Innovative water management to improve water supply and combat shortages in Indian cities
Providing a secure source of clean water to urban residents is a growing challenge for governments around the world. Natural water systems like soil filtration or natural bioreactors offer a potential solution, but they need to be tested further. The EU-India funded NAWATECH (Natural water systems and treatment technologies to cope with water shortages in urbanised areas in India) project is a research cooperation between European and Indian researchers and SME´s responding to a joint call for proposals from the European Commission and Indian Department of Science and Technology. Overall, the objective was to evaluate natural water systems for urban areas in India. Project partners promoted integrated water management approaches to combat water shortages in urban India, focusing on natural and compact technical water treatment systems with low O&M requirements. Specifically, they assessed and enhanced the potential of natural and technical water treatment systems to suit local conditions and cope with water shortage in urban areas. The use of various urban water flows was optimised by treating each of these flows through a modular natural system that considers the different nature and degree of pollution for water sources. These systems were also able to treat heavily polluted water in order to reuse it and to supplement traditional sources to tackle short- and long-term water shortages. To commercialise the NAWATECH system, researchers gathered financial, environmental and institutional data on the sustainability of such systems. A comprehensive Safety and O&M plan was developed to ensure the replicability and sustainability of the systems. A web-based knowledge platform containing all major project results and information was set up. It helps Indian water practitioners and entrepreneurs implement further systems and develop their ventures in water and wastewater sectors. NAWATECH brought together all key urban water management stakeholders – academia, research, industry, end users and decision-makers – collectively known as a Community of Practice. This alliance is tasked with creating an impact beyond the project on the implementation of research and dissemination activities by considering local problems and needs. Through its cost-efficient, multi-barrier water management approach, NAWATECH will ultimately contribute to improved water security and much less polluted water sources.
Keywords
Water management, natural water treatment, NAWATECH, water shortages, urban areas
