Rakesh Chandan
World Water Day was observed on 22 March. Since its inception in 2003, UN-Water has been responsible for selecting the theme and messages. The theme for the year 2023 is “accelerating change” through partnership and cooperation.But the theme for the year 2021- “Valuing water’ was of paramount importance.
In India context- one of our saints has said:
“Rahiman Panni Rakhiye, Bin Panni Sab Soon
Panni Gayo Na Ubre, Mooti Manas Choon”
These lines have been rightly said by Rahim Das which tell us the importance of conserving water, as without water everything is lifeless; nothing will grow, neither pearl, not man or grain.
In present Scenario National Water Mission (NWM) celebrated World Water Day with tagline “Catch the Rain, where it falls, when it falls”. Before further elaboration for such an important topic as a technocrat I would like to share few technical terms, so that general public understands the concept in a better manner: –
WHAT IS WATER AUDIT
A Water Audit is a systematic approach of identifying, measuring, monitoring and reducing the water consumption by various activities in the industry. A water audit identifies the quantities, characteristics, and use of all the water delivered on the site and is the foundation of water resource management. Water audit is an effective management tool for reducing consumption, minimizing losses, optimizing various uses and enabling considerable conservation of water across various sectors of water use. The purpose of a water audit is to estimate the average quantity of water used and lost everyday with the ultimate objective of using water wisely. An offshoot of this kind of audit can also be to educate the end users about achieving water efficiency in their homes, offices, manufacturing and other industrial and agricultural sectors for which water is the basic requirement for sustainability.
A comprehensive water audit gives a detailed profile of the distribution system and water uses. Water audits done on a regular basis would lead to better water management because only when something is measured, it can be managed. It also helps in understanding the present water efficiency and the solutions needed to enhance it.
DATA NEEDS
Primary Data- through a well structured data sheet and onsite observation of usage patterns. The meter reading (wherever available) would be spread over several days and at different times of the day. The results would then be correlated with the data obtained from the utility for the same billing cycle. In absence of metered supply data, consumption of water would be estimated from the time of pumping of tube well and discharge capacity of pump installed.
Secondary Data- through the data available with the utility and the consuming organization.
The data collection consists of making an inventory of information pertaining to where and how much water is being used throughout the location, information obtained from meters and sub meters, the average consumption of water for each water dispensing unit so that an estimate can be made for the average quantity of water consumed per day. Information is also required regarding the ‘leakages’. The detailed evaluation reveals the measures to be adopted for better water management and water conservation.
VIRTUAL WATER
The world’s water supply is finite, while its population is ever-growing. Finding better ways to protect and manage this limited resource is a constant challenge. On the consumer level, there has been an increased awareness of ways to reduce water use at home – turning off the faucet while brushing teeth, installing water-saving fixtures and watering the lawn less often, for instance. But direct water use accounts for only a small part of the water consumed. A far greater amount is consumed in the production of food and other products. Agriculture, in fact, accounts for as much as 85 percent of worldwide water use.
To create sustainable solutions to the growing global scarcity of fresh water, the bigger picture must be considered: indirect water use, also known as “virtual water”.
Virtual water can be defined as the water that is required for manufacturing a product or for rendering a service. Virtual water also contains the actual amount of water that exists in a certain product, particularly since this water was also necessary for the production of this good. For example, it is estimated that 1700 litres of water are required to create 500g of rice and to mitigate these demands of virtual water we should switch over to rain water harvesting by means of constructing check dam, rain water harvesting plants at micro level and construction of dams and interlinking of rivers in a sustainable manners without disturbing ecology and biodiversity of that area at macro level. The important of above structure is much more in Indian context because we are almost fully dependent on monsoon season for agriculture and others sectors which is of almost three an half month duration and if unfortunately monsoon is weak it further wrosens the situation and hence its our duty to save water.
WATER FOOTPRINT
In line with the concept of virtual water, the concept of the water footprint has been introduced to create a consumption-based indicator of water use. The water footprint is defined as the volume of water needed for the production of the goods and services consumed by the inhabitants of a country.
The water footprint can be divided into an internal and external water footprint. The internal component covers the use of domestic water resources and the external component covers the use of water resources elsewhere. Furthermore, an agricultural, an industrial and a domestic component of the water footprint can be assessed.
Finally, the water footprint can be divided into a blue, a green and a grey water footprint. The blue component covers the use of ground water and surface water during the production of commodity, the green component covers the use of rain water for crop growth, and the grey component covers the water required to dilute the water that is polluted during the production of the commodity.
WHY REDUCE FOOT PRINT?
Lack of water impacts the ability to grow economically and sustain population growth. We can’t make or produce new water, so it is necessary to conserve and manage water. Treat it as a valuable resource.
There are places on earth where human demand for water is greater than the amount of clean water that is available. As human population grow, water scarcity and water pollution will continue to become more common. Our consumer choices in India do affect others around the world, and we can become better global citizens by reducing our personal water footprints and to further strengthen water footprint, a welcome step taken by District Administration Reasi in the year 2019 under the overall supervision of DM Madam Indu Kanwal Chib where a small pit was dug to percolate water, with a slogan “1adult 1 Percolation pit can make all the difference in the monsoon season” but I requested Govt. of J&K to move a step ahead to mitigate water scarcity by issuing strict guidelines to set up rain water harvesting plant at all the existing Govt. officials buildings at District HQ and the results were beyond expectations as it recharged the ground water level in a wonderful manner and accordingly Pvt. Building owners also wed to switch over to above units and the outcome of rain water harvesting plants to the individual life is that water bill / tax is almost zero after the installation of units because we are blessed with ample amount of rainfall i.e. 700-750 mm per annum in J&K and it will also mitigate summer scarcity of water and the second one is a sense of onus to participate for the development of the nation by saving rain water and fulfill the slogan of our Govt. “Sabka Sath Sabka Vikas”.
REDUCING WATER FOOTPRINT
n Fix leaks – Small drips add up to a lot of water.
n Use of water-efficient washing machine and run it full – You’ll also save energy, use less detergent, and reduce fabric wear.
n Replace toilets with low-flow models – We use tremendous volumes of treated drinking water-and copious amounts of energy-to flush e.g. the bio-blocks the latest in the water saving technology, and help in saving an average 1.00 lakhs liters of water per annum per Urinal. That’s the equivalent of four average sized swimming pools. The bio-blocks contain natural beneficial microbes that keep the urinal clean, hygienic and odorless without the use of water. Using the bio-blocks system means that we can reduce the water usage hereby upto by 98%. This is significant saving in water consumption (one can easily see these bio-block urinal in pvt. malls and hotels)
n Use a water-efficient dishwasher rather than hand washing, and run it full- Upgrading to a water-efficient dishwasher is another easy way to save water.
n Slow the flow at home by installing low flow devices where possible.
n To reduce your indirect water use, look for food that in season comes in less packaging, is locally produced and grown in areas that are not water stressed.
(The author is an Assistant Executive Engineer, Jal Shakti (PHE) Sub Division Chowki Choura )
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