The Water Recycling Revolution

A 2023 Choice Reviews Outstanding Academic Title Move past the “yuck factor” by learning the benefits and science behind recycling wastewater to beat climate change. In recent years, humans have begun to turn the age-old taboo against mixing sewage and drinking water on its head by using advanced treated wastewater to supplement a city’s drinking water supply. This increasingly widespread practice, known as potable reuse, qualifies as nothing less than a drinking water revolution. Water reuse offers a renewable, locally managed, and drought resistant water supply. The Water Recycling Revolution tracks the story of this development, examines the pros and cons, and explores its future potential. In this book, William M. Alley and Rosemarie Alley answer our most pressing questions: How do you get people to overcome the visceral reaction known as the “Yuck Factor” and not only drink, but appreciate, recycled water? What about all those pharmaceuticals and personal care products that people casually flush down the drain? Will diverting discharges from a wastewater treatment plant damage downstream users or ecosystems that previously depended on that water? And what are the implications for climate change? These questions are answered by delving into the history of major water recycling projects from California to Virginia, each with a unique story of what led them to develop potable reuse, as well as the challenges they had to overcome. Additional concerns addressed include pathogens, contaminants of emerging concern, achieving acceptable risk, onsite and decentralized reuse systems, and directpotable reuse. Recycling wastewater can make for a bright future in the fight against climate change, and this book is a valuable resource to convince readers.

The little-known story of the systems that bring us our drinking water, how they were developed, the problems they are facing, and how they will be reinvented in the near future

Think you know all about how your stuff impacts the environment? Think again! Where did all our “stuff” come from? And where does it go when we’re done with it? Kids find out by tracking the life cycles of typical items in a school backpack — water, food, clothing, paper, plastic, metals and electronics. Though they all end as waste, there are lots of decisions to be made along the way. And kids will see that there’s an important, constructive role they can play by making choices that are good for them — and for the planet! A cotton T-shirt. A plastic water bottle. A cell phone. Kids will never look at their stuff the same way again!

Water shortages are plaguing communities from coast to coast, and recycled water could help close that gap. In Purified: How Recycled Sewage Is Transforming Our Water, veteran journalist Peter Annin shows that wastewater has become a surprising weapon in America's war against water scarcity. In five water-strapped states--California, Texas, Virginia, Nevada, and Florida--current filtration technology is transforming sewage into something akin to distilled water, free of chemicals and safe to drink. But sensationalist media coverage has repeatedly crippled water recycling efforts. Can public opinion turn in time to avoid the worst consequences? Purified's fast-paced narrative cuts through the fearmongering and misinformation to make the case that recycled water is direly needed in the climate-change era. Water cannot be taken for granted anymore--and that includes sewage.

A fascinating and authoritative account of the controversies and possibilities surrounding nuclear waste disposal, providing expert discussion in down-to-earth language.

Total supply of fresh water on earth far exceeds human demand. However, scarcity of water currently faced in many regions of the world is caused by two reasons. First, its availability in time and space is not equally distributed. Thus there is problem of water in the wrong place, or at the wrong time and in wrong quantities. Second, while the population growth and expanded industrial activities are increasing demands on available water resources, they also jeopardize the availability of freshwater in adequate quantities by discharge of pollutants into freshwater sources. It is at times like these, when the rising curve of water demand intersects the fluctuating curve of water availability, recycle and reuse of wastewater is seriously considered. Wastewater recycling, reuse and reclamation have been, now, accepted as appropriate ways to conserve water resources as well as to contain polluted waters from contaminating other available clean water sources. This book gives a comprehensive review on water quantity and quality, simple water supply and sanitation systems, and leads to domestic, agricultural and industrial water reuse. Thus, it will provide useful information not only to technologists but also for planners, managers, and NGOs involved in the water sector. The contribution to the book comes from a broad pool of experts, working on technology, policy, health, and economy aspects of water management. Involvement of both academics and industry personnel from developing and developed countries makes this contribution broader and useable for a wide readership.

Americans see water as abundant and cheap: we turn on the faucet and out it gushes, for less than a penny a gallon. We use more water than any other culture in the world, much to quench what’s now our largest crop—the lawn. Yet most Americans cannot name the river or aquifer that flows to our taps, irrigates our food, and produces our electricity. And most don’t realize these freshwater sources are in deep trouble. Blue Revolution exposes the truth about the water crisis—driven not as much by lawn sprinklers as by a tradition that has encouraged everyone, from homeowners to farmers to utilities, to tap more and more. But the book also offers much reason for hope. Award-winning journalist Cynthia Barnett argues that the best solution is also the simplest and least expensive: a water ethic for America. Just as the green movement helped build awareness about energy and sustainability, so a blue movement will reconnect Americans to their water, helping us value and conserve our most life-giving resource. Avoiding past mistakes, living within our water means, and turning to “local water” as we do local foods are all part of this new, blue revolution. Reporting from across the country and around the globe, Barnett shows how people, businesses, and governments have come together to dramatically reduce water use and reverse the water crisis. Entire metro areas, such as San Antonio, Texas, have halved per capita water use. Singapore’s “closed water loop” recycles every drop. New technologies can slash agricultural irrigation in half: businesses can save a lot of water—and a lot of money—with designs as simple as recycling air-conditioning condensate. The first book to call for a national water ethic, Blue Revolution is also a powerful meditation on water and community in America.

Milestones in Water Reuse: The Best Success Stories illustrates the benefits of water reuse in integrated water resources management and its role for water cycle management, climate change adaptation and water in the cities of the future. Selected case studies are used to illustrate the different types of water reuse, i.e. agricultural irrigation, golf course and landscape irrigation, urban and industrial uses, environmental enhancement, as well as indirect and direct potable reuse. The various aspects related to water reuse are covered, including treatment technologies, water quality, economics, public acceptance, benefits, keys for success and main constraints. These international case studies highlight the best practices for the implementation of water reuse and provide the perspective for the integration of water recycling projects in the future, both for megacities and rural areas. Milestones in Water Reuse: The Best Success Stories demonstrates that planned water reuse is a cost competitive and energy-saving option to increase water availability and reliability. This book provides policy makers and regulators with a good understanding of water reuse and helps them to consider recycled water as safe and how it can be used. It is intended to be read by all people in the water sector and shows how water reuse is safe, economically viable, environmentally friendly and can provide high social benefits. Editors: Valentina Lazarova, Suez Environnement, France Takashi Asano, University of California at Davis, USA Akica Bahri, African Development Bank, Tunisia John Anderson, Afton Water, Australia

A fresh look at the world's water crises, and the existing and emerging solutions that can be used to solve them It is not your imagination: water crises are more frequent. Our twentieth-century systems for providing the water that grows food, sustains cities, and supports healthy ecosystems are failing to meet the demands of growing population and the challenges brought on by climate change. But the grim news reports--of empty reservoirs, withering crops, failing ecosystems--need not be cause for despair, argues award-winning author David Sedlak. Communities on the front lines of previous water crises have pioneered approaches that are ready to be applied elsewhere. Some have resolved shortages by enhancing water-use efficiency, and others have used moments of crisis to resolve historic disagreements over water rights. Still others have employed treatment technologies that unlock vast quantities of untapped water resources. Sedlak identifies the challenges that society faces, including ineffective policies and outdated infrastructure, and the myriad of tools at our disposal--from emerging technologies in desalination to innovations for recycling wastewater and capturing more of the water that falls on fields and cities. He offers an informed and hopeful approach for rethinking our assumptions about the way that water is managed. With this knowledge we can create a future with clean, abundant, and affordable water for all.