No utility wants to enact an emergency plan, but every utility should have one in place.
As water utilities migrate toward remote system monitoring and real-time control, the risks associated with cybersecurity tick upward as well. While the rewards of digitalization offer real promise, the associated complexity and security concerns pose corresponding risks. That is why it is important to have an overall risk-management process for the organizational level, the business process level, and for the information system and data levels as well.
In September of 2016, Ted Henifin took the first sip of water purified at a pilot treatment plant developed by HRSD (Hampton Roads Sanitation District). Now, the innovative water treatment program known as SWIFT — Sustainable Water Initiative for Tomorrow — is changing the lens through which communities and government officials view wastewater, drinking water, aquifer replenishment, and even fighting sea level rise.
A Q&A with Berkeley Lab hydrological science expert Bhavna Arora, who explains how unseasonably warm weather and drought can affect water quality
The history of commercial online transactions is riddled with horror stories about data security breaches. Think Equifax, Target, Yahoo, Uber, Sony PlayStation … the list goes on. How can a utility maximize the benefits advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) offers for more efficient data collection and management, without having to worry about seeing its name on the front page of tomorrow’s newspaper?
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.
Plant visibility and control with no downtime through a unified control system.
As water and wastewater treatment plant (WTP/WWTP) processes and control systems become more sophisticated, maximizing operator effectiveness becomes more complex as well. A well-planned alarm and control strategy can make a significant difference between valuable decision-making information and confusing, disjointed, data points. This article highlights key strategies for foreseeing problems in advance, fixing them faster, and having a higher success rate by maximizing operator effectiveness.
In water plant operations, there’s no such thing as simply maintaining the status quo. Any utility that is not moving forward is falling behind. Whether a water treatment or wastewater treatment plant (WTP/WWTP) chooses to rely on in-house resources or outside specialists, here are some lifecycle management approaches they can use to upgrade control capabilities without compromising performance or return on investment.
A Q&A with Berkeley Lab hydrological science expert Bhavna Arora, who explains how unseasonably warm weather and drought can affect water quality
While the laws of physics and chemistry have not changed, the ways that water and wastewater treatment plants (WTPs/WWTPs) are being forced to deal with them certainly have — e.g., disinfection byproducts (DBPs), tighter turbidity standards, harmful algal blooms, and PFAS challenges. Even when plant throughput stays the same, the demands on plant personnel continue to increase. Here’s how evolving toward better workforce management processes can help.
The history of commercial online transactions is riddled with horror stories about data security breaches. Think Equifax, Target, Yahoo, Uber, Sony PlayStation … the list goes on. How can a utility maximize the benefits advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) offers for more efficient data collection and management, without having to worry about seeing its name on the front page of tomorrow’s newspaper?
The California Department of Water Resources (DWR) and State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board) have released a final version of their summary document on the water conservation bills made into law in 2018.
A water management district in Florida had a slithery problem to contend with recently in the form of a 17-foot Burmese python.
Deteriorating wastewater pipes are a leading cause of sewage overflows. And with extreme weather putting added pressure on networks, the time for durable, long-lasting solutions is now.
In sub-Saharan Africa, diarrheal disease, a preventable and treatable illness, remains the second-leading cause of death in children under the age of five, as well as an overall public health threat.
A Greensboro city worker died in North Carolina last week after falling from a water tower while reportedly performing a maintenance exercise on the structure.
The National Infrastructure Commission is to examine the resilience of the UK’s infrastructure in a new study announced by the Chancellor in today’s Budget.
Recently, to assist communities recovering from the devastating impact of Hurricane Michael, and at the direction of Governor Rick Scott, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) is offering the suspension of up to $12M in wastewater and drinking water facility loan repayments and interest accrual for two years.
The Committee on Climate Change recently calls for a long-term approach to protecting communities from the threat of flooding in coastal areas – echoing findings in the UK’s first-ever National Infrastructure Assessment.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) selected the National Wildlife Federation’s Resilience Ambassadors Program in Houston as one of 37 organizations to receive funding under the 2018 Environmental Education (EE) Grants Program.
The National Science Foundation (NSF) Secure and Trustworthy Cyberspace (SaTC) program announces new support for a diverse, $78.2M portfolio of more than 225 new projects in 32 states spanning a broad range of research and education topics, including artificial intelligence, cryptography, network security, privacy, and usability.
