Singapore International Water Week

Sunday, April 19, 2009 3:32 AM

A country's energy, water and food resources are interlinked.
If you can improve one, you can improve all.

- Dr Andrew Benedek, Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize recipient

A Major Health Issue

According to United Nation's 2009 Developement Report, more than 1.1 billion people lack access to safe drinking water and 2.5 billion lack basic sanitation.

Without proper management of water quality and supply, there could easily be disease outbreaks. Already, half of hospital-stays worldwife relate to water-borne diseases, including malaria.

While globally there has been progress in providing safe water, the real issue lies in the developinh countries, China and India and making progress but Africa is not at all. In the developing world, we are likely to see new parasites and germs because of the lack of clean water. If these germs mutate, they could become a 'super bug' that could pass through a normal water plant.

The threat of Global Warming

Global warming has added another challenge, some major rivers no longer reach the sea, ice caps are melting, and agricultural land is drying up. Global warming reduces water storage and therefore its availability.

Energy use and demand have also rocketed in several countries, as a result of pumping water for distribution to areas further inland and to agricultural lands. In the United States, 19 per cent of total electricity consumption is for pumping water.

The importance of technology

The above challenges can be tackled with the use of technology, and countries should invest in it.

One such solution is membrane technology. Early membrane technology conceived in 1980 went from "ridiculous to mainstream," Almost every country now uses it to treat water.

But the challenge ahead is for countries to balance water needs with rising energy costs and demand. For instance, current membrane technology, including what is used to produce NEWater is energy-intensive and requires up to 1kWh to produce 1 cubic metre. Cutting the energy usage to near zero would make the method viable for developing countries.

Ideas for moving forward

- Developing membrane treatment that requires zero energy;
- Harvesting energy from wastewater treatment for other uses;
- Producing grains that require less water to grow

disclaimers