Planning for Water Reuse

Abstract

The problems of reusing waters from polluted rivers and from wastewaters may be solved efficiently in various ways that will increase the supplies of both potable and nonpotable waters.

Closure to “From Cholera to Cancer to Cryptosporidiosis” by Daniel A. Okun

“…In th e 1950s, Gordon M. Fair of Harvard su ggested du al water su pplies at m eetin gs of th e Nation al Research Cou ncil's Com m ittee on San itary En gin eerin g an d En vironm en t. In 1965, Pau l Han ey en larged on th e idea in th e first pu blish ed article on du al system s. 5 In 1960, a large-scale m un icipal du al system for th e sale of reclaim ed water to u rban cu stom ers was establish ed on a lim ited basis in Colorado Sprin gs, Colo. 6 In recogn ition of th e h eavy dem an ds on h igh -qu ality water sou rces in th is rapidly growin g region at th e foot of th e Rocky Mou n tain s, abou t a th ird of th e city's secon dary efflu en t was given tertiary treatm en t-rapid san d filtration an d disin fection with ch lorin e-for sale to largescale irrigation cu stom ers su ch as college cam pu ses, golf cou rses, cem eteries, an d oth er large u rban u sers. Available at a price of abou t two th irds th e cost of potable water, th e reclaim ed water was in great dem an d.…”

Frameworks for urban water sustainability

“…Water infrastructure is essential for modern cities. Since the 1960s urban water systems have been the subject of concerns about sustainability, consistent with the wider environmental movement and sustainable development (Brown, Keath, & Wong, 2009;Grigg, 1986;Novotny, Ahern, & Brown, 2010;Okun, 1973;Okun, Baxter, Graeser, & Halff, 1969). Urban water sustainability is presented under different labels, for example, Sustainable Urban Water Management (SUWM) (Marlow, Moglia, Cook, & Beale, 2013), Integrated Urban Water Management (IUWM) (Gabe, Trowsdale, & Vale, 2009), and Water Sensitive Cities .…”

Water Reclamation and Unrestricted Nonpotable Reuse: A New Tool in Urban Water Management

“…One of the most noteworthy was the construction in 1942 of a 2.4-m (96-inch) pipeline 7.2 km (4.4 mi) from the Baltimore Back River wastewater treatment plant to deliver about 4.5 m 3 /s (100 mgd) to the Sparrows Point plant of the Bethlehem Steel Company for process use, cooling water being provided by once-through passage of water obtained from a nearby watercourse. This reclamation program served to significantly reduce the demand on Baltimore's limited upland water supply and simultaneously reduced wastewater discharges from the city to local receiving waters (19). Power plants began to be major users of reclaimed water for cooling tower make-up (33).…”

“…A large-scale municipal dual system for the sale of reclaimed water to urban customers was established on a limited basis in Colorado Springs in 1960 (19). Because of the demand for high-quality sources of water for the rapidly growing region at the foot of the Rocky Mountains, about one third of the secondary effluent from Colorado Springs was given tertiary treatment for sale for landscape irrigation to college campuses, golf courses, cemeteries, and other large urban users.…”