Texas is sizable enough to be a large country on its own, with an economy to match, and is also proudly unique. But when it comes to water issues, the Lone Star State shares a lot in common with the rest of America: overwhelmed and vulnerable infrastructure, threats to water quality and security, and competition for resources.
Environmental Impact Bonds, EIBs, are a market-based option that leverage private capital, typically from impact investors, to finance infrastructure. They typically use pay-for-performance, and are rapidly traction in green stormwater infrastructure and climate resiliency initiatives.
Community-Based Public Private Partnerships, CBP3s, are a market-based solution for efficient delivery of large-scale infrastructure.
Mass market access to the internet through a combination of hardwired, Wi-Fi, or cellular communications channels has conditioned many people to think that “a network is a network is a network.” When it comes to water utilities, however, the nature of the application environments and requirements dictate a closer look at how to satisfy the specific requirements most efficiently. Here are 14 checkpoints to consider before selecting a new network option or revamping an old one.
Whether your water utility is challenged with increasingly stringent standards, implementing new technology, or coping with aging infrastructure replacement, new project implementation concerns can be daunting. Take advantage of proven practices from experienced water industry professionals to put your project on the right track with sound evaluation of engineering assistance for your project.
Of the issues facing utilities, financing — or lack thereof — ranks at or near the top of most lists. During this Water Talk, Reese Tisdale, President of Bluefield Research, discusses the rise in operating expenses (OPEX) over the past 10 years, explains the reasons and repercussions, and forecasts where costs will go from here.
Jeff Garner, Senior Vice President with MWH Constructors, covers a lot of area in this Water Talk interview, which focuses on alternative project delivery models (particularly the construction manager at-risk (CMAR) approach), the water-energy-food nexus, and the thermal hydrolysis process (THP) for on-site energy generation.
The adoption of water reuse can be unavoidable due to water scarcity, but it may also be a choice. And when it comes to choices, cost is usually a deciding factor. Gary Hunter, Senior Wastewater Process Engineer with Black & Veatch, helps make sense of the dollars required for recycled water schemes in this Water Talk interview.
Efficiently service and maintain intelligent field devices
Field devices are the eyes and ears of automation. The failure of a valve positioner, temperature, flow or pressure sensor can quickly lead to serious malfunction of the process. With SIMATIC PDM Maintenance Station V3.0, Siemens offers the right solution for efficiently monitoring the condition of smart field devices, irrespective of the automation and control systems used
From data to knowledge to transformation
Move from complexity to simplicity, from asset and process intelligence to operational intelligence with the PI System. Its highly scalable, open data infrastructure empowers enterprises in real time, transforming operational data into actionable knowledge and business transformation.
ABB uses digital solutions to drive outcomes. Engaging customers to demonstrate tangible results that scale.
The new generation of ABB’s total plant automation: DCS and SCADA for the power and water industries.
Reduced operational costs and downtime through seamless distributed control system integration.
Real-time control of a 360km water distribution system through an advanced distributed control system.
Improved water reliability and lifecycle costs through total control of a one hundred mile transfer system.
100% available water in the driest of deserts through highly efficient desalination.
Even though a local water treatment facility was closed more than two decades ago, a city in Indiana is paying more than $500,000 to maintain it due to a dangerous leak.
The technological innovation that powers water and wastewater treatment processes — like new membranes for produced water cleanup or desalination technology for stressed water systems — is largely what drives the industrial and municipal treatment industries forward.
The City of Santa Fe has achieved a wastewater first, establishing a financing model that may offer a new revenue approach for other cities throughout the country.
The proposed Fiscal Year 2020 budget for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), announced recently, provides $6.1B to support the agency’s mission of protecting human health and the environment.
While pervasive drought in the American Southwest continues to present myriad problems for local water systems, it is also a dynamic opportunity — at least for private companies looking to capitalize on the scarcity.
Indiana American Water President Deborah Dewey recently announced the company’s acquisition of Charlestown Water, a municipal water utility located in southern Indiana.
Recently, during a public hearing held by the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee's Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment—specifically to examine the current state of the country's clean water infrastructure—a Board Member of the National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA) proposed solutions for "the infrastructure gap," or the future investment needed to maintain clean water systems in comparison to current investments; and "the affordability challenge," which is the burden of rising infrastructure maintenance costs on low-income ratepayers.
The National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA) joins other major clean water organizations in supporting the bipartisan introduction of the Water Quality Protection and Jobs Creation Act of 2019.
Xylem Inc., a leading global water technology company dedicated to solving the world’s most challenging water issues, has announced execution of its new $800M Senior Unsecured Revolving Credit Facility.
The Clean Water Partnership (CWP), a 30-year community-based public-private partnership (CBP3) between Prince George’s County, Maryland and Corvias, has achieved a tremendous milestone with the completion of the initial pilot phase in half the time, under budget, all while increasing outreach to key community stakeholders and investing in Prince George’s County’s small minority and disadvantaged businesses.
Mass market access to the internet through a combination of hardwired, Wi-Fi, or cellular communications channels has conditioned many people to think that “a network is a network is a network.” When it comes to water utilities, however, the nature of the application environments and requirements dictate a closer look at how to satisfy the specific requirements most efficiently. Here are 14 checkpoints to consider before selecting a new network option or revamping an old one.
In wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), repair vs. replace considerations are an ongoing dilemma. How much money is it sensible to spend repairing an older piece of equipment vs. upgrading to the best overall replacement option for current operating conditions? Even if the underlying hope is for a quick and easy repair, the answers are not always cut-and-dried. Before making the default decision to repair, evaluate key points that can pay dividends both immediately and over the long run.
“I know that (blank) is good for me; I just haven’t gotten around to doing it yet!” Most of us can fill in that blank with any number of tasks — modifying diets, exercising, or monitoring commercial and industrial (C&I) water meter accuracy at our largest utility accounts. If that last item is still on your “to-do” list, here are several good reasons why you should do it and how to make it happen soon.
In regulated wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) environments, which require 100 percent blower system redundancy to satisfy the most extreme operating conditions, it can be easier to meet demanding physical thresholds than it is to refine energy performance to the ideal minimum. Here are some guidelines for covering all the bases — estimating the potential payback of balancing blower type, size, and turndown capacity while making the evaluation exercise worth the effort.
Unmanned well sites in remote locations present operational challenges. Data must not only be collected, but it also must be monitored to uncover any discrepancies, and ideally predict any problems before they occur. Advanced analytics software, coupled with a sophisticated data collection system, can address these issues, and also provide additional benefits.
Businesses rely on process units meeting or exceeding their operational plans. To ensure that operational plans are achieved, it is important that equipment operates as designed (i.e., delivers the required performance) and continues to operate in an optimum manner (i.e., remains reliable, in a good condition). The most common causes of missing operational plan targets are equipment failure, which results in unplanned downtime, and low quality or yields from production processes.
