Water Resource
Water Resource
Water Resource
A watershed is an area of land that drains all the streams and rainfall to a Reduces costs for meeting regulations and fixing damage that would
common outlet such as the outflow of a reservoir, mouth of a bay, or any happen if sensitive areas are developed.
to restore and protect the quality of lakes, rivers, streams, and wetlands in a
What are some key steps in watershed management?
given watershed. The plan is intended to be a practical tool with specific
recommendations on practices to improve and sustain water quality. Familiarize Yourself with Your Watershed
Community Benefits restoration efforts. Through such involvement, watershed management builds
a sense of community, helps reduce conflicts, increases commitment to the
Directly involves community members in developing a vision for the actions necessary to meet environmental goals, and ultimately, improves the
future of the watershed. likelihood of success for the watershed management plan.
Provides opportunities to educate citizens on protecting and fixing the Determine Priorities for Action
environment that do not conflict with current and future development.
Watershed planning should also identify and include the partners, or
Gives citizens an active voice in protecting and restoring natural "stakeholders," in the watershed. Development of local partnerships can also
resources that are important to them. lead to greater awareness and support from the general public. Once
individuals become aware of and interested in their watershed, they often implementation adjustments and/or additional management measures
become more involved in decision-making as well as hands-on protection and become necessary.
restoration efforts. Through such involvement, watershed management builds
Water Supply And Distribution System
a sense of community, helps reduce conflicts, increases commitment to the
actions necessary to meet environmental goals, and ultimately, improves the Water Supply System
likelihood of success for the watershed management plan.
A water supply system or water supply network is a system of
Conduct Educational Programs engineered hydrologic and hydraulic components which provide water supply.
Watershed management planning should also determine what the A water supply system typically includes:
opportunities are to reduce pollution or address other pressing environmental
A drainage basin (see water purification - sources of drinking water).
issues, prioritize those opportunities, and identify a time frame for
accomplishing pollution reduction and resource and habitat improvements.
A raw water collection point (above or below ground) where the water
Those issues that pose the greatest risk to human health or particular
accumulates, such as a lake, a river, or groundwater from
resources, or to desired uses of resources (i.e., swimming beaches), might be
an underground aquifer. Raw water may be transferred using uncovered
given highest priority for control and reduction. Watershed plans should
ground-level aqueducts, covered tunnels or underground water pipes to
establish clear goals, visions, and actions to be taken.
water purification facilities.
standards, are integrated into municipal land use regulations (zoning, need to be situated at the outlet of underground or above ground
They are: Grid, Ring, Radial and Dead End System. Groundwater is most often accessed through springs, hand-dug wells, or
drilled boreholes. (Drilled boreholes are also sometimes called wells!).
1. Grid Iron System:
Springs are natural flows of groundwater from the underlying rock or
o It is suitable for cities with rectangular layout, where the water
unconsolidated sediment. Springs are dependent on the characteristics
mains and branches are laid in rectangles.
of the rocks, and their nature and yields are hugely variable. They often
o Water is kept in good circulation due to the absence of dead ends. Hand-dug wells have been dug to access groundwater for thousands of years.
They can only be dug in soft material, such as unconsolidated sediment like
o In the cases of a breakdown in some section, water is available from
sand and gravel, weathered basement, or limestone. They are only appropriate
some other direction.
where the groundwater level (water table) is shallow. They are usually less than
20 m deep and 1–2 m in diameter, but can be wider and much deeper.
o Disadvantages:
Boreholes are narrow diameter tubes drilled into the ground, usually vertically.
o Exact calculation of sizes of pipes is not possible due to provision of
Boreholes are also called tube wells or simply wells. They can be drilled more
valves on all branches.
quickly and go deeper than hand-dug wells, and so can tap deeper, often
2. Ring System: more sustainable groundwater; they can be drilled though hard rocks and they
can be more easily protected from contamination.
The main supply is laid all along the peripheral roads and sub mains branch
out from the mains. Thus, this system also follows the grid iron system with the Other, less common ways of accessing groundwater are by:
flow pattern similar in character to that of dead end system. So, determination
Collector wells, which are vertical boreholes or wells modified by drilling
of the size of pipes is easy.
horizontally out radially below the water table to increase the collection
3. Radial System: area for groundwater into the central well, from where water is
abstracted. They are often constructed in alluvium, next to ephemerally
The area is divided into different zones. The water is pumped into the
dry ('sand') rivers, with the horizontal radials drilled into the river bed
distribution reservoir kept in the middle of each zone and the supply pipes are
deposits; or in weathered basement.
laid radially ending towards the periphery.
It is suitable for old towns and cities having no definite pattern of roads. groundwater in many parts of North African and the Middle East. A qanat
comprises a mother well, often in alluvial deposits at the edge of a
Advantages:
mountain range, and a gently inclined covered, underground channel
which allows groundwater to flow downhill to a village.
Relatively cheap.
Disadvantages:
Left unchecked, fats, oils and grease (FOG's) can create
big problems for your business, and land you on the wrong side of the law.
• Due to many dead ends, stagnation of water occurs in pipes.
Serious sell, install and service a range of grease management equipment for
WHAT DOES GROUNDWATER DEVELOPMENT INVOLVE? commercial kitchens to meet the latest grease management legislation.
Developing groundwater resources sustainably is easier in some grease management for restaurants
hydrogeological environments than others. If good supplies of groundwater
grease management for pubs
can't be found everywhere - for example, if the local aquifers are low
permeability and/or complex, or there are groundwater quality issues - then
grease management for hotels
new boreholes and wells must be sited and designed carefully if they are to be
successful. To do this, it's important to understand how groundwater exists grease management for care homes, hospitals and schools
Drainage
TYPES OF GROUNDWATER SOURCES water from a given area. Drainage systems include all of the piping within a
private or public property that conveys sewage, rainwater, and other liquid
Groundwater can be abstracted from the ground in different ways. Many
waste to a point of disposal. The main objective of a drainage system is to
resources are available to support the choice of which abstraction
collect and remove waste matter systematically to maintain healthy conditions
in a building. Drainage systems are designed to dispose of wastewater as tens of meters per second, be 140 meters (460 ft.) deep, and destroy any
quickly as possible and should prevent gases from sewers and septic tanks structures in their path.
from entering residential areas.
A flood is an overflow of water that submerges land which is usually dry.
Residential Drainage Systems Flooding may occur as an overflow of water from water bodies, such as a river
or lake, in which the water overtops or breaks levees, resulting in some of that
Residential drainage systems remove excess water from residential areas. This
water escaping its usual boundaries, or it may occur due to an accumulation of
system helps whisk water away from walkways, driveways, and roofs to avoid
rainwater on saturated ground in an a real flood. While the size of a lake or
flooding. Residential drainage systems are very important as they prevent
other body of water will vary with seasonal changes in precipitation and snow
rotting, mold, mildew, and structural damage in buildings from a buildup of
melt, these changes in size are unlikely to be considered significant unless they
water. Our SE exam review courses discuss the requirements and
flood property or drown domestic animals.
recommendations for residential structures regarding drainage systems.
Dams
The types of residential drainage systems are:
A barrier that impounds water or underground streams. Dams generally serve
1.Surface
the primary purpose of retaining water, while other structures such as
2.Subsurface
floodgates or levees (also known as dikes) are used to manage or prevent
3.Slope
water flow into specific land regions.
4. Downspout/gutters
Check dam
1. Surface Drainage Systems
These are small gravity dams, usually constructed with rocks and mortar or
Surface drainage systems contain shallow ditches dug in a parallel pattern,
concrete, of variable height and width. These structures are located in small or
which act as canals for run-off water. Theses ditches lead the water into the
medium-sized gullies to stabilize riverbed slopes and prevent soil erosion.
main drain to avoid water pooling and flooding.
Retaining walls
2. Subsurface Drainage Systems
These are rock/concrete block structures built on steep slopes anywhere in
A subsurface drainage system is also known as a French drain. Subsurface
the
drains are placed beneath the top layer of soil to remove excess water at the
root level. Subsurface drains require the digging of deep ditches and the
installation of underground pipes. A large collector drain is installed to collect
water from the pipes.
Slope drains allow water to flow downward from a structure with the aid of
pipes moving down a slope. A pipe is installed and anchored into a small
incline, which causes water to flow through the pipe and away from the
structure.
River and coastal structures play important roles in flood control, water
utilization, and environmental conservation. This provide a safe, secure and
sound environment by planning/designing flood control, coastal structures,
and water use facilities while taking account of safety, landscape, and
environment. The nature of these structures is to alter the flow regime of a
river or stream. Impounding a river or stream has possible consequences for:
discharge, water velocity, temperature, dissolved oxygen, river bed movement,
siltation and suspended solids.