Singapores Water Management ~ case study ~

• Singapore


  Singapore has no natural lakes or rivers on the surface or aquifers beneath

  
  

  All fresh water comes from rainfall (only 240 cm per yr)

  
  

  5.5 million people on a land area of about 700 sq. km = 400 million gallons of water needed per day

  
  

  as a low-lying country, Singapore faced the threat of inland flooding, an issue that was exacerbated as development geared up in the post-independence years. Recurring droughts and floods further heightened the risk to property and residents and complicated the management of scarce water resources.

  
  

  A city state (719.2 km2), located just off the southern tip of Peninsular Malaysia

  
  

  Tropical climate with average temperatures of 27°C, high humidity and 2,300 mm average annual rainfall

  
  

  Population: 5.6 million with a density of 7,797 people per km2

  
  

  GDP US$56,700 per capita making it the third richest country in the world after Qatar and Luxembourg

  
  

  Although Singapore lacks space and has few natural resources, innovation and technology play a key role in improving the country's water security

  
  

  Singapore is fortunate to have the levels of wealth and expertise necessary to support such initiatives.
• Singapore's water demand


  430 million gallons a day (mgd).

  
  

  Domestic consumption 45% and non domestic consumption 55%

  
  

  After 17 years of no change, Singapore's water price is set to rise by 30% over the next 2 years
• PUB - The Public Utilities Board (Singapore's national water agency)


  national water agency water works

  
  

  captures rainwater

  
  

  integrated water management

  
  

  has successfully closed the 'water loop' and manages the whole water cycle from rainwater collection to the purification and supply of drinking water, to the treatment of used water and its reclamation into NEWater

  
  

  takes an integrated, systems approach to water resource management, encouraging collaboration between different agencies.
• Four National Taps


  water supply strategy

  
  

  these are water from local catchment, imported water, reclaimed water (branded NEWater in Singapore) and desalinated water.

  
  

  network of drains, rivers and canals and stored in 14 reservoirs
• how it works


  half to two-thirds of the nation's land surface by 2009 used as water catchment to harness storm water

  
  

  national water agency water works has capacity of 60 million gallons a day meeting WHO water standards

  
  

  Rain waters held and caught in reservoirs, raw water from the Alita reservoir is pumped to the waterworks and is treated, tested and filtered, tested, disinfected and tested again

  
  

  also put in place overall water demand management program and the efficient management of water demand includes proper handling of the transmission and distribution network to minimize losses and implementation of water conservation measures meaning unaccounted-for-water was significantly reduced from 11% in the 1980s to 5% today, one of the lowest rates in the world.
• positives


  Means water doesn't have to be imported from outside country

  
  

  Since 2004, the water agency has introduced a series of programs to encourage and demonstrate to the public how they can help to conserve water by incorporating good water practices in their daily lives.

  
  

  New long-term program called Active, Beautiful, Clean (ABC) Waters, which will bring Singaporeans even closer to water so they can better appreciate it = transform the drains, canals and reservoirs into vibrant streams, rivers and lakes, creating beautiful new spaces for the community's enjoyment.

  
  

  Singapore aims to become self-sufficient in water by 2062

  
  

  This means moving away from relying on imported water and increasing the supply from catchment water, recycled water and sea water.
• NEWater


  high-grade reclaimed water produced from treated used water that is further purified using advanced membrane technologies (microfiltration, RO and ultraviolet disinfection), making the water ultra-clean and safe to drink. NEWater has passed more than 30,000 scientific tests and surpasses World Health Organization requirements.

  
  

  primarily supplied to non-domestic sectors e.g. wafer fabrication parks, industrial estates and commercial buildings for industrial and air-cooling purposes and small % is also mixed with raw reservoir water before being treated at the waterworks as drinking water.

  
  

  Four NEWater plants, which can meet 15 percent of Singapore's water needs; a fifth plant is in the pipeline
• hahah I love that u dropped out / its too scary / leave him wanting more / skater language brings you back down to earth / loved your outfit