News

2010

03/09/10

Wastewater Remediation Technology

E3 Technologies, a new firm based in Athens, Ohio, will develop an Ohio University invention called the GreenBox which is designed to clean commercial and agricultural wastewater and produce hydrogen energy. Referred to as ‘pee power', the GreenBox converts ammonia and urea in wastewater to hydrogen, nitrogen and pure water. » more

03/09/10

WEFTEC Sessions Spotlight New Orleans

A lot has changed in New Orleans since 2004, when WEFTEC® last visited the city. In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, worldwide media attention turned toward Louisiana and New Orleans to follow the rescue and recovery efforts. But in the 5 years since that disaster, away from the limelight of politics and social impacts, engineers have labored away quietly to put the city back together. » more

02/09/10

Simply Flexible Photometer PF-12 - Compact COD Measuring Device

Macherey-Nagel, an established German manufacturer of water testing systems, offers a complete system for the chemical oxygen demand (COD) analysis in municipal and industrial waste water. This includes high quality photometers, heating blocks for sample digestion and user-friendly tube tests. » more

18/08/10

How to turn seawater into jet fuel

Faced with global warming and potential oil shortages, the US navy is experimenting with making jet fuel from seawater. Navy chemists have processed seawater into unsaturated short-chain hydrocarbons that with further refining could be made into kerosene-based jet fuel. But they will have to find a clean energy source to power the reactions if the end product is to be carbon neutral. » more

09/08/10

KSB expands India foundry

KSB Group, a member of GWP, has increased the steel foundry capacity at its Vambori, India facility. By adding two new natural gas-fired furnaces, KSB has increased steel castings output from 300 tons to 1200 tons per year. » more

30/07/10

inge watertechnologies equips steel works with ultrafiltration technology

GWP member company inge will provide the filter modules for a large seawater treatment plant which supplies water to a steel works in the Turkish city of Iskenderum on the Mediterranean. » more

08/07/10

UNESCO-IHP: New Book Series on Floods

The Section of Hydrological Processes and Climate, Division of Water Sciences, UNESCO-IHP has launched a new book series on floods as a contribution to the International Flood Initiative – IFI. The objective of the book series is to provide sound knowledge to the theory of flood disaster management and practice under the current climate change conditions. Best practices around the world and state of the art knowledge will be presented together with a set of computational tools for practical applications.
Four publications are envisaged dealing with:

• Extreme Precipitation and Climate change
• Hydrologic Modeling of Floods
• Flood Inundation Modelling
• Flood Risk Management

» more

02/07/10

Vital River Is Withering, and Iraq Has No Answer

The Shatt al Arab, the river that flows from the biblical site of the Garden of Eden to the Persian Gulf, has turned into an environmental and economic disaster that Iraq’s newly democratic government is almost powerless to fix. Withered by decades of dictatorial mismanagement and then neglect, by drought and the thirst of Iraq’s neighbors, the river formed by the convergence of the Tigris and the Euphrates no longer has the strength to keep the sea at bay. » more

18/06/10

New sewage, drainage system planned in Equatorial Guinea
As a part of a multi-year program to upgrade and enhance the infrastructure of the country, the government of Equatorial Guinea is targeting completion of a new network system for sewage and wastewater treatment and rainwater in the city of Malabo. The two-year project commenced in August 2008. » more

18/06/10

Stockholm Water Prize Laureate calls for fairer distribution of water funding
There should be more funding to help with the development of drinking water supplies and an equal amount split between the provision of safe water and the distribution of vaccines in developing countries, Dr. Rita Colwell, a leading researcher on the prevention of waterborne diseases has said. » more

17/06/2010

Karameh dam desalination plant eases Jordan Valley water woes
More than 30,000 Shuneh residents are now receiving much-needed water from the Karameh Dam desalination plant. After two months of experimental pumping to ensure that the desalinated water is fit for human consumption, residents of Deir Alla in the Jordan Valley started receiving water from the plant last week. The desalination plant, which was officially inaugurated on Thursday, aims to provide one million cubic metres (mcm) of water annually, in an effort to ease pressure on water sources in Shuneh. (Published by Jordan Times, 14 May 2010) » more

17/06/2010

Bahrain plans to double water production by 2030
Bahrain plans to nearly double its daily water production capacity by 2030 to meet growing demands, a top official has said. Dr Abdulmajid Al Awadhi, chief executive of the Electricity and Water Authority (EWA), told the Gulf Daily News, a series of projects, including building new desalination stations are planned. (Published by Arabian Business, 10 May, 2010) » more

17/06/2010

Abu Dhabi launches region's first comprehensive framework for wastewater regulation
The Regulation and Supervision Bureau (RSB), the independent regulatory body for the water, wastewater and electricity sector of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, announces the launch of two important new regulations coming into effect today. This concludes a three-year consultation process across the wastewater sector.  » more

17/06/2010

Private players eye UAE water market

Private utilities companies and environmental analysts, thirsting to tap into the water market, are calling for greater privatisation of water provision services in the UAE. (Published by Gulf News, 03 June, 2010) » more

14/06/2010

WABAG to complete €10 million order to upgrade water treatment plant

The order involves the modernisation of the process water treatment plant at the Prunerov power station in Bohemia. » more

08/06/2010

Australia seeks to align mining and water interests
Australia’s National Water Commission has released a statement calling for mining activities to be incorporated into water access and planning frameworks which comply with the National Water Initiative.
The proportion of Australia’s water resources used by the mining sector has increased rapidly in recent years, and mining is now the primary consumer of water in a number of regions. The NWC warns that inadequate management and regulation of current and future mining developments could impact on regional surface water and groundwater systems, and puts forward the view that mining concerns should operate under the same rules as other water users. » more

07/05/2010

Environmental Flows Report on the Rehabilitation of the Lower Jordan River
A new environmental flows study provides a first-ever regional study of the Lower Jordan River undertaken by Jordanian, Israeli and Palestinian experts. It identifies the current conditions of the Lower Jordan River and proposes a regional strategy to rehabilitate the historic river. » more

16/04/2010

Georgia: Water supply development in urban centers

As Giorgi Kiziria, chief coordinator officer in permanent representation of Asian Development Bank (ADB), declared to Sarke, preparatory works should be conducted through ADB grant within the project on water supply system development in the urban centers. The bank approved to allot grant of $2 million in March 2010. As Kiziria noted, ADB is going to allot at least $300 million for the project in total. Neither exact sum nor interest rate is determined at this stage. To note, Georgian United Water Supply Company supposes that ADBs credit would reach $500 million. Negotiations on the subject are at the final stage and credit is expected by the end of 2010 or by the beginning of 2011.

13/03/2010

Water demand predicted in Abu Dhabi for the next 20 years
The Abu Dhabi Water & Electricity Company (ADWEC) has forecast water demand levels up until the year 2030 using a risk-based methodology. The move comes as the city relies almost entirely on desalinated seawater for its portable water requirements and will need to forecast accurately the amount needed in future years to reduce operation, costs and environmental impact of the desalination process. » more
 

11/03/10

Morocco: Successful Reforms in Water and Sanitation
Due to a range of water reforms that led to a greater emphasis on resource preservation and water efficiencies Morocco is on track to exceed the targets for water and sanitation services contained in the Millennium Development Goals. This success is the result of cooperation between Morocco and International Bank for Reconstruction and Development. » more

11/03/10

Iraq: Project to Address the Shortage in Potable Water Supply

Since January 2010 people in Al Samawa (South Iraq) are provided with clean drinking water. The water treatment plant is the largest completed water project in Iraq in terms of amount and capacity since the 90s and reaches over 250,000 individuals. » more

01/03/10

EU to realign development aid towards water

With the UN Millennium Development Goals set to be reviewed this year, the European Commission is stressing the need for an increased focus on access to water, as the achievement of other UN development goals depends on it. » more

25/01/10

Philippines: Methane Recovery from Waste Management Project 

The Philippines produces 14 million tons of solid waste and 22 million tons of organic water pollution (biochemical oxygen demand) per year, numbers that are increasing steadily. Management of this waste and of its health and environmental impacts is a growing concern in the Philippines. Waste management processes also produce the greenhouse gas (GHG) methane, representing a significant source of greenhouse gases in the country. » more

18/01/10

Dubai economy forecast to shrink further in 2010

Dubai’s economy will shrink by 0.4 per cent in 2010 meaning the emirate will stay in recession for a second year after shrinking 5 per cent in 2009, according to the latest forecast by UAE-based Shuaa Capital. The bank is forecasting that the UAE as a whole will come out of the recession in 2010, with growth in real gross domestic product (GDP) of 2.5 per cent. The overall growth will be driven by Abu Dhabi’s economy, which is forecast to expand by 4.1 per cent in 2010 following a contraction of 2.7 per cent in 2009. » more