M. Anda

Integrated waste management

The concept of integrated waste management (IWM) has been developed to provide a means towards sustainability. Population growth coupled with increasing consumption have increased the amount of waste generated across the world while also facilitating the use of IWM to divert waste from landfill toward more long-term sustainable options such as reuse and recycling programmes — programmes that also maintain the longevity of a products life and reduce pressure on natural resources (Figure 26.1) (Ami et al., 2002). The other major factor influencing the formation of IWM strategies is social pressure Huang et al., 2001), Social pressure has been found to cause authorities to implement IWM strategies even where landfill space is available Barth. 2000) and has originated with increased education levels among consumers about current unsustainable and sustainable waste practices (Clarke et al., l99; Huang et al., 2001). The success of IWM strategies is largely attributed to the degree of social acceptance, such that the landfill problem associated with high population density areas has been found to stem from a low social acceptance of reuse and recycling programmes, rather than their absence (Ami et al.. 2002; Bradshaw and Ozores-Hampton, 2002: Mohee, 2002: Poon et al., 2001). An assessment of the social acceptance of IWM strategies is now a precursor for most new programmes and the technologies chosen for 1W M may he dependent on social factors (Kwawe, 2002).

A monitoring of environmental effects from household greywater reuse for garden irrigation.

The option of reusing greywater is proving to be increasingly attractive to address the water shortage issue in many arid and semiarid countries. Greywater represents a constant resource, since an approximately constant amount of greywater is generated from kitchen, laundries, bathroom in every household daily, independent of the weather. However, the use of greywater for irrigation in particular for household gardening may pose major hazards that have not been studied thoroughly. In this study, a 1-year monitoring was conducted in four selected households in Perth, Western Australia. The aim of the monitoring works is to investigate the variability in the greywater flow and quality, and to understand its impact in the surrounding environments. Case studies were selected based on different family structure including number, ages of the occupants, and greywater system they used. Samples of greywater effluent (showers, laundries, bathtub, and sinks), leachate, soil, and plants at each case study were collected between October 2008 and December 2009 which covered the high (spring/summer) and low (autumn/winter) production of greywater. Physical and chemical tests were based on the literature and expected components of laundry and bathroom greywater particularly on greywater components likely to have detrimental impacts on soils, plants, and other water bodies. Monitoring results showed the greywater quality values for BOD, TSS, and pH which sometimes fell outside the range as stipulated in the guidelines. The soil analyses results showed that salinity, SAR, and the organic content of the soil increased as a function of time and affected the plant growth. Nutrient leaching or losses from soil irrigated with greywater shows the movement of nutrients and the sole impact from greywater in uncontrolled plots in case studies is difficult to predicted due to the influence of land dynamics and activities. Investigative and research monitoring was used to understand greywater irrigation in households. Greywater quality is very site specific and difficult to predetermine or control except for the use of some recommended household products when using greywater. Investigative and research monitoring was indicated that greywater quality is very site specific and difficult to predetermine or control except for the use of some recommended household products when using greywater.

Influence of site-specific parameters on environmental impacts of desalination

AbstractMany metropolitan areas have a high dependency on Seawater Reverse Osmosis (SWRO) desalination plants for bulk water supply. Location and scale decisions are important for SWRO desalination plants owing to the significant environmental costs associated with long distance water pumping. The aim of this study is to introduce a Geographical Information System (GIS)-based method to assist such site-specific decisions. The method has 3 stages. Stage 1 uses GIS to identify feasible plant locations and water demand areas. Stage 2 develops a range of scenarios that balance plant size and number with water demand. In stage 3, the preferred scenario is selected based on environmental life cycle assessment. The method’s applicability was tested using data for the northern corridor of Perth, Western Australia (WA). Spatial water demand and suitable vacant land for accommodating SWRO plants in the case study are obtained in Stage 1. Based on these spatial data, two water planning options are designed in order ...

Renewable energy in the context of environmentally sound technologies — training and research programmes at the Environmental Technology Centre, Murdoch University

The Murdoch University Environmental Technology Centre is an operational site where renewable energy systems are integrated into the overall functioning of the Centre within the broader context of environmentally sound technologies (ESTs). Research and training programmes in renewable energies, energy efficiency strategies and energy conservation, and how they integrate with ESTs have been developed. They have been applied through a range of low-cost short courses, undergraduate teaching, industry training initiatives, international and institutional programmes.

A solar-powered village water supply system from brackish water

Publisher Summary This chapter presents the findings from field situations, discusses the proposed central lands installation, and describes the areas where further research is indicated. Most of remote Aboriginal communities rely on groundwater for their potable water supplies. However, this source is often highly mineralized in excess of the recommended drinking water quality guidelines for long-term human consumption. The self-contained, solar powered water supply system provides 400 liters/day of high quality, desalinated drinking water. A system, capable of meeting the requirements of larger communities of up to 150 people, providing 1500 liter/day is currently in the prototype stage and undergoing performance monitoring before entering commercial production.

A bubble column evaporator with basic flat-plate condenser for brackish and seawater desalination

This paper describes the development and experimental evaluation of a novel bubble column-based humidification–dehumidification system, for small-scale desalination of saline groundwater or seawater in remote regions. A bubble evaporator prototype was built and matched with a simple flat-plate type condenser for concept assessment. Consistent bubble evaporation rates of between 80 and 88 ml per hour were demonstrated. Particular focus was on the performance of the simple condenser prototype, manufactured from rectangular polyvinylchlorid plastic pipe and copper sheet, a material with a high thermal conductivity that quickly allows for conduction of the heat energy. Under laboratory conditions, a long narrow condenser model of 1500 mm length and 100 mm width achieved condensate recovery rates of around 73%, without the need for external cooling. The condenser prototype was assessed under a range of different physical conditions, that is, external water cooling, partial insulation and aspects of air circulation, via implementing an internal honeycomb screen structure. Estimated by extrapolation, an up-scaled bubble desalination system with a 1 m2 condenser may produce around 19 l of distilled water per day. Sodium chloride salt removal was found to be highly effective with condensate salt concentrations between 70 and 135 µS. Based on findings and with the intent to reduce material cost of the system, a shorter condenser length of 750 mm for the non-cooled (passive) condenser and of 500 mm for the water-cooled condenser was considered to be equally efficient as the experimentally evaluated prototype of 1500 mm length. GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT

A framework for planning sustainable seawater desalination water supply

A quantitative framework for sustainable desalination planning in metropolitan areas, which integrates the tools of mixed integer linear programming and life cycle assessment, is presented. The life cycle optimisation framework allows for optimal desalination planning by considering choices over intake type, staging and location of the infrastructure under different land-use, environmental and economic policies. Optimality is defined by the decision makers selected objective function, being either an environmental impact or a levelised cost indicator. The framework was tested for future desalination planning scenarios in the northern metropolitan area of Perth, Western Australia. Results indicate that multi-staged construction and decentralised planning solutions may produce lower life cycle environmental impacts (58%) and at a lower levelised cost (24%) than a centralised desalination solution currently being considered by Western Australian water planners. Sensitivity analysis results suggest that the better environmental and economic performance of decentralised planning over centralised planning is highly sensitive to the proportion of land that can be made available for the siting of decentralised plants near the demand zone. Insight into land use policies is a critical factor to the initiation and success of decentralised solution in developed metropolitan areas.

Experiences and issues for environmental engineering sensor network deployments

Sensor network research is a large and growing area of academic effort, examining technological and deployment issues in the area of environmental monitoring. These technologies are used by environmental engineers and scientists to monitor a multiplicity of environments and services, and, specific to this paper, energy and water supplied to the built environment. Although the technology is developed by Computer Science specialists, the use and deployment is traditionally performed by environmental engineers. This paper examines deployment from the perspectives of environmental engineers and scientists and asks what computer scientists can do to improve the process. The paper uses a case study to demonstrate the agile operation of WSNs within the Cloud Computing infrastructure, and thus the demand-driven, collaboration-intense paradigm of Digital Ecosystems in Complex Environments.

Transitions to a Post-carbon Society: Scenarios for Western Australia

Pathways towards a post-carbon society are being explored across all levels of government, within the scientific community and society in general. This chapter presents scenarios for cities and regions in Australia after the Age of Oil, particularly the energy-intensive state of Western Australia (WA). It argues that a post-carbon WA would ideally use technological and wider social choices to reduce carbon emissions close to zero. It focuses on policy requirements, institutional and governance arrangements and socio-technical systems to provide an industry-focussed renewable energy development plan that will help to balance ongoing and past emissions and lead to a low-carbon society.

Saline water desalination with vapour capture device: a literature review of foundational technologies and underlying principles

This review was motivated by the growing need for sustainable water supply technologies in arid lands worldwide. A key driver of this review is to evaluate the potential of presently unused freshwater sources such as from evaporative brine management technologies. In doing so, this paper provides a conceptual building block for innovative water systems in the future with a focus on ecologically, socially and economically sustainable freshwater production. The utilization of solar thermal and wind energy as the principal drivers for brackish and saline water desalination projects provides the link between the technologies and devices that are discussed and evaluated in this review. Of the solar still concepts reviewed, higher productivity rates are achieved with increased optimization of heat and mass transfer processes within the system and productivity is closely linked to the technological complexity of the stills. Water production ranges from 2 to 3 L/m2/day for passive stills up to 100 L/m2/day and more for novel systems with multiple latent heat use. Still–greenhouse systems and seawater greenhouse systems are capable of producing distilled water while providing a vital humid environment for the growth of crops in a greenhouse system. Water production rates of 0.5–2.5 L/m2/day for ‘still in a greenhouse’ systems and up to 55 L/m2/day for seawater greenhouses with improved passive condenser technology can be achieved. Water vapour producing technologies such as wind-aided intensified evaporation, solar dryer technology or the bubble column concept, are assessed for their potential to form part of a novel water desalination scheme.