scholarly journals “An Eden that is practically uninhabited by humans”: Manipulating Wilderness in Managing Vancouver’s Drinking Water, 1880–1930

2017 ◽  
Vol 45 (1) ◽  
pp. 18-35
Author(s):  
Mark Kuhlberg
Keyword(s):  
Drinking Water ◽  
Water Supply ◽  
Anthropogenic Activity ◽  
Human Consumption ◽  
Mountain Range ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
History Of ◽  
Precious Resource ◽  
The Pacific Ocean ◽  
The City

Vancouver is known internationally as one of the world’s most livable and beautiful cities, and its “natural” attributes are seen as being integral to what makes it so special. Nestled on a small plateau between the alluring beaches and dramatic shoreline of the Pacific Ocean and the Coast Mountain Range, the city has trumpeted its aesthetically stunning environment for over one century. Central to this message has been the fact that Vancouver’s drinking water supply is so clean that it has historically required no chemical or other treatment—besides a basic filtering—before it is fit for human consumption. Those who were initially responsible for administering the city’s water supply demonstrated most curious behaviour in carrying out their duties. To be sure, they exalted their water for its purity and broadcast this message to the world, believing as they did that such a precious resource could originate only in pristine wilderness that was as pleasing to the eye as it was free from human intrusions. As a result, they went to enormous lengths to guard the basins from which this water came from anthropogenic activity. Paradoxically, they were completely comfortable with undertaking a series of measures to re-engineer and manage the watersheds upon which they depended, an approach that included dumping tons of a deadly toxin on the local trees. All these steps were simply part of their efforts to enhance the bounty with which Providence had gifted them, and to them it remained pure and unsullied as a result. The early history of managing Vancouver’s drinking water thus represents an extraordinary instance in which civic boosters viewed their actions through a prism that blurred the line between the human and non-human worlds, and their story highlights how often our attempts to manage “nature” is prone to creating issues that are potentially more dangerous than the ones we are trying to solve.

The history of the Murom water tower

2021 ◽  
pp. 58-64
Author(s):  
А.М. Седов
Keyword(s):  
Drinking Water ◽  
Water Supply ◽  
Russian Empire ◽  
Supply System ◽  
Water Supply System ◽  
Urban District ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Russian Empire ◽  
The City ◽  
Decorative Design

Представлена история первого в Российской империи городского уездного водопровода в городе Муроме. Рассматривается ситуация по обеспечению питьевой водой в конце XIX – начале XX века. Приведены новые сведения об инженере Е. И. Ержемском – авторе проекта «Ермаковского» водопровода. Описаны основные архитектурно-композиционные решения и оригинальные элементы декоративного оформления фасадов водонапорной башни. Адресовано историкам, искусствоведам, архитекторам, работникам органов государственной власти и местного самоуправления, а также читателям, интересующимся историко-культурным наследием России. The history of the first urban district water supply system in the city of Murom in the Russian Empire is presented. The situation with drinking water supply in the late 19th – early 20th centuries is considered. Fresh information about engineer E. I. Yerzhemsky – the author of the project of the Ermakovskii water supply system is presented. The main architectural and compositional solutions and original elements of the decorative design of the facades of the water tower are described. The paper addresses historians, art experts, architects, employees of state authorities and local government, as well as readers interested in the historical and cultural heritage of Russia.

DETERMINATION OF ARSENIC, CADMIUM, LEAD, COOPER AND ZINC IN DRINKING WATER FROM R. MACEDONIA

2018 ◽  
Vol 28 (4) ◽  
pp. 1259-1264
Author(s):  
Kiril Lisichkov ◽  
Katerina Atkovska ◽  
Neven Trajchevski ◽  
Orce Popovski ◽  
Nadica Todorovska
Keyword(s):  
Drinking Water ◽  
Water Supply ◽  
Atomic Absorption ◽  
Absorption Spectroscopy ◽  
Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy ◽  
Supply System ◽  
Water Supply System ◽  
Bottled Water ◽  
Cadmium Lead ◽  
The City

The presence of some chemical compounds at higher levels than maximum permissible concentrations (MPC) in the drinking water, suggests of water resources pollution. In this paper the following elements were analyzed: total arsenic, cadmium, lead, cooper and zinc. Twelve samples of water from the water supply system from the city of Skopje were examined during one year from three different springs. Also, ten samples of bottled water from three producers from the Macedonian market were tested.The determined average mass concentrations of total As, Cd(II), Pb(II), Cu(II) and Zn(II) in the analyzed water samples from the water supply system are 1.35 μg/l, 0.06 μg/l, 0.6 μg/l, 0.9 μg/l and 1,12 μg/l, respectively, and for the tested bottled water, the mean values ranges from 0.56 - 0.83 μg total As / l, 0.053 - 0.056 μg Cd(II)/l, 0.51 - 0.54 μg Pb(II)/l , 0.6 - 0.87 μg Cu(II)/l and 0.68 - 0.8 μg Zn(II)/l water.The following instrumental analytical methods and techniques were used for the analysis of the tested samples of drinking water: flame atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS), atomic absorption spectroscopy with hydride cеll, electrothermal atomic absorption spectroscopy.The obtained results are shown in tables and graphic form. According to the obtained results a comparative analysis was carried out indicate that it is a water of good quality that can be used in different branches of the process industry.The obtained results in this paper do not exceed the values of the MPC of the Republic of Macedonia prescribed by the legal regulations for the drinking water, which confirm the health safety of the drinking water from the water supply system in the city of Skopje and the packed waters from the Macedonian market in relation to the tested elements.

THE TECTONIC HISTORY OF THE PACIFIC OCEAN BASIN SINCE CHRON 34Y (83 MA)

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicky M. Wright ◽  
◽  
Maria Seton ◽  
Simon E. Williams ◽  
R. Dietmar Müller
Keyword(s):  
Pacific Ocean ◽  
Ocean Basin ◽  
Tectonic History ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Pacific Ocean

scholarly journals RISK ASSESSMENT OF CHILDREN’S HEALTH DUE TO THE CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF DRINKING WATER SOURCES OF THE NON-CENTRALIZED WATER SUPPLY OF THE CITY OF EKATERINBURG

2019 ◽  
Vol 98 (9) ◽  
pp. 997-1003 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lidia G. Konshina
Keyword(s):  
Risk Assessment ◽  
Drinking Water ◽  
Water Supply ◽  
Oral Route ◽  
Carcinogenic Risk ◽  
Water Sources ◽  
The Body ◽  
Arsenic Compounds ◽  
Traditional Assessment ◽  
The City

Introduction. In recent years, the risk assessment methodology has become the leading tool for assessing the health of various groups of the population, allowing identifying priority negative environmental factors. Material and methods. There were explored 212 wells, including 150 in collective gardens and 62 in cottage settlements. The priority oral route of chemical intake into the body was studied. Results. Nitrates and arsenic compounds create the main non-carcinogenic risk in the sources of non-centralized water supply in the territory of the Municipal Settlement of the city of ekaterinburg. When using water from wells in cottage settlements levels of non-carcinogenic risks are significantly lower than non-carcinogenic risks in horticultural partnerships. Acceptable level of non-carcinogenic risk for children under 6 years are related with 17.4% of water sources in collective gardens and 25% of wells in cottage settlements; for adults - 60.8% and 93.8% respectively. The detected nitrate concentrations in individual wells of horticultural associations can create a high non-carcinogenic risk. The total individual lifetime carcinogenic risk, both in the water of collective gardens and in the water wells of cottage settlements ranges from 10-5 to 10-4 and, therefore, is at a low level, the greatest contribution is made by arsenic compounds. Discussion. In contrast to the earlier traditional assessment of drinking water quality, when the main substances for which the discrepancy was found to hygienic standards were manganese, nitrates, iron and silicon, in the assessment of water danger using the methodology of risk assessment, nitrates and arsenic come to the first place, with a much smaller role of manganese. The calculation of carcinogenic risks using age correction factors (ADAF) has increased the risk values calculated by the traditional method by almost 2 times. Summary Levels of non-carcinogenic risks when using water from wells in cottage settlements are significantly lower than non-carcinogenic risks in horticultural partnerships.

scholarly journals The history and present of public drinking water supply and its regionalisation in Debrecen

2013 ◽  
pp. 147-151
Author(s):  
Sándor Nagy
Keyword(s):  
Water Quality ◽  
Drinking Water ◽  
Water Supply ◽  
Public Water Supply ◽  
Considerable Decrease ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public Drinking Water ◽  
History Of ◽  
Sanitation Systems ◽  
Regional Water

The public water supply played a major role in the urbanization of Debrecen city, just like in the case of many other cities. We had plenty of water and so we wasted it. However nowadays we experience a considerable decrease in the level of groundwater which causes an increasing need of energy for pumping. Beside the above mentioned the ecological threat and the decreasing water quality are also major problems. This study attempts to draw attention to the possibilities and the future of the regional water supply, by showing the history of the water supply, the sanitation systems of Debrecen and their present day activities.

The Pacific Ocean as Highway to Gold Mountain

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Sinn
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Pacific Ocean ◽  
Capital Flows ◽  
The United States ◽  
The West ◽  
New Era ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Pacific Ocean

This chapter takes a broad look at the Pacific Ocean in relation to Chinese migration. As trade, consumption and capital flows followed migrants, powerful networks were woven and sustained; in time, the networks fanned across the Pacific from British Columbia along the West Coast of the United States to New Zealand and Australia. The overlapping personal, family, financial and commercial interests of Chinese in California and those in Hong Kong, which provide the focus of this study, energized the connections and kept the Pacific busy and dynamic while shaping the development of regions far beyond its shores. The ocean turned into a highway for Chinese seeking Gold Mountain, marking a new era in the history of South China, California, and the Pacific Ocean itself.

Sailing into the Anthropocene

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Dauvergne
Keyword(s):  
South Pacific ◽  
The Political ◽  
Pacific Island ◽  
The South ◽  
Large Numbers ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Pacific Ocean ◽  
Starting Date ◽  
History Of The South

Chapters 2–6 survey the political and socioeconomic forces underlying the global sustainability crisis. Understanding the scale and depth of contemporary forces of capitalism and consumerism requires a close look at the consequences of imperialism and colonialism on patterns of violence and exploitation. This chapter begins this process of understanding by sketching the history of ecological imperialism after 1600, seeing this as a reasonable starting date for the beginning of what many scholars are now calling the Anthropocene Epoch (or the age of humans, replacing the geologic epoch of the Holocene beginning 12,000 years ago). It opens with Captain Pedro Fernandes de Queirós’s voyage across the Pacific Ocean in 1605–06 to “discover” modern-day Vanuatu, before turning to look more globally at the devastation of imperialism – and later colonialism – for the South Pacific, the Americas, Africa, and Asia. Over this time conquerors enslaved and murdered large numbers of indigenous people; cataclysmic change came as well, however, from the introduction of European diseases, plants, and animals. This chapter’s survey of imperialism, colonialism, and globalization sets the stage for Chapter 3, which explores the devastating history of the South Pacific island of Nauru after 1798.

1755, Lisbon

Tsunami ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 151-160
Author(s):  
James Goff ◽  
Walter Dudley
Keyword(s):  
Pacific Ocean ◽  
Atlantic Ocean ◽  
North Africa ◽  
Tsunami Waves ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
The Pacific Ocean ◽  
The Caribbean ◽  
The City

Most Europeans do not worry about tsunami waves as much as those who live around the rim of the Pacific Ocean, but they should. On All Saint’s Day, 1755, a huge earthquake struck Lisbon, Portugal, causing most stone buildings to collapse, including churches, monasteries, nunneries, and chapels, trapping the faithful inside the ruins, which votive candles quickly turned into burning pyres. Voltaire would write, “The sole consolation is that the Jesuit Inquisitors of Lisbon will have disappeared.” To add to the irony, among the few buildings safely left standing following the disaster were the lightly constructed wooden bordellos of the city. Most of Lisbon’s prostitutes but few of her nuns survived. Tsunami waves would not only kill thousands around Lisbon’s harbor but also travel south to Spain and North Africa, north to Ireland and Wales, and across the Atlantic Ocean to the Caribbean, flooding the streets of Barbados.

The Well-Watered Acropolis at Athens

1993 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dora P. Crouch
Keyword(s):  
Water Supply ◽  
Urban History ◽  
Water Sources ◽  
Water Utilization ◽  
The North ◽  
Drainage Channels ◽  
History Of ◽  
Map Series ◽  
The City

Persons with some knowledge of the Athenian acropolis are likely to be aware of the very early Mycenaean spring in the north-northwest quadrant, and of the still flowing Klepsydra Spring at the northwest corner, as well as remember stories about Poseidon’s salt spring adjacent to the Erechtheum. Yet to connect the presence of water on the Acropolis with the urban history of Athens has not been explicitly done to date, even though the Acropolis has been the focus of settlement from earliest times until today. It is the purpose of this section to set out what is known about water utilization at the Athenian Acropolis, thereby suggesting firm ecological reasons why settlement should have taken place on and near the Acropolis (Fig. 18.1). Travlos’ map series of the city of Athens (1960) centered on the Acropolis show us that this hill has always been the focus of settlement, a fact well known to the ancient Athenians themselves (Thucydides, 2:15.3– 6). I suggest that not only the defensive capabilities of the Acropolis but specifically its water supply made it the logical choice of location for groups who intended to live securely and to dominate the region. The number and diversity of water sources here is impressive. In each era it has been necessary to cope with the water that occurred naturally and to save for later use the rain and spring waters that drew settlers to this rocky outcropping. Let us note the locations of water on the Acropolis at several levels, with references to published accounts of some of the features and descriptions (based on surface reconnaissance and discussion with experts) of those for which I have not been able to find such accounts. Discussion of the geology of the Acropolis will be found with the paragraphs about the salt spring. After this topographical discussion, we will look briefly at the chronology of water on the Acropolis, followed by a concluding discussion of urban history. Immediately to the left of the Propylaea, inside the Acropolis wall, are rectangular cisterns dug into the rock of the surface, with rock-cut drainage channels leading to them from the central pathway.

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