WASTEWATER MANAGEMENT
By – Adya Gupta
Grade – VII Halley
➢ Waste Water Management
o Wastewater is any water that requires cleaning after it is used.
o This includes water that has been used for laundry, bathing, dishwashing,
toilets, garbage disposals, and industrial purposes.
o Wastewater also includes rainwater that has accumulated pollutants as it
runs into oceans, lakes, and rivers.
o Pollutants are unwanted chemicals or materials that contaminate air, soil,
and water.
o The goal of wastewater management is to clean and protect water.
o This means that water must be clean enough so that it can be used by
people for drinking and washing, and by industry for commercial purposes.
o It also must be clean enough to release into oceans, lakes, and rivers after it
has been used.
o Wastewater is usually divided into two major groups: point source
wastewater and non-point source wastewater.
o Point source wastewater includes wastewaters that enter natural waters
(such as lakes, rivers, and oceans) from defined locations.
o The most common point sources are sanitary sewers and storm drains. Non-
point source wastewater is wastewater that is not connected to a specific
source.
o This includes runoff (water that drains away) from agriculture and urban
(city) areas, and acidic waters from mines.
o In many ways, point source wastewater is much easier to manage because
its source and the pollutants it contains are known.
o Non-point source wastewater, on the other hand, is both hard to identify
and treat.
➢ Key Issues Today
o Climate change: while we have always had to deal with a variable climate,
the majority of studies, analyses and management techniques have been
based on the belief that the hydrological series was stationary, i.e., while
there may be fluctuations, the mean value would remain roughly the same.
There is now mounting evidence of trends in hydrological series. Many areas
face a drying and warming climate and thus potentially less water
availability.
o Increasing vulnerability to severe weather events: The Intergovernmental
Panel on Climate Change Technical Paper on Climate Change and Water
highlights the potential for more frequent and more severe weather events.
With increasing populations at risk and the potential for a shift in the risk
profile in many areas, safety of life and property will remain high on the
agenda.
o Growing urban demand: the population of urban centers continues to grow
and urban areas continue to spread, thus placing greater pressure on water
supply systems as well as reducing the availability of arable land, and, in
some cases, placing increased pressure on water supply catchments.
o Over-allocation of existing supplies: the water in many supply systems has
been allocated on the basis of past availability or existing demand and has
not been kept in line with current or future availability; thus, many systems
are over-allocated.
o Unrestricted extractions: in many areas, there are no management plans or
restrictions on water extractions (for example, pumping from rivers and
groundwater extractions). These have resulted in less water being available
and have in some case led to mining of the resource. The expansion of farm
dams in some areas also reduces the supply of water entering river systems.
o Land-use change: clear-felling, expanding plantations and the opening of
new areas to agriculture all have impacts on the water resource; unintended
events, such as bushfires, can lead to a reduction in the availability of water
and water-quality problems. Changes to land use, even within agricultural
areas, have implications for both water availability and water use.
o Environmental requirements: there has been an increasing emphasis on the
requirement for environmental flows to maintain ecosystems such as
wetland and in-stream environments. Community expectations are that we
should see the environment as a rightful and high-priority user of water.
➢ Key Issues In The Future
o The development of instrumentation and measuring techniques that will
improve the accuracy of water resources information, noting that this
includes level, flow, quality, use, re-use, allocations, trades, etc.;
o Ensuring that measurement techniques meet required standards;
o Ensuring that appropriate meta-data are collected, held and made readily
available;
o Improving the access to and availability of streamflow information in real-
time and in concert with other information about the resource and its use;
o Making appropriate use of satellite measurement techniques, while ensuring
information on their accuracy and reliability is available, as well as being able
to relate and express the observations from a variety of measurement
techniques to each other and to agreed standards;
o Defining an internationally agreed standard water information exchange
format through the development and evaluation of a conceptual model of
water resources information, corresponding mark-up language.
➢ Challenges To India’s Urban Water Security And
Future Growth Patterns.
o Rapid growth combined with rising consumption patterns and pollution has
increased the water insecurity in urban India.
o Local sources of water, including groundwater, are fast depleting, adding to
the high financial and technological costs of transporting water from sources
outside the cities with insufficient means to augment and boost supply
within the cities
➢ Linkages Between Water And Socio-Economic
Growth
o The Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 11 calls for inclusive, safe, resilient,
and sustainable cities. This cannot be achieved without innovation in the
water sector with in-depth broad thinking, research and analysis on the links
between economic growth and the future of our urban spaces.
o India has some of the fastest-growing cities in the world, both in terms of
population expansion and industrial and economic growth. It is estimated
that by 2030 over half the population in the country will live in urban
centres.
➢ Challenges to Urban Water Security and Growth
In 6 Cities in India
1) Bengaluru-
Bengaluru, a city established around numerous lakes, which in the past served as
plentiful water sources, has seen rapid development and urban encroachment over
the last few decades. The implications of this on the economic output are grave, as
Bengaluru is a hub for Information Technology and services, a major employer and
GDP contributor to the state of Karnataka and the country overall.
✓ Water Snapshot
The Arkavathi River (rain fed) and Cauvery River (perennial) are the official sources for
Bengaluru’s water supply. The main source of water, distributed by the Bengaluru
Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB), is the Krishna Sagar Dam built on the
Cauvery River. According to estimates by the Karnataka Water Resources Department,
actual demand outstrips the water supplied through official channels, due to
population rise, forcing residents to rely on groundwater and over-priced tankers.
As per BWSSB data, government water supply covers only 570 sq. km out of the total
800 sq. km of the city area. Supply from the Cauvery River travels over more than 100
km and needs to be pumped uphill at a cost of USD 6 million a month to the
government. It is also estimated that more than 20 per cent of water supplied is
lost/unaccounted for (UFW) due to leaks from old and corroded pipes and poor
storage units, as well as illegal connections. The BWSSB has invested in trying to
reduce UFW during storage and transport, however, they have managed only a
reduction from 48 per cent in 2012-13 to 38 per cent in 2018-19. As only 55 per cent of
the population has access to piped water from government sources, Bengaluru is
heavily dependent on groundwater, which is also rapidly receding. Groundwater
recharge in 2019 was at its lowest due to insufficient rainfall in the pre-monsoon and
monsoon period, forcing them to dig even deeper. It is also becoming increasingly
difficult for populations to afford tankers (that transport groundwater), which can cost
as much as INR 2,000 per tanker.
2) Chennai
Chennai, known as the ‘Detroit of Asia’, is an automobile hub and home to one of the
largest and most important IT centres in the country. In 2019 the city catapulted into
national news for facing extreme water stress following a poor monsoon that had left
the four main reservoirs feeding the city at 0.2 per cent of their capacity. A situation
made worse by inefficient systems to augment natural water resources. While the city
brought in water via trains to push back an inevitable day zero scenario, it is an
unsustainable situation in the long term. A study estimates that by 2030, the gap
between demand and supply of water for Chennai could reach 400 million litres per day,
if recycling and reuse plans are not put into effect (Paul & Elango, 2018). This will not
only impact the city’s estimated 14 million residents in terms of health security and
livelihoods, but it will also adversely affect the industrial zones and growth sectors that
are significant contributors to India’s progress.
✓ Water Snapshot
Chennai lacks a perennial source of water and is heavily dependent on rain fed
reservoirs: Red Hills (Puzhal Lake), Poondi Reservoir and Cholavaram Lake.
Chembarambakkam, another large reservoir, is contaminated with sewage and has a
water treatment plant with a total planned capacity of 530 MLD. Other sources of water
for the city include Veeranam Lake (180 MLD) in Cuddalore, and desalination plants in
Vada Nemmeli and Minjur. Groundwater extraction takes place from about 0.42 million
private wells within city limits, and 66 per cent of households have their own private
wells. The result is overexploitation, rapidly falling groundwater levels, with the city
extracting almost twice the annual recharge. In the last few years, the demand for water
in Chennai has outstriped the supply by almost 200 MLD. In 2019, during severe
drought, the municipal authorities arranged for trains to bring 2.5 MLD of water every
day into the city, barely meeting the demand-supply gap.
Water stress in Chennai can largely be attributed to increased urbanization, a lack of
effective methods to harvest and reuse water and poor consumption control measures.
Rampant development has occurred by clearing marshlands and filling up smaller water
bodies. The area of water bodies has reportedly come down to 3.2 sq. km in 2017 from
12.6 sq. km in 1893, according to a report by Anna University. From a chain of 16 tanks
that used to exist in Vyasarpadi, several were converted post 1950’s into settlements,
leading to repeated flooding and decreased groundwater recharge capabilities. The
vanishing water bodies have resulted in a decline in surface water storage, from 37.8
billion liters in 1893 to 9.5 billion liters in 2017 (Lakshmi, 2018). Jayashree Venkatesan, a
managing trustee with the NGO Care Earth in Chennai, explains that big developers cut
off the water from streams and lakes, effectively turning them into dry lands fit for
construction. In a move to restore the city’s waterways, slums and illegal housing from
banks of rivers and water bodies are set to be demolished and the dwellers relocated to
settlements on the outskirts, ironically built on wetlands. Chennai has two desalination
plants, each with a capacity of 100 MLD. Two others under construction, purported to
be completed by 2021 and 2024, will add an additional 550 MLD to the overall supply.
Over the last few years there has been a push towards making rainwater harvesting
mandatory in every building but according to Sekhar Raghavan from the NGO Rain
Centre, 40 per cent of buildings in 2019 had systems that were not collecting water,
also, these systems were missing in most government buildings (Sreevatsan, Khanna, &
Choudhary, 2019). Tertiary water treatment plants have been installed in Koyambedu,
with a capacity of 45 MLD and will likely cater to the needs of SIPCOT industrial belt
(automobile industry). This additional water supply will allow 20 MLD of water to be
diverted for domestic purposes from Chembarambakkam. The government has also
begun de-silting of this reservoir to revive functionality, where the Water Resources
department will remove more than 15 million cubic meters of silt in the span of next
eight years.
3) Delhi
Delhi, the national capital of the country, is home to almost 20 million people (over 30
million if we consider the wider region) and several small and medium scale industries. It
is one of India’s fastest growing cities, with a total GDP of USD 122 billion (2019) and over
12 per cent average annual growth rate. The city is one of the fastest growing in terms of
population in the world, and the most urbanized region in India with 97.5 per cent urban
population, that adds to the high degrees of water stress especially in the summer
months. The city and immediate neighbourhoods (National Capital Territory) are
projected to overtake Tokyo by 2028 with an expected population of 37.2 million. Is the
capital of one of the most populous countries in the world ready for this?
➢ Water Snapshot
The Delhi Jal Board (DJB) is responsible for the production and distribution of drinking
water in the city. It is also responsible for collection, treatment and disposal of domestic
sewage. DJB gets raw water, which is then treated and supplied as potable water to New
Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) and Delhi Cantonment Board. According to the DJB,
approximately 82 per cent of the city receives piped water supply. The DJB draws water
from varying sources: 34 per cent from Ganga, 60 per cent from Yamuna, and the rest
from Bhakra Storage and underground water. Additional sources also include Tehri,
Renukal, and Kishau dams (Safe Water Network, 2016). There are 14 water treatment
plants in Delhi and DJB has received funding for another in Okhla, which is set to be the
largest sewage treatment plant in India. The plant in Okhla is expected to increase the
water supply capacity by 11 per cent. The treated water will be used to recharge 56 water
bodies in the area around the plant. DJB also offers 50 per cent subsidy to Cooperative
Group Housing Societies for rainwater harvesting. Implementation of the scheme,
however, has been poor.
4) Kolkata
Kolkata, the capital city of West Bengal, built along the banks of the Hooghly River, is one
of the most important economic hubs in eastern India. Kolkata’s Syama Prasad
Mookerjee, one of the two major ports in West Bengal, handled 63.8 million tons of
traffic in goods in 2018-2019. The port is of strategic value to Nepal, Bhutan and
Bangladesh and is an attractive destination for investment: domestic and foreign. Kolkata
is the seventh most populated city in India, therefore population growth and economic
activity will be severely curtailed if plans are not put in place to manage the growing
water stress, and uneven demand and distribution of water. A growing gap in demand
and supply, high instances of UFW, theft and depleting groundwater, will not only result
in acute water shortage for Kolkata’s 5 million people, but also uncertainties and
potential loss of revenue for industries, including the paper industry, IT and financial
sectors
➢ Water Snapshot
Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) has three major Water Treatment Plants (WTP) that
draw water from Hooghly River and supply 2045 MLD to the residents (Palta Waterworks-
1227 MLD, Garden Reach WTP682 MLD, and Dhapa WTP- 136 MLD). An additional 59
MLD is supplied by WTPs of Jorabagan and Watgunj. About 305 MLD, drawn from
groundwater, increases official supply to 2409 MLD (approximately 879 billion litres)
annually. The government plans to install new plants at Garden Reach additional 113.6
MLD capacity) and at Palta Waterworks (additional 90 MLD capacity), in order to manage
the increasing demand of water in the city. Per capita consumption of water in Kolkata is
around 202 liters per day. According to official figures, there are 17,000 water hydrants,
12,000 hand tube wells and 2,500 large tube wells in the city that draw groundwater,
however, the actual figures may be much higher. Several new apartments in the city have
installed their own bore wells to draw water from the ground. A KMC report anticipates a
likely drop to 11 meters from the current level of 7 meters of Kolkata’s groundwater level.
This will not only increase the stress on groundwater (11 per cent of the city depends on
groundwater), but will also lead to a drop in quality of the water available. According to a
study by Jadavpur University, nearly 55 per cent of groundwater contains high levels of
arsenic, making it unfit for use.
5) Mumbai
The commercial capital of India and summer capital of Maharashtra, the bustling
overcrowded city of Mumbai, is one of the many cities named by the 2018 NITI Aayog
Report that is likely to face acute stress by 2021. While the report might be considered
alarmist and extreme, there is no doubt that the city is severely water stressed with
unequal distribution of water, lack of access, poor infrastructure in parts of the city,
limited means to augment natural water sources and minimal rainwater harvesting.
Mumbai is also overly dependent on annual rainfall precipitation, which is increasingly
affected by the erratic changes in the climate. Some of Mumbai’s growing commercial
spaces such as Bandra-Kurla Complex, Worli and Parel, especially for new media and
advertising agencies, banks and pharma companies, and key industrial zones such as
SEEPZ and Marol are prone to excessive flooding in the monsoon and water shortages in
the summer.
➢ Water Snapshot
The city of Mumbai has a high population density with a significant floating population.
Water supply for Mumbai city is governed by the Municipal Corporation of Greater
Mumbai (MCGM). Water is drawn from a system of water reservoirs and lakes. All of
Greater Mumbai’s water reservoirs are located in the catchment area of four major
rivers- Vaitarna, Ulhas, Patalganga and Amba. The basin area of these rivers is jointly
known as the Mumbai Hydrometric Area (MHA), managed by the Department of
Irrigation. Mumbai city relies on six lakes (Tulsi, Tansa, Vihar, Upper Vaitarna, Bhatsa and
Mumbai III) that are primarily dependent on monsoon precipitation. Bhatsa and Vaitarna
are the major water suppliers followed by Mumbai III and Tansa. These six lakes together
have the capacity of 1447 billion litres and provide 3800 million litres of water every day.
6) Surat
Surat, located on the banks of the Tapi River, is an important industrial city of Gujarat and
one of the top ten contributors to India’s GDP. One of the fastest growing urban centres
in the world, it also ranks in India’s top ten richest cities. A 2019 report by Oxford
Economics predicts that the city will see an average annual GDP growth rate of 9.2 per
cent from 2019 to 2035. Economic demand coupled with population growth (at a rate of
over 7 per cent) has seen Surat face water shortages, especially in the summer months.
Interestingly, Surat is one of the first cities in the country to develop a unique resilience
action plan to tackle extreme heat, which could aid in water sustainability measures for
the future.
➢ Water Snapshot
The Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) draws water primarily from the Ukai Dam on the
Tapi River. According to government data, the intake capacity to draw water from the
dam stood at 2033 MLD in 2015, and the water treatment capacity stood at 1468 MLD.
The total water supply to the city is 1250 MLD, where the SMC provides piped supply to
95 per cent of its residents. Summer months, however, see a drastic drop in supply. The
lack of maintenance has led to malfunctioning of intake wells where water hyacinth and
vegetation choke the flow of water. It is reported that SMC was supplying as much as 25
per cent less than the normal amount to its residents during certain periods of 2019.
Another major challenge for Surat has been unpredictability of the monsoon and scanty
rainfall. The 1995 master plan for SMC, included plans to increase capacity of intake well
up to 2425 MLD by 2041 to meet the expected demand of 2367 MLD. However, by the
end of the decade in 2030, the shortage is likely to be close to 200MLD, or 73 billion litres
of water.
➢ The Commission For Hydrology And The
Commission For Climatology
The Commission for Hydrology has proposed joint activities
with the Commission for Climatology that will focus on the
following areas:
o Complete the identification of climate-sensitive stations and analysis of
their data (including obtaining the data (with the assistance of the Global
Runoff Data Centre) and undertaking trend detection studies);
o Prepare guidance material on seasonal flow forecasting (in association with
hydrological forecasting and prediction and hydrological disaster risk
reduction theme)—including quantifying uncertainties;
o Prepare guidance material on the potential use of the current capabilities in
regional climate modelling for water resources assessment and
management;
o Prepare guidance material on the climate information requirements of
water resources managers for operations, long-term planning and design;
o Prepare guidance material on drought forecasting and indices—including
quantifying uncertainties.
➢ National Meteorological and Hydrological
Services
The WMO Convention reaffirms the importance of National
Meteorological, Hydrometeorological and Hydrological Services in
observing and understanding weather and climate and in providing
related services in support of national needs, especially when it
pertains to:
o Protection of life and property
o Safeguarding the environment
o Contributing to sustainable development
o Promoting long-term observation and collection of meteorological,
hydrological and climatological data, including related environmental
data
o Promotion of endogenous capacity development
o Meeting international commitments
o Contributing to international cooperation
