Wichita Falls, TX Plans to Turn Wastewater into Drinking Water

Posted February 10th, 2013
Environmental, Shortage, Uncategorized, Wastewater

Other Texas Cities Are Already Planning to Harvest Drinking Water from Their Sewage Plants

The idea of turning treated sewage into drinking water has not been a popular idea, but many Texas cities, Wichita Falls most recently, are turning in that direction.

Lake levels in the Wichita Falls area are at only 40% of capacity and people are beginning to feel that recycling waste water is an idea whose time has arrived.  Wichita Falls hopes to produce 5,000,000 gallons of drinking water per day from recycled wastewater.

Wichita Falls  is one of several cities in Texas pursuing reuse projects. This spring, a $14 million plant in the West Texas town of Big Spring will begin turning treated wastewater into drinking water and distribute about 2 million gallons of it daily to the Midland-Odessa area. Brownwood recently received approval from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality to build a reuse plant. Abilene and Lubbock are in the early stages of examining the technology.

The Big Spring plant will be the first of its kind in the nation.  El Paso, TX  and Orange County, Calif., also have reuse projects, but their treated wastewater gets sent through an aquifer before being pumped up for further cleaning. At Big Spring, there is no aquifer step. The wastewater will be used directly.

In the direct potable reuse process used in Big Spring, regularly treated wastewater goes through additional chemical and biological treatment processes plus extensive filtration.  Then it is mixed into the regular drinking water stream and goes through normal drinking water treatment.

The potable reuse system has generally gained approval of health experts, but there are still many critics who like to refer to the process as “toilet to tap.” The general complaint is that the process “needs more study.”

Wichita Falls is already processing brackish water from a nearby lake to supplement its drinking water supply.

Wichita Falls Wastewater Treatment Plant

More information from the Texas Tribune.

 

 

 

Don Juan Pond in the Antarctic Is the Earth’s Saltiest Natural Body of Water

Posted February 10th, 2013
Environmental

 Photos Taken at Don Juan Pond Reveal Secrets about the Pond and Possibly Water on Mars As Well 

Antarctica’s strange Don Juan Pond is the saltiest natural body of water on Earth, a fact that keeps the little body of water from freezing in an otherwise frozen continent.

There has been speculation but no real understanding of how the pond gets enough salt to avoid freezing and also how it gets its water.

A Brown University researcher took more than 15,000 pictures over a period of two months in attempt to answer these questions  (see photo below).  Evidence gathered from the pictures may also give clues to how liquid water might also flow on Mars.

 

Don Juan Pond in the Antarctic is the saltiest natural body of water on the planet.

The photos revealed that the pond’s water level rises slight with the temperature (indicating that there might be a bit of melting snow that adds to the pond’s water) and also dark streaks that could indicate that calcium chloride is being washed into the pond by the tiny water flow from melted snow.

Please read more details of the Don Juan Pond photo studies and their significance at the Science at NBC News website.

A Simple Ceramic Water Purification Tablet Developed for Use in South Africa

Posted February 10th, 2013
Emergency Water Filter, Uncategorized, Water and Health, Water Contaminants

MadiDrop Purifier Uses Copper and Silver Nanoparticles, Works Up to Six Months

PureMadi, a nonprofit University of Virginia organization, has invented a simple ceramic water purification tablet called MadiDrop. The tablet — developed and extensively tested at the University of Virginia — is impregnated with silver or copper nanoparticles. It can repeatedly disinfect water for up to six months simply by resting in a vessel where water is poured. It is being developed for use in communities in South Africa that have little or no access to clean water.

PureMadi’s first filter is already being produced.  It is pictured below.

PureMadi, the non-profit’s original filter, is larger than the MadiDrop tablet.

The plan is to produce the PureMadi in 10 to 12 factories in South Africa with an ultimate goal of creating half a million filters per year.

The filters are made of local clay, sawdust, and water. “The result is a flowerpot-shaped filter, which is then fired in a kiln. The firing burns off the sawdust, leaving a ceramic with very fine pores. The filter is then painted with a thin solution of silver or copper nanoparticles that serve as a highly effective disinfectant for waterborne pathogens, the type of which can cause severe diarrhea, vomiting and dehydration.”

The user pours polluted water, such as river water, into the pot and it filters through the filter to a 5-gallon bucket below. 

The design allows a user to pour water from an untreated source, such as a river or well, into the pot and allow it to filter through into a five-gallon bucket underneath. The pot has a flow rate of one to three liters per hour, enough for drinking and cooking. The filtered water is accessed through a spigot in the bucket. Testing has shown that 99.9 percent of the pathogens in water can be removed or killed by the filter.

MadiDrop, the most recent creation,  is an alternative to the flowerpot filter, but ideally would be used in conjunction with it. The plan is to mass-produce the product at the same factories where the PureMadi filters are produced.

MadiDrop is cheaper, easier to use, and is easier to transport than the PureMadi filter, but because it is placed into the water, rather than having the water filter through it, the MadiDrop is not effective for removing sediment in water that causes discoloration or flavor impairment. It is, however, more portable, easier to use, and less expensive.

Testing shows that the filters are safe to use and release only trace amounts of silver or copper particles, well within the safe water standards of the developed world. The filters also would be useful in rural areas of developed countries such as the United States where people rely on untreated well water.

Read the original in Science Daily.

Activated Alumina — Does It Leach Aluminum into Drinking Water?

Posted February 7th, 2013
Uncategorized

 Does the Fluoride Reduction Medium Activated Alumina Add Aluminum to the Water It Treats?

Editor’s Note:  One of the persistent legends that flies around the internet involves the belief that activated alumina, a manufactured water treatment product, gives up aluminum and adds it to the water being treated.  We’re reprinting the document below in its entirety to address the issue. It reports a study conducted by the prestigious European Food Safety Authority in 2006 to investigate the persistent rumors about the safety of activated alumina.

You can read the entire document below, but you’ll find a more readable PDF version here.  In the text below, we’ve highlighted some of the more significant items.–Hardy Waite.

The EFSA Journal (2006) 394, 1-8

 

 

Opinion of the Scientific Panel on food additives, flavourings, processing aids and materials in contact with food (AFC)on a request related to the safety in use of the activated alumina treatment for the removal of fluoride from natural mineral waters

 

Question N° EFSA-Q-2005-069

 

Adopted on 27 September 2006 SUMMARY

The Scientific Panel on Food Additives, Flavourings, Processing Aids and Materials in

Contact with Food (AFC) has been asked to evaluate the food safety aspects related to the removal of fluoride from natural mineral waters (NMWs) by filtration through a bed of activated alumina.

NMWs at source may contain levels of fluoride higher than the maximum concentration limits established for the constituents of natural mineral waters by the Commission Directive 2003/40/EEC. Removal of the fluoride is only allowed by an authorised process.

Information concerning the source and treatment of activated alumina and the filtration process conditions was provided and showed that critical steps of the proposed process are the following:

  •  Testing of activated alumina filter according to the European standard applicable for leaching tests (EN 12902) [6] to ensure that no impurities are leached to the water in quantities that result in concentrations exceeding the limits set in Commission Directive 2003/40/EC on the constituents of natural mineral waters, or in the absence of relevant limits in that Directive, the restrictions set in Council Directive 98/83/EC on the quality of water intended for human consumption or in national applicable legislation.
  •  Initialisation procedure with alkaline or acidic chemicals to remove any impurities and fine particles before the use of the filter.
  •  Regeneration procedure with appropriate chemicals to renew the capacity of the filter resulting at the same time in the removal of any possibly formed biofilm.

From the information provided it was shown that under optimised process conditions the release of impurities due to the use of the activated alumina, if it occurs at all, is always lower than the relevant limits set in the Directives mentioned above. In addition, due to the regular regeneration process of the activated alumina according to Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) and the principles of Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP), there is no additional risk of microbial contamination.

http://www.efsa.eu.int/science/afc/catindex_en.html

It was also demonstrated that fluoride can be removed effectively from NMWs by filtration through a bed of activated alumina. To maintain compliance with the limits set in Directive 2003/40/EC the fluoride content of the treated water needs to be monitored due to the reducing absorption capacity of the activated alumina during the cycle of use and regeneration.

The Panel concluded that the removal of fluoride from NMWs by filtration through activated alumina can be safely applied provided the critical steps as described above are implemented and monitored appropriately.

 

KEY WORDS

Fluoride removal, activated alumina, natural mineral waters.

 

BACKGROUND

Council Directive 80/777/EEC  lays down the provisions applicable to the exploitation and marketing of natural mineral waters (NMWs). NMWs are characterised by their constant chemical composition, of so-called “essential  constituents”  which  are supposed to have a beneficial effect on the human organism. NMWs sources have to be continuously kept free from any environmental contamination (microbiological and chemical contaminants) because of their underground origin and the required measures of protection of the sources. Therefore, treatments for the removal of a microbiological or chemical contamination are not allowed by the E.U. NMW legislation. However, for technological and food safety purposes a limited number of treatments may be used,e.g. removal of unstable elements (iron, sulphur and manganese compounds) by precipitation, filtration or treatment with ozone-enriched air without changing the composition of the NMWs as regards the essential constituents. Such  treatments should be notified to and controlled by competent authorities.

NMWs may also contain so-called “undesirable constituents” which, though naturally present may have undesirable effects on public health. NMWs shall  be  “suitable’  for human consumption at source, but do not have to comply with the maximum limits for constituents and residues applicable to drinking waters.

In 2003, the Commission adopted Commission Directive 2003/40/EC2 which established an exhaustive list of undesirable constituents and related maximum limits. In the case of fluoride, Directive 2003/40/EC states both a maximum limit of 5 mg/l (applicable from 1st January 2008) and a labelling requirement (applicable from 1st July 2004): “contains more than 1.5 mg/l of fluoride: not suitable for regular consumption by infants and children under 7 years of age” The maximum limit will be re-examined on the basis of the EFSA opinion.

Where maximum limits for undesirable constituents in NMWs are exceeded, operators shall put in place a treatment approved by the Commission to remove them totally or partially. Article 4 of Directive 80/777/EEC lays down the mandatory requirements applicable to each removal treatment that operators can put in place:

  • It complies with the conditions of use which have been adopted by the Commission (so-called “EU approval”), following EFSA consultation (Article 4.1b and 4.1c);
  •  It does not alter the composition of the water as regards the “essential constituents” (Article 4.1);
  •  It may not be subject of any addition other than the introduction  or  re- introduction of carbon dioxide (Article 4.2)
  •   It does not lead to any disinfection action (Article 4.3)

After the assessment of the fluoride removal treatment, the Commission will set the conditions of use of the treatment according to the provisions of Article 4.1(c) of Directive 80/777/EEC.

 

TERMS OF REFERENCE

In accordance with Article 29 (1) (a) of the Regulation (EC) no 178/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council, the European Commission requests the European Food Safety Authority to examine the food safety aspects of the use of the activated alumina treatment for the removal of fluoride from natural mineral waters.

 

ASSESSMENT

To remove fluoride, the water is filtered through a bed of granulated activated alumina. The emphasis in this opinion is placed on the food safety aspects, in respect to the release of substances from the activated alumina and microbiological contamination of the NMW from the use of the filter. A report [5] was provided by the ad hoc working group4 on the technological assessment of natural mineral water treatments on the basis of dossiers [1-4] forwarded  to  the  Commission  by  the  industry,  national  food  safety  agencies  and specialised laboratories in water treatment. This information [1-5] was evaluated and is summarised below.

The Panel noted that filtration through a bed of activated alumina is legally used for many years in the production of drinking water in various Member States.

 

Activated Alumina

Activated alumina is a filter media made by treating aluminum ore (bauxite) so that it becomes porous and highly adsorptive. It consists mainly of Al2O3. The production process includes calcination at 500°C, which at the same time removes all organic substances. Besides the main components some trace elements may be present and the composition of the activated alumina may vary depending on the source of bauxite. To ensure that no impurities are released to the water during the treatment, the media used shall be tested according to the standard applicable for leaching tests (EN 12902) [6].

In any case the release of impurities during the treatment from the activated alumina into the NMW shall not result in concentrations exceeding the limits set in Commission Directive 2003/40/EC [7] or in the absence of limits in that Directive the restrictions set in Council Directive 98/83/EC of 3 November 1998 on the quality of water intended for human consumption [8] or in national applicable legislation.

Activated alumina is capable of removing a variety of substances including excessive fluoride, arsenic and selenium. The fluoride removal process is based on adsorption on the surface of the activated alumina. Before using the calcinated activated alumina for NMW treatment, an initialisation process is applied. During this process any impurities are removed from the media or decreased to a level that leaching of trace elements does not occur. Leaching of the main component, aluminium, depends on the pH and composition of the treated water. Besides the initialisation procedure, the activated alumina requires a periodic cleaning with an appropriate regenerating agent in order to remove absorbed substances and to restore the absorption capacity (see section 3.2).

Initialisation and regeneration procedures

Once a filter has been loaded with virgin activated alumina, the medium is backwashed to remove the fine particles generated by the handling of the material and subsequently chemically treated to activate the adsorption sites and to remove the impurities. The modalities of this treatment are similar to those for regeneration.

The regeneration of activated alumina filters is done in three stages:

  •  Treatment  with  sodium  hydroxide  to  remove  fluoride  ions  and  replace  them  with hydroxide ions;
  •   Treatment with an acid to remove residual sodium hydroxide and activate the medium;
  •   Rinsing with drinking or demineralised water and conditioning with the natural mineral water so that the filter has no impact on the overall mineral content of the treated water.

The regeneration and in particular the first stage is also important from a microbiological point of view. During this stage, the pH of the water is ≥13. At this high pH, the solution is  bactericidal.  Biofilms  are  destroyed,  and  then  removed  through  subsequent  rinsing.

Humic and fulvic acids are also eliminated, thus preventing these compounds from building up over time.

Regeneration is carried out at intervals ranging from one to four weeks depending on water quality and throughput.

The reagents used for initialisation and regeneration have to comply with the relevant European standards relating to the purity of the chemical reagents used for drinking water treatment.

Fluoride and trace elements removal

It was demonstrated that fluoride can be removed effectively from natural mineral water by filtration through a bed of activated alumina using optimised conditions. To maintain the fluoride content of the treated water in compliance with the limits set in Directive 2003/40/EC, the fluoride content of the treated water needs to be monitored due to the reducing absorption capacity of the activated alumina during the cycle of use and regeneration.

When applying the fluoride removal treatment with activated alumina, the operating conditions may also lead to the co-removal of other undesirable constituents which are present in very low quantities (trace elements).

Release of substances by the use of activated alumina

Data on the actual content of many anions and cations in various types of NMW were provided. An increase of the concentration after the treatment was found in some cases for aluminium (from 18 up to 86 microg/l, bromide (160 -> 280 microg/l) and boron (66 -> 550 microg/l). However, in most types of water these changes were not observed at all and the observed variations of composition before and after treatment were low.

Leaching of aluminium from the activated alumina depends on the pH of the NMW and the alumina manufacturing process [5]. In some cases levels between 100 and 200 microg/l were reported. However, based on data provided [5] by optimising the pH conditions and selection of the appropriate medium the aluminium release resulting from the process would normally not exceed 40-60 µg/l.

Microbiological risks

Although NMW sources must be protected from microbiological contamination, they may contain bacteria naturally present at the source. Activated alumina, being a porous medium may be colonised with bacteria, with the formation of a biofilm. Periodical regeneration of the activated alumina at a pH of ≥13 is bactericidal and biofilms are destroyed and removed upon rinsing. Therefore it is concluded that with correct control of the process there is no additional risk of microbiological contamination.

Monitoring and control

The release of aluminium and other contaminants originating from the fluoride removal process should comply with the requirements of Directive 2003/40/EC [7] and in  the absence of requirements, with Council Directive 98/83/EC [8] and/or national applicable requirements and shall be checked regularly in accordance with the Council Directive. The fluoride content should be monitored frequently, preferably by on line measurements.

A process subject to GMP principles and a HACCP system should be implemented as required by the Regulation (EC) n° 852/2004.

 

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS

It was demonstrated that the treatment of NMW with activated alumina is suitable for the intended purpose. Under optimized conditions the release of cations or anions from the medium during treatment is negligible and will not pose a risk to human health. The total amount of aluminium ions in the NMW as it results after the release of aluminium from activated alumina should not exceed 200 microg/l, as established for drinking water [8].

 

The Panel notes that Joint FAO/WHO Experts Committee on Food Additives (JECFA, 2006) has recently adopted a new PTWI of 1 mg/kg bw (FAO/WHO, 2006).  If  it  is assumed that aluminium might be present in treated NMW up to 200 microg/l and 2 l of NMW are consumed daily, then aluminium intake from NMW would contribute at most up to 5% of the PTWI.

Due to the regular regeneration process of the activated alumina no microbiological contamination from the use of the filter is likely to occur.

Therefore it is concluded that the fluoride removal from NMW by means of filtration through activated alumina does not pose a risk to human health.

To ensure the above conclusions the following should be fulfilled:

  •  The activated alumina should not release any significant amount of impurities. In any case the leaching of impurities and aluminium from the activated alumina into the NMW will not result in concentrations exceeding the limits set in Commission Directive 2003/40/EC [7], or in the absence of limits in that  Directive,  the restrictions set in Council Directive 98/83/EC [8] or in national applicable legislation.
  •   Activated alumina is subject to an initialisation procedure before producing the treated NMW. The initialisation procedure includes the chemical treatment of the activated alumina to remove leachable impurities and a backwash treatment to remove fine particles.
  •    Regeneration, using appropriate chemical treatment, is performed to remove the absorbed fluoride ions and to re-activate the active sites of the medium. In addition any biofilm possibly formed is also removed during this treatment.
  •   The activated alumina used for treatment  of  NMWs  has  to  comply  with  the standard applicable for leaching tests (EN 12902).
  •   The process should be subject to GMP and HACCP principles.

 

LIMITATION IN THE SCOPE OF THIS EVALUATION

This evaluation and opinion is based on an assessment of the treatment of NMWs for the removal of fluoride from these waters. It does not take into account any other treatment of NMWs.

 

DOCUMENTS PROVIDED TO EFSA

 

 

  1. Application for permission to defluoridate natural mineral waters forwarded by the Belgian Federation of the Water and Soft drink Industry (FIEB).

 

  1. “Reduction of Fluoride from natural mineral waters” forwarded by the German mineral water industry (V.D.M.).

 

  1. “Etude des procédés de traitement pour éliminer le fluor applicables aux eaux minérales naturelles et aux eaux de source” forwarded by the French mineral water industry.

 

  1. “Fluorid-reduktion bei Naturlichen Mineralwassern” forwarded by the German mineral water industry (V.D.M.).

 

  1. Report of the Commission ad hoc working group5 on the technological assessment of natural mineral water treatments on the evaluation of treatment by aluminium oxide for the removal of fluoride from natural mineral waters and spring waters, dated 30-03-2006: http://ec.europa.eu/food/food/labellingnutrition/water/index_en.htm

 

 

  1. European Standard EN 12902 of November 2004: Products used for treatment of water intended for human consumption. Inorganic supporting  and  filtering materials.

 

  1. Commission Directive 2003/40/EC of 16  May  2003  establishing  the  list, concentration limits and labelling requirements  for  the  constituents  of  natural mineral waters and the conditions for using ozone-enriched air for the treatment of natural mineral waters and spring waters.

 

  1. Council Directive 98/83/EC of 3 November 1998 on the quality of water intended for human consumption, OJ L 330, 5.12.1998, p. 32.

 

 

 

 

 

 

REFERENCES

JECFA (2006), the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives, sixty-seventh meeting, 20-29 Rome 2006, summary and conclusions: http://www.who.int/ipcs/food/jecfa/summaries/summary67.pdf

 

SCIENTIFIC PANEL MEMBERS

Fernando Aguilar, Herman Autrup, Sue Barlow, Laurence Castle, Riccardo Crebelli, Wolfgang Dekant, Karl-Heinz Engel, Nathalie Gontard, David Gott, Sandro Grilli, Rainer Gürtler, John Christian Larsen, Jean-Charles Leblanc, Catherine Leclercq, François Xavier Malcata, Wim Mennes, Maria Rosaria Milana, Iona Pratt, Ivonne Rietjens, Paul Tobback, Fidel Toldrá.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The Scientific Panel on food additives, flavourings, processing aids and materials  in contact with food wishes to thank Rinus Rijk for assistance in preparing the draft opinion for its consideration.

Rate of Decline in China’s Water Supplies Is Far Worse Than Believed

Posted February 6th, 2013
Shortage, Uncategorized

 Coal and Chemical Concerns Now Use Up 1/4 of the Yellow River’s Annual Flow

When 39 tons of the toxic chemical aniline spilled from a factory in Changzhi in China’s Shanxi province at the end of December, polluting drinking water for hundreds of thousands of people downstream along the Zhuozhang River and fouling the environment, it seemed a grave enough disaster. And it was.

But when Greenpeace China investigated they found something even more alarming: that the fast pace of water consumption by coal and chemical industries in the area is drying up all water resources further downstream. In fact, by 2015, water consumption by coal and chemical industry in China’s dry, western areas is set to use up a whopping quarter of the water flowing annually in the nearby Yellow River.

According to Greenpeace, “Even more worrying than the chemical leak is the high water consumption of the coal and chemical industries in the area.”

None of this may be news to hardened followers of China’s crumpling environment, but the scale of the water consumption in the water-scarce area is nonetheless shocking: The Tianji Coal Chemical Industry Group, which caused the spill, consumes water equivalent to the consumption of about 300,000 people per year.

The coal and chemical industry is simply “a major water-eater.”

Water is a key challenge for the country, as rapid industrial growth guzzles water faster and faster.  In the last 40 years, 13 percent of China’s lakes have disappeared, half its coastal wetlands have been lost to reclamation and 50 percent of cities left without drinking water that meets acceptable hygienic standards, the World Wildlife Fund said.  The United Nations has singled China out as one of 13 countries with extreme water shortages.

Authorities agree that China’s water problems are complex.  Although many small-scale conservation plans are underway, massive consumption by industries like coal and chemicals seem to present insurmountable obstacles.

Source Reverence

UNICEF Is Sending Large Quantities of Water Purification Equipment into Syria

Posted February 6th, 2013
Chlorination, Politics of Water, Uncategorized

UNICEF Water Treatment Supplies Will Secure Safe Water for More Than Ten Million People

 

United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund issued the following news release in early February, 2013:

A large-scale operation is under way in Syria to secure safe water supplies for more than 10 million people – close to half the population.

The first four trucks carrying 80 tons of sodium hypochlorite water chlorination supplies crossed the Jordanian border into Syria on Sunday, heading for Homs, Aleppo, Hama and Idleb. Over the coming weeks, UNICEF will deliver 1,000 tons of chlorine to cities and communities across all 14 governorates in Syria.

The operation comes amid rising concern over the impact of the 23-month conflict on water pumping stations and other vital infrastructure – and the implications for children’s health in particular. Reports say that the quality and quantity of water supplies continues to deteriorate in different parts of the country and in some areas very severely.

“This shipment is very timely as supplies of chlorine in Syria have fallen dangerously low, making access to safe water challenging for many families,” said Youssouf Abdel-Jelil, UNICEF Representative in Syria. “This puts the population – and children especially – at high risk of contracting diarrhea and other water-borne diseases.”

The chlorine delivery is being conducted in coordination with the technical department of the Ministry of Water Resources and the Syrian Arab Red Crescent.

As part of its humanitarian response in Syria in the areas of water, hygiene and sanitation, UNICEF is supporting the operation and maintenance of water systems, through providing equipment and chlorination supplies. UNICEF will also work with partners to increase access to sanitation facilities for half a million people and provide hygiene items and hygiene education to 750,000 people.

UNICEF estimated that it needed $22.5 million to provide assistance to Syria in the areas of water and sanitation through June of 2013.  So far, only a fraction of that has been received.

Lakes Huron and Michigan Hit Lowest Level Ever

Posted February 5th, 2013
Environmental, Shortage

Two of the Great Lakes, Lake Huron and Lake Michigan, have recorded their lowest levels ever

According to an AP report, two of the Great Lakes have hit their lowest water levels ever recorded, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said in early February, capping more than a decade of below-normal rain and snowfall and higher temperatures that boost evaporation.

Measurements taken last month show Lake Huron and Lake Michigan have reached their lowest ebb since record keeping began in 1918, and the lakes could set additional records over the next few months, the corps said. The lakes were 29 inches below their long-term average and had declined 17 inches since January 2012.

The other Great Lakes — Superior, Erie and Ontario — were also well below average.

“We’re in an extreme situation,” said Keith Kompoltowicz, watershed hydrology chief for the corps district office in Detroit.

The low water has caused heavy economic losses by forcing cargo ships to carry lighter loads, leaving boat docks high and dry, and damaging fish-spawning areas. And vegetation has sprung up in newly exposed shoreline bottomlands, a turnoff for hotel customers who prefer sandy beaches.

The corps’ report came as shippers pleaded with Congress for more money to dredge ever-shallower harbors and channels. Shippers are taxed to support a harbor maintenance fund, but only about half of the revenue is spent on dredging. The remainder is diverted to the treasury for other purposes. Legislation to change that policy is pending before Congress.

“Plunging water levels are beyond anyone’s control, but the dredging crisis is man-made,” said James Weakley, president of the Cleveland-based Lake Carriers’ Association.

Kompoltowicz said the Army corps might reconsider a long-debated proposal to place structures in a river to reduce the flow of water away from Lakes Huron and Lake Michigan, which are connected.

Scientists say lake levels are cyclical and controlled mostly by nature. They began a steep decline in the late 1990s and have usually lagged well below their historical averages since then.

But studies have shown that Huron and Michigan fell by 10 to 16 inches because of dredging over the years to deepen the navigational channel in the St. Clair River, most recently in the 1960s. Dredging of the river, which is on the south end of Lake Huron, accelerated the flow of water southward from the two lakes toward Lake Erie and Lake Ontario, and eventually into the Atlantic Ocean.

Groups representing shoreline property owners, primarily in Lake Huron’s Georgian Bay, have demanded action to slow the Lake Huron and Michigan outflow to make up for losses that resulted from dredging, which they contend are even greater than officials have acknowledged.

Although the Army corps produced a list of water-slowing options in 1972, including miniature dams and sills that resemble speed bumps along the river bottom, nothing was done because the lakes were in a period of above-average levels that lasted nearly three decades, Kompoltowicz said.

The corps has congressional authorization to take action but would need money for an updated study as a first step, he said. The Detroit office is considering a funding request, but it would have to compete with other projects nationwide and couldn’t get into the budget before 2015.

“It’s no guarantee that we’re going to get it, especially in this budget climate,” Kompoltowicz said. “But there are serious impacts to navigation and shoreline property owners from this extreme event. It’s time to revisit this.”

Scientists and engineers convened by the International Joint Commission, a U.S.-Canadian agency that deals with shared waterways, issued reports in 2009 and last year that opposed trying to regulate the Great Lakes by placing structures at choke points such as the St. Clair River. The commission has conducted public hearings and will issue a statement in about a month, spokesman John Nevin said.

Roger Gauthier, a retired staff hydrologist with the Army corps, said a series of “speed bumps” could be put in the river at a reasonable cost within a few years. Without such measures, he warned, “it would take years of consistent rain” to return Lake Michigan and Lake Huron to normal.

Original Story by John Flesher of the Associated Press.

San Antonio Brackish Water Project Is Underway

Posted February 1st, 2013
Reverse Osmosis

The Big Brackish Water Desalination Plant for San Antonio is Now Underway

Local Big Shots Celebrate the SAWS Brackish Water Desalination Facility.

Beginning as a project recommended in the 2007 Texas State Water Plan, an ambitious brackish water desalination project for the San Antonio area is now underway.

Brackish water is water that is too high in mineral salts for human use.  The project will take underground brackish water and make it usable by reverse osmosis.
Using $109.5 million in Texas Water Development Board funds from the Water Infrastructure Fund,  the project, called SAWS,  is building a wellfield,  reverse osmosis water treatment facility,  concentrate (waste water)  management facilities and integration pipeline. Desalination–the process of removing dissolved salts from water so that it can be used as fresh water–will add greatly needed water to the San Antonio area.

Texas is in the process of a major expansion of its water resources.

 

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