EAWAG news 48e (September 2000)
Strategies in Urban Water Management
From the Director's
Desk (
en48e_zeh.pdf, 50 KB)
Alexander J.B. Zehnder (alexander.zehnder@eawag.ch)
Lead Article
On the Path to New Strategies
in Urban Water Management
(en48e_sch.pdf, 225 KB)
Roland Schertenleib and Willi Gujer (roland.schertenleib@eawag.ch,
willi.gujer@eawag.ch)
The most important functions of urban water management (UWM)
are the prevention of water- and feces-borne diseases, avoidance
of floods in developed areas and securing of the ecological integrity
of surface waters. With the systematic construction and upgrading
of conventional wastewater systems which collect the wastewater
and treat it in centralized sewage treatment plants, it has largely
been possible to perform these functions in the industrialized
countries of the North; however, these practices contradict important
sustainability criteria.
Research Reports: Focus on Industrialized Countries
Tackling Problems at
the Source - Even in the Household (en48e_lar.pdf, 145 KB)
Tove A. Larsen (tove.larsen@eawag.ch)
By pursuing measures at the source, the water treatment process
is not only simplified, but allows us to overcome problems which
have to date been impossible to solve. Such measures have their
cost, however, and are only rarely profitable in a financial
sense. In order to design a system which in its conception will
be viable at our latitude as well as in developing countries,
we have to consider a host of actions at the source.
Assessing Effects of
Behavior Patterns - Early Recognition of Structural Problems (en48e_til.pdf, 90 KB)
Donald Tillman (donald.tillman@eawag.ch)
What effects do the different behavior patterns of involved parties
have on the technical and financial aspects of water systems
supply? Analysis and modeling of these behavior patterns and
interactions allow us to assess the efficiency and potential
risks of engineering and management measures currently being
implemented and to recognize problems early on.
Heavy Metals in Roof
Runoff are Unwanted (en48e_ste.pdf, 115 KB)
Michele Steiner (michele.steiner@eawag.ch)
As precipitation drains from roofs, heavy metals (mostly copper,
zinc, lead and cadmium) run into the infiltration layer of soil
and may enter the ground water. Until measures applied at the
source are able to reduce this pollution, such material fluxes
should be kept under control in drainage installations.
Research Reports: Focus on Developing Countries
Back to the Household
- Also in Water Treatment (en48e_weg.pdf,
200 KB)
Martin Wegelin (martin.wegelin@eawag.ch)
Drinking water in developing countries, taken from the tap or
drawn from an unsafe water source, is a possible carrier of pathogens.
The urban water supplies often do not function properly; in rural
areas they may be even nonexistent. In either case, households
are required to find and treat their own drinking water.
Domestic Waste Management
in Slums (en48e_zur.pdf, 240 KB)
Chris Zurbrügg (christian.zurbruegg@eawag.ch)
Rapidly growing cities in developing countries are not in a position
to guarantee the satisfactory collection and disposal of refuse.
Largely inaccessible, marginal urban areas, often inhabited by
the poor, remain without refuse collection.
Cities without Sewers (en48e_str.pdf, 165 KB)
Martin Strauss and Agnès
Montangero (martin.strauss@eawag.ch,
agnes.montangero@eawag.ch)
In cities of developing countries (DCs), feces are normally not
disposed of through water-borne sewerage systems as in industrialized
countries, but are pumped out and hauled away as fecal sludge
from latrine pits and septic tanks (FS). Technologies for low-cost
and sustainable treatment of such sludges are still mostly lacking.
The research division for Water and Sanitation in Developing
Countries (SANDEC) is testing suitable options in collaboration
with local institutions in developing countries.
Forum
The Public Discusses
EAWAG's Activities
The Foundation
"Science et Cité" promotes constructive confrontation
between science and society.
Urban Water Management Needs New Initiatives (en48e_hah.pdf, 215 KB)
Interview with Prof. Hermann H. Hahn
Prof. Herrmann H. Hahn is in charge of a number of international
students at the University of Karlsruhe (Germany). We asked him
about new developments in his field.
EurAqua
EurAqua is a European network of freshwater research organizations
whose members represent 16 institutions from 16 countries. EAWAG
represents Switzerland in EurAqua.
The Tianjin-Switzerland
"Ping Pong Course" - A Pilot Project for Continuing
Education on a Partnership Basis
At the end of 1997, EAWAG received a request from the Tianjin
Environmental Protection Bureau (TEPB) to organize a 20-day course
"Water Environmental Management and Monitoring Training
Program" for a delegation of 20 Chinese environmental professionals.
The inquiry came from Ms. Yang Jienan, the Vice-Director of the
Department for International Cooperation of the TEPB who, while
visiting EAWAG, learnt about EAWAG's PEAK Program for continuing
education.
Traces of Pesticides
in Natural Waters
(en48e_mul.pdf, 90 KB)
Siegrun Heberle, Heinz Singer, Gerrit Goudsmit, Andreas Gerecke,
Christian Leu, Michael Berg, Stephan Müller (project director)
Each year, 1800 tons of herbicides are used in Switzerland. Pesticides
are not only being utilized in farming, but are also being applied
along roadsides and railroad tracks, on sports fields and golf
courses, in horticulture and private gardens. In spite of increasing
IP (integrated production), organic farming and the application
of novel, more effective preparations over the past 10 years,
herbicides continue to be found in our natural waters.
In Brief
Quo vadis EAWAG? (en48e_eawag.pdf, 110 KB)
Publications 2353-2624, books
Courses/Events and Notices
Please feel free to submit questions or suggestions any time to the editor
Martina Bauchrowitz.