated wastewater quality with end use application of treated wastewater, and (3) identify the governance and social challenges preventing the use of treated wastewater, specifically in agricultural applications. Water quality analyses and consultations with farmers, local stakeholders, and water and agriculture experts were conducted. Opportunities and challenges for treated wastewater reuse in agriculture are identified as the proximity of the treatment facility to agricultural areas, water quality, and motivation of farmers. With proper maintenance and appropriate monitoring, the modest (natural) treatment facilities in the West Bank and secondary treatment technologies in Tunisia are capable of producing effluent safe for use in production of certain agricultural products; however, in Qatar, despite massive investments in producing high-quality treated wastewater using advanced treatment technologies, there is little demand. Water policies, laws and acts, and action plans are urgently needed to be coupled and integrated for implementation. Keywords: Arid lands, Food security, MENA, Wastewater treatment, Water reuse.


Author(s):  
Jasem M. Alhumoud ◽  
David Madzikanda

The main sources of water in Kuwait are seawater desalination and groundwater. Reclaimed wastewater effluent could be an additional water source. Its use would reduce the volumes of recycled water being disposed of to the environment and it could reduce the demand for fresh water supplies. The results of a questionnaire survey of more than 1,500 random households residing in 64 districts in Metropolitan Kuwait are presented. The frequency distribution of the education level, knowledge of wastewater reuse, age, nationality and gender of the sample population are presented. In addition, we have presented the results of a survey of attitudes amongst residents of their willingness to use reclaimed water for a variety of purposes. The research analyzes the costs and benefits of using reclaimed water. The study concludes with useful recommendations for both the authorities and the citizens of Kuwait.


Author(s):  
Ramnik Kaur

E-governance is a paradigm shift over the traditional approaches in Public Administration which means rendering of government services and information to the public by using electronic means. In the past decades, service quality and responsiveness of the government towards the citizens were least important but with the approach of E-Government the government activities are now well dealt. This paper withdraws experiences from various studies from different countries and projects facing similar challenges which need to be consigned for the successful implementation of e-governance projects. Developing countries like India face poverty and illiteracy as a major obstacle in any form of development which makes it difficult for its government to provide e-services to its people conveniently and fast. It also suggests few suggestions to cope up with the challenges faced while implementing e-projects in India.


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