Why is surface water treated differently in different communities?
Water may be treated differently in different communities depending on the quality of the water that enters the treatment plant. Typically, surface water requires more treatment and filtration than ground water because lakes, rivers, and streams contain more sediment and pollutants and are more likely to be contaminated than ground water.
How to treat your community’s water?
The 4 Steps of Treating Your Community’s Water 1 Coagulation and Flocculation. In coagulation, positively charged chemicals such as aluminum... 2 Sedimentation. The second stage takes place when the suspended matter and pathogens settle at... 3 Filtration. At this stage, the floc particles have settled to the bottom...
What is the community water treatment process?
Community Water Treatment. Sedimentation During sedimentation, floc settles to the bottom of the water supply, due to its weight. This settling process is called sedimentation. Filtration Once the floc has settled to the bottom of the water supply, the clear water on top will pass through filters of varying compositions (sand, gravel,...
Why do we need water treatment?
Drinking water sources are subject to contamination and require appropriate treatment to remove disease-causing agents. Public drinking water systems use various methods of water treatment to provide safe drinking water for their communities.
Abstract
Sustainable approaches to water management require broad community acceptance of changes in policy, practice and technology, which in turn, requires an engaged community. A critical first step in building an engaged community is to identify community knowledge about water management, an issue rarely examined in research.
Figures
Citation: Dean AJ, Fielding KS, Newton FJ (2016) Community Knowledge about Water: Who Has Better Knowledge and Is This Associated with Water-Related Behaviors and Support for Water-Related Policies? PLoS ONE 11 (7): e0159063. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0159063
Introduction
Ensuring future sustainability of freshwater resources has prompted the need for new paradigms in water management [ 1, 2 ]. Traditional water management approaches focused on ensuring adequate water supply, and providing sanitation through wastewater management [ 3 ].
Materials and Methods
A total of 5194 adults residing in Australia were recruited by a social research company permission-based, online panel. The sampling frame aimed to ensure a representative sample of the Australian population, based on gender, age, education and state of residence.
Results
Respondents comprised a representative sample of 5194 Australian adults (mean age 46.9±16.3 years; 50.9% female). The majority of respondents lived in urban centres (77.3%), had qualifications beyond high school (69.1%), and were employed (54.0%) ( S1 Table ).
Discussion
To our knowledge, the current study is the first to comprehensively examine factors associated with water-related knowledge among a nationally-representative community sample. Our findings identify strengths and weaknesses in knowledge about water-related issues, and a range of factors associated with this knowledge.
Conclusions
This is the first nationally-representative study to examine water-related knowledge and its determinants. Study findings highlight a range of content areas where individuals have poor knowledge, especially regarding management of stormwater and wastewater.
How many people get their water from the water system?
According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), 286 million people get their drinking water from a community water system. To make water safe for public consumption, it undergoes a series of treatments and tests on its journey from source to tap. Let’s explore some of the risks associated with drinking contaminated water, ...
What are the risks of drinking water?
Drinking water has the potential to be contaminated at its source as well as within the water distribution system. The EPA is responsible for regulating the quality of the drinking water in the U.S. and sets the maximum allowable levels for concentrations of various contaminants. Some of these are chemicals, organisms and pollutants that lead to dangerous health effects such as neurological disorders, gastrointestinal illness, reproductive issues, and increased risks for illness in people with compromised immune systems. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ranked the top 10 contaminants in water systems that cause health issues: 1 Giardia 2 Legionella 3 Norovirus 4 Shigella 5 Compylobacter 6 Copper 7 Salmonella 8 Hepatitis A 9 Cryptosporidium 10 E.coli and excess fluoride (tied)
Why is floc filtration necessary?
Filtration is necessary due to the small, dissolved particles that are still present in clear water, which include dust, parasites, chemicals, viruses, and bacteria.
Why is sedimentation more effective?
Coagulation makes the sedimentation process more effective because it makes the particles larger and heavier, causing them to sink more quickly . For a community water supply, the sedimentation process must happen continuously and in large sedimentation basins.
What happens to the particles after coagulation?
After coagulation, a gentle mixing known as flocculation occurs, causing microflocs to collide with each other and bond together to form visible suspended particles.
What is the main effect of disinfection?
The main effect of the disinfection process is to oxidize and eliminate organic matter, which prevents the spread of parasites, viruses, and bacteria that may remain in the drinking water.
What is the second stage of sedimentation?
2. Sedimentation. The second stage takes place when the suspended matter and pathogens settle at the bottom of a container. The longer the water sits undisturbed, the more solids will succumb to gravity and fall to the container floor.
What are the four core values of community based research?
These guidelines are built on four core values of community-based Indigenous research: respect, responsibility, reciprocity and relevance.
Do Indigenous people share their knowledge?
Nevertheless, Indigenous peoples are often wary about sharing all of their knowledge, as not all knowledge is appropriate for sharing with all people. For example, it can be difficult for Indigenous communities to share their traditional knowledge without giving away sensitive cultural information.
How does water help to eliminate poverty?
Poverty and lack of clean water go hand-in-hand, and a key component to eliminating poverty is having access to safe water. When water supplies are improved and sustainable, it significantly enhances a community’s economic growth and reduces poverty.
Why is clean water important?
Clean water is crucial to healthy ecosystems. Consider that the human body comprises 60% water, and the human brain is 75% water. Then the earth being composed of about 71% water.
How is water, energy, and food production related?
When communities don’t have access to clean water for energy and food production, they resort to irrigating crops with untreated wastewater, which leads to water-borne diseases. It is estimated that less than 10% of collected wastewater globally is treated.
How old are wastewater treatment plants?
The Clean Water Act spurred the construction of wastewater treatment plants beginning in the 1970s. Many of those plants are now at least 30 years old. The 2000 Community Water System Survey found that for drinking water systems that serve more than 100,000 people, about 30 percent of the pipes are between 40 and 80 years old ...
Why is water infrastructure important?
Effective water infrastructure systems help safeguard public health from waterborne and sewage-related infectious bacteria, viruses, parasites, and toxic chemicals. By placing water infrastructure on a sustainable path, local officials leave a lasting legacy of community well-being that passes on to future generations.
What is LGAC in water?
Local Government Advisory Committee ( LGAC) is a chartered body made up of local officials from across the country. The Committee gives independent advice to EPA on issues important to local governments. With fiscal support from EPA, LGAC prepared a short video and an accompanying "Successful Strategies" paper to reach out to peers about the importance of water infrastructure.
What is water infrastructure?
A community's water infrastructure includes all the man-made and natural features that move and treat water. While holistically it is all part of the same system, it is often convenient to think about infrastructure in terms of drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater. The elements and scale of these systems vary with each community.
How does infrastructure benefit the environment?
Environmental Benefits: Infrastructure not managed sustainably causes increased pollution to waterways that harms wildlife and the ecosystem. Adopting more efficient management practices can greatly reduce water and energy usage, leading to decreased greenhouse gas emissions and reduced strain on natural resources.
How does development affect water quality?
Development affects both the quantity and quality of water by changing the natural flow of stormwater runoff in a watershed. When rain hits impervious surfaces such as roofs, streets, and parking lots, it flows off in large quantities, carrying pollutants it picks up from the surfaces. The runoff's increased quantity and speed erode stream channels and destabilize their banks, while pollutants harm plants and wildlife in rivers, streams, and bays. Additionally, increased runoff can cause water treatment plants to overflow, releasing untreated sewage into water bodies.
How can green infrastructure help the environment?
In addition to protecting water quality, these green infrastructure practices can make streets and buildings more attractive and reduce ambient air temperatures.
How can smart growth help communities?
Smart growth strategies can help communities accommodate development in safer areas, integrate green infrastructure into streets and neighborhoods to reduce stormwater runoff, and use water more efficiently.
What is EPA's green infrastructure program?
One program that focuses on green infrastructure is Greening America's Communities, which helps cities and towns develop environmentally friendly designs for a neighborhood that can serve as a model for other communities. These designs incorporate innovative green infrastructure strategies. EPA works with other federal agencies to provide this design assistance and help city staff develop implementation strategies.
What is a sustainable design toolkit?
Sustainable Design and Green Building Toolkit for Local Governments (2013): Addresses the local codes of ordinances that affect the design, construction, renovation, and operation and maintenance of a building and its immediate site (including elements that affect water use) to help local governments, the development community, and other building professionals identify and remove barriers to sustainable design and green building in their permitting processes.