WATER WISE
Managing multiple sources
S. VISWANATH
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A simple audit will not only reduce your bill but also reduce consumption of water
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Key factor: As a habit one has to minimise water consumption
In the 13th issue of Waterwise, let us look into the art of managing water that comes to us from different sources.
In the good old days before the advent of piped water supply, a single source provided water to the household and this was the open well. Sometimes it was located in the house itself and sometimes it was a community well. Then came the era of piped water supply and again the source was single: open the tap and you had water. Perennial sometimes, occasional most other times and a sump and an overhead tank solved that irregularity issue.
Things got complicated along the way as urbanisation hit us and cities expanded. Infrastructure failed to meet demand which rose exponentially. Borewells started to be dug and groundwater exploited from great depths. Open wells either dried up or were polluted. The tap spewed water occasionally and if you were in the periphery of the city the water never reached you.
This is the era of the private water tanker. Call a number and the tanker comes and delivers water to your sump or overhead tank. Somewhere along the line the quality of water became to be doubted by the affluent and so bottled water from high springs and cold glaciers brought water for you to drink. It is another matter that many a time they were sourced from the local borewell or from the mainline itself.
Supplementary
The recycling industry came into nascent being and was pushed by the law; so recycled sewage water became available for non-potable use. Rainwater harvesting, an age old tradition, saw a nostalgia-based revival and rainwater too now is a source for supplementary water. Sea water desalination plants are mushrooming along the coastal areas and desalination plants come up in high salt areas inland too.
Welcome to the confusing and complex age of multiple sourcing of water. Though we may not like it, we have to tackle multiple sourcing of water to access it continuously. New building owners invariably start the construction process by digging a borewell. A rainwater harvesting system is mandatory for all new water connections to be provided by the BWSSB and therefore that too is to be put in place. It may be a recharge well or simply storing it in a tank.
If you stay in an apartment then potable water cannot be used for non-potable purpose and should be supplemented by tertiary treated water only, according to the State Pollution Control Board norms. Tertiary treated water is therefore also to be seen as a water source. Facility managers or those in charge of maintenance of the water system will need to figure this out
Open well water is the cheapest and most economical source of water. If we recharge and keep the shallow aquifer full, the well water will last longer and consume the least amount of power to lift it to overhead tanks. The cost of open well water would be around Rs. 3 to Rs. 4 a kilo-litre.
Cheapest
Open well water is the cheapest and most ecological source of water. Harvested rainwater will cost you Rs. 3 to Rs. 12 a kilo-litre depending on whether you have already created a storage or are planning a new one.
If you are recharging the shallow aquifer and it yields water it will also cost around the same.
Borewell water will be cheaper than the BWSSB water at higher slabs. Expect borewell water to cost around Rs. 7 to Rs. 8 a kilo-litre since you will pay Rs. 50 per month to the BWSSB as sanitary cess. Borewells can also be recharged but not as easily as the shallow aquifer.
Tertiary treated water will cost you around Rs. 12 to Rs. 15 a kilo-litre and can be used for non-potable purpose. BWSSB water starts at Rs. 6 a kilo-litre for the lowest domestic slab including sanitary cess of 20 per cent for industrial use. Water from private tankers will range from Rs. 30 to Rs. 40 a kilo-litre. Private water tankers provide water at a price.
Do a quick calculation of the costs and do not forget to include the pumping cost. An audit will not only reduce your bill but also reduce consumption of water.
The most sustainable sources are rainwater, open well water and tertiary treated water in that order. The most sensible thing to do is to minimise water consumption and then find the appropriate sources of supply. That is being water wise.
www.rainwaterclub.org
www.arghyam.org
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