Water reuse in perspective: progress made and current challenges - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Water reuse in perspective: progress made and current challenges

Rafael Mujeriego

• Prof. Emeritus Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya

President of ASERSA

Congratulations t0…

• Program Committee, IWA and Water Reuse Specialist

Group (WRSG) members and CEBAS-CSIC for the excellent program

• Covering

‒ Emblematic cases of water reuse for agricultural irrigation ‒ Its socio-economic and environmental aspects ‒ The benefits and potential negative impacts associated ‒ Implementation of new technologies for high quality water ‒ Monitoring of reclaimed water quality parameters ‒ Future challenges of water reuse in food production

• One devoted to public perception, risks and regulations,

and closing the gap for public acceptance

Water reuse progress in IWA

• Specialists groups was an 1980’s strategy for IAWPRC
• 1986, first initiative for SGWR: Dr. Asano at Rio de Janeiro
• 1987, approval by IAWPRC management committee
• 1988, first SGWR formal meeting at Brighton
• By September 1991, the first international Symposium, in

Costa Brava, Girona, Spain

• Followed by a series of Symposia and Conferences
• 2017, the 11th Conference in Long Beach, California
• 2019, the next venue in Berlin, 16 – 20 June
• In addition, specialized Regional Conferences

This regional conference

• Another success story of that long series of events
• Focused on water reuse in agriculture
• With special emphasis on salinity management
• Of particular interest in Mediterranean climate areas
• Where rainfall may not be able to balance or counteract

salt buildup in the root zone by natural evapotranspiration

Overall perspective…

• WRSG promoting water reuse from more than 3 decades
• Technical and economic excellence are instrumental for

succeeding in planning, approval and implementation

• One critical limiting factor in most latitudes:
• The development and application of adequate regulations
• Although incidental water reuse is not new…

….it has been taking place in our waterways…

• Planned water reuse still has to become legitimate
• It is negatively perceived by the public and even strictly

forbidden by some water regulations

Worldwide interest

• During all those 30 years, we have witnessed an increasing

and impressive worldwide interest in the advancement of water reclamation and reuse

• From the most diverse perspectives:

‒ Institutional ‒ Regulatory agencies ‒ Publications ‒ Associations and collaboration ‒ Actual water projects

Globalization…

• We enjoy an spectacular availability of:

‒ Water quality and regulation ‒ Scientific and technical knowledge ‒ Practical experience ‒ Cost and financial strategies

• Using the most diverse technologies:

‒ Nature based ‒ Conventional ‒ Advanced

• Exchange faster (Internet) and accessible (Open Journals)

Institutional…

Criteria and regulations…

…IWA publications…

Associations…

Water reuse projects…

…landscape in CCB, 1989…

Title 22, Vitoria-Gasteiz, 1994

Wetlands, CCB, 1998

…in Port Aventura, 1995…

…Tossa de Mar, CCB, 2007

…Lloret de Mar, CCB, 2007

Landscape & street, Madrid

Agriculture in Murcia, 2002

100 hm3/y (planned and indirect)

EU Assessment 2014

Irrigation with reclaimed water

• It is an old tradition, with diverse levels of treatment
• A recent article, authored by a group of founding WRSG

members, clearly describes the historical evolution of wastewater collection, treatment and disposal

• Our Greek and Roman settlements clearly show examples
• f those early attempts to address urban sanitation
• During the intense urban development of the 18th century

land disposal assured sanitation and irrigation

The Monterey Project, 1980-85

• One of the best-controlled and documented studies on the

benefits of water reuse for agriculture irrigation

• Considered the quality implications prevailing at the time

for crops, soils and groundwater

• Beyond the well-known scientific and technical aspects of

the project, others were equally important for success

• A regulatory framework favoring a collaborative

relationship between water resources and public health agencies, and support of the University of California

• An extensive effort was made to assess public perception

and acceptance from all stakeholders

Earlier sources of inspiration

• G. Pettygrove y T. Asano

25 years later

An Advisory Panel…

Epidemiological evidence…

• …provided the Panel with additional evidence to confirm

the conclusion …that modifying the standards to make them more restrictive will not measurably improve public health (2012).

• …Monterey County recycled water used for irrigation of

leafy greens and other produce is a local example of the reuse of treated wastewater for an extended period without any known link to human illness.

• FDA dismissed irrigation with reclaimed water as causative

agent during a 2007 food poisoning with fresh spinach

• In clear contrast to the Spanish “cucumber crisis” in 2011

New droughts in the 1990s

• New reclaimed water uses were adopted, mainly for

industrial use and further momentum was given to the recharge of potable water aquifers

• A change took place in the protocols for developing quality

criteria for those uses

• State offers funding grants, but leaves to users the

responsibility to demonstrate water quality compliance

• An emblematic example: 2012 Potable Reuse Initiative
• Advisory panels became instrumental, within a favorable

collaboration framework of project proponents, public health authorities and water resources agencies

An efficient framework

• A new institutional framework emerged, involving

‒ project proponents ‒ demonstration facilities ‒ advisory panels ‒ water resources and public health agencies ‒ proactive programs for public information, outreach and acceptance

• Has become an efficient way to advance in the

development of successful water reuse regulations and projects

Emblematic examples…

• June 2014, final Regulations for Groundwater Replenishment
• December 2016, Report to Legislature on the Feasibility of

Using Recycled Water for Drinking Water

• March 2018, new Regulations for Surface Water

Augmentation using reservoirs

• April 2018, a proposal for Regulating Direct Potable Reuse
• April 2018, Recommendations of Monitoring Strategies for

Constituents of Emerging Concerns in Reclaimed Water (an update of the 2010 version)

• In summary: a working framework with the potential for

helping many in the Mediterranean region to advance in the development of regulations for water reuse

As an illustration…

• The success of the agricultural sector relay on the ability to

produce excellent crops that meet the quality and quantity requirements established by

‒ regulatory agencies ‒ consumers and ‒ all involved in collection, storage, transportation and marketing

• However, in order to succeed economically, those crops

have to be converted in “real added-value” products

• Need for additional organizational steps beyond those

necessary to grow and produce the farming products

The water reuse sector…

• Mediterranean countries, regions and cities host

‒ excellent scientists and engineers ‒ good experimental and research facilities ‒ considerable knowledge and experience ‒ numerous excellent water reuse projects and ‒ certainly a great number of satisfied users

• We have serious difficulties in crystalizing all those

ingredients into effective practical regulations and water policies

• We need to develop “added-value” solutions for water

reclamation and reuse

The EU Commission proposal…

• For a regulation on Minimum quality requirements for

water reuse

• The difficulties and time is has taken to advance,

particularly trying to produce a EU-wide regulation

• A considerable knowledge is available at

‒ the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) ‒ the Scientific Committee on Health, Environmental and Emerging Risks (SCHEER) and ‒ the staff and the national and international advisors of the EC-Joint Research Center

• The proposal is still limited (irrigation and groundwater

recharge) and pending from a wide debate

The water salinity issue…

• The report on Accounting for Salinity Leaching (SCSC)
• ffers another example on how to combine information in

practical manuals for salinity management

• We have plenty of information and experience available for

discarding permanent concerns in agricultural production

• We should be able to take the lead, get organize and

prepare an expert review on salinity management during irrigation with reclaimed water

• To assist authorities and get their support for its

promotion at local, regional or larger levels

An integrated (systemic) view…

• We should take the opportunity to approach salinity from a

systemic vision:

‒ beyond salt accumulation at the root zones due to evapotranspiration and leaching effects ‒ Including other management elements like ‒ the benefits from desalinated water as an urban water supply source ‒ the precautions with ion-exchange water softeners and other processes generating salt rejections

In summary…

• Science and technology are core elements of water

reclamation and reuse, but technical excellence is not guarantee of success

• There are effective institutional protocols for developing

regulations for reclaimed water use

• Monitoring results should be interpreted as to dissipate

public concerns raised by detection of new constituents

• Institutional and stakeholders efforts should be devoted to

promote information, outreach and educational campaigns

• Water agencies should intensify transparency and
• utreach on water reuse, on technological and non-

technical features

…in addition…

• Water reuse is a very site-specific strategy and poses

considerable difficulties when applied uniformly

• It is a consequence of necessity and opportunity
• Sanitation is the basis for reclamation and reuse, but can

be a simultaneous strategy

• Source control is a priority, to diminish reliance on dilution,

assure environmental quality and lower treatment requirements at downstream water abstractions points

• We have to get organized as to produce “real added-

value” documents, synthesizing results for action

• An expert view on salinity and irrigation with reclaimed

water should greatly advance its practice

A final remark on units…

Safe water reuse for farmers, citizens and the environment EC Memo, 28 May 2018 Potable reuse: Guidance for producing safe drinking-water WHO 2017

The BIPM and the SI units…

• Due consideration to former scientists and engineers,

concerned about accuracy and precision

• The Bureau International of Poids et Messures (BIPM):

created in 1875, a treaty among 59 nations (March 2018)

• To promote and advance the global comparability of

measurements for:

‒ Scientific discovery and innovation ‒ Industrial manufacturing and international trade ‒ Improving the quality of life and sustaining the global environment

• Billions, 3 orders of magnitude between short and long
• The decimal marker: as customary in the text language

• Dr. Takashi Asano best wishes

Remembering many wonderful visits to Murcia Region, my sincere congratulations for the IWA Regional Conference on Water Reuse and Salinity Management

• rganized by CEBAS-CSIC.

Best wishes for a successful conference and warmest regards to Murcia and IWA friends. Takashi Asano Professor Emeritus University of California, Davis, USA

Thank you for your attention