Enhancing Water Infrastructure Resilience Against Seismic Activity
By Emily Newton
Water and wastewater infrastructure is the backbone of communities, ensuring access to clean water and the safe treatment of waste critical for public health and environmental sustainability. However, seismic activity presents a formidable challenge to these systems. It risks widespread disruption, contamination, and service outages that can have immediate and long-term effects on a community’s well-being and capabilities.
Addressing these vulnerabilities through enhanced resilience measures is essential to safeguard against the inevitable impacts of earthquakes. Professionals in the field must take immediate and strategic action.
Understanding The Risk
Earthquakes can severely impact water infrastructure through ground shaking, surface faulting, liquefaction, and tsunamis. They can lead to damaged pipelines, disrupted treatment facilities, and compromised reservoirs.
In the U.S., about 75% of the country¹ could face damaging earthquake events. Previous seismic activities have led to extensive damage to water systems. These events highlights the urgent need for preparedness and resilience in water infrastructure across potentially affected regions.
Moreover, pipelines, pumps, and storage tanks are particularly vulnerable to seismic forces within water systems. Pipelines — often buried and spread across vast areas — are susceptible to breakage from ground movement. This can lead to significant water loss and contamination risks.
Meanwhile, pumps and electrical systems are crucial for the operation of water and wastewater treatment plants. However, they can also fail, halting water supply and treatment processes. Storage tasks risk structural failure or displacement, which further jeopardizes water quality and availability.
Addressing these vulnerabilities requires a focused approach to infrastructure design, maintenance, and emergency planning. Doing so ensures continuity of service and public safety in the aftermath of seismic events.
Importance Of Resilience
In water and wastewater systems, resilience refers to the capacity to anticipate, absorb, adapt, and rapidly recover from disruptive events, such as earthquakes. It guarantees uninterrupted service and protection of public health.
Failing to prepare for seismic events can lead to dire consequences. These include contaminated water supplies that pose serious health risks, disrupted sanitation services exacerbating disease spread, substantial economic losses from damaged infrastructure, and prolonged recovery efforts. The imperative for resilience is clear — safeguarding communities against the many effects of service disruption and ensuring health and economic stability in the face of natural disasters.
Assessing Vulnerability
Conducting vulnerability assessments for water infrastructure is critical in understanding and mitigating the risks from seismic and other natural events. This process involves identifying potential hazards, assessing water system components’ susceptibility, and evaluating the possible impacts on service continuity and public health.
The need for comprehensive vulnerability assessments has never been more apparent in light of the 28 weather and climate disasters in 2023², which collectively cost over $92 billion. These evaluations should incorporate historical data, current infrastructure conditions, and projected future risks to prioritize areas for resilience improvements.
The role of updated geological surveys and advanced risk assessment tools in this process is paramount. Geological surveys provide essential information on fault lines, soil composition, and other factors that influence an area’s vulnerability to seismic events. Meanwhile, cutting-edge risk assessment tools leveraging geographic information systems and predictive analytics enable more accurate and detailed analysis of potential impacts.
Utilizing these resources, water infrastructure professionals can make informed decisions on where to allocate resources for retrofitting and upgrading efforts. This guarantees resilience measures are effective and economically justified to safeguard communities against the inevitable challenges of weather events.
Design And Construction Innovations
Introducing seismic-resistant materials and construction techniques is pivotal to enhancing water infrastructure resilience against earthquakes. These innovative approaches absorb and dissipate seismic energy to minimize damage during an event.
One such technique involves using flexible pipe materials that can bend without breaking. These allow water networks to remain operational even when the ground shifts. Additionally, base isolation methods — installing isolators between a structure and its foundation — effectively decouple the building from ground movements. They reduce seismic forces transmitted through the structure.
Moreover, cased micropiles represent another groundbreaking solution in seismic-resistant construction. Despite their modest diameter of less than 12 inches³, these micropiles boast a considerable load capacity, primarily due to the high-strength steel casing that reinforces them. It makes them ideal for underpinning and strengthening the foundations of water treatment facilities and storage tanks in seismically active areas.
By integrating such materials and techniques, engineers can enhance the durability and reliability of critical water infrastructure. They can ensure continuous operation and protection of public health in the face of seismic challenges.
Smart Monitoring Technologies
The IoT and AI are transforming how people monitor and maintain the integrity of water infrastructure. They offer unprecedented capabilities for early detection and real-time monitoring. For example, strategically placed IoT devices throughout the water system can monitor vibrations in the groundā“ and fluctuations in groundwater levels. The technology can provide early warnings of seismic activity that could potentially damage systems.
These sensors generate vast amounts of data, which AI algorithms analyze in real time to identify patterns or anomalies indicative of a problem or threat. This proactive approach allows immediate responses to mitigate damage and ensure the continuity of water services.
Implementing these technologies has demonstrated significant benefits across various regions. For example, IoT sensors can monitor the structural health of dams and reservoirs to enable timely maintenance and reinforcement efforts before minor damages escalate.
Similarly, AI-powered analytics predict pipeline failures in urban water systems, reducing water loss and preventing service disruptions. These technological advancements enhance the resilience of water infrastructures, and result in cost savings by avoiding extensive damages and ensuring efficient use of resources. They showcase a promising path toward safeguarding essential services in an increasingly uncertain world.
Community Engagement And Education
Community awareness is crucial in preparedness efforts, considering only 47% of Americans feel confidentāµ preparing for disaster. Educating the public about the risks associated with seismic events and the measures they can take to protect themselves and their properties is fundamental.
Increased awareness can lead to a more resilient community, as individuals informed about disaster preparedness are more likely to take proactive steps to mitigate risks. Moreover, communities knowledgeable about seismic threats and the importance of water infrastructure resilience are more ready to support and advocate for necessary improvements and emergency plans.
Fostering a collaborative environment where stakeholders openly share information and resources is essential to involve locals in resilience-building activities. Initiatives such as community workshops, preparedness fairs, and school-based education programs can effectively disseminate disaster preparedness and resilience strategies.
Additionally, leveraging social media and other digital platforms to share stories of successful resilience efforts can inspire action and emphasize the collective benefit of preparedness. Engaging residents in these activities enhances the overall resilience of water infrastructure and ensures a quicker, more effective response when disasters strike.
Safeguarding Lifelines
Water and wastewater professionals are pivotal in safeguarding infrastructure against seismic activity. They ensure the continuous delivery of essential services and the protection of public health. Thanks to their expertise in implementing advanced materials, technologies, and resilience strategies, they are the frontline defenders against the impacts of natural disasters on critical water systems.
References:
- https://www.preventionweb.net/news/new-usgs-map-shows-where-damaging-earthquakes-are-most-likely-occur-us
- https://www.climate.gov/news-features/blogs/beyond-data/2023-historic-year-us-billion-dollar-weather-and-climate-disasters
- https://www.geostabilization.com/solutions/ground-improvement/micropiles/
- https://revolutionized.com/iot-in-mining-safety/
- https://community.fema.gov/PreparednessConnect/s/article/2020-NHS-Data-Digest-Summary-Results
Emily Newton is an industrial journalist. She regularly covers stories for the utilities and energy sectors. Emily is also editor in chief of Revolutionized (revolutionized.com).