Could global trends mean less water from our taps?
Electricity and gas companies aren’t the only utilities are worried about keeping their services going as demand rises while resources grow increasingly constrained. Water utilities also have reasons for concern.
That’s because the growing middle classes of the world want more water not just for drinking, but consume much more than before through indirect means. It takes 42,267 gallons of water, for example, to produce one computer, and there are a lot more computer buyers in the world now than there used to be. Diets that are going upscale, with more meat, are also putting pressure on water resources: raising one pound of beef, for instance, requires 1,581 gallons of water.
In fact, projections show that, at current consumption rates the world faces a 40 percent water shortage by 2030.
One company that’s working to help water utilities make the most of their resources is the smart-grid firm Sensus, based in Raleigh, North Carolina. By bringing together its advanced meters, software and services — usually used by electricity companies — with its Sensus FlexNet two-way communications network, Sensus has developed an AquaSense intelligent water management system.
The company is already helping water utilities across the US implement water management projects. Its most recent clients include Albuquerque-Bernalillo County, Garden City, Kansas and the town of Cary in North Carolina.
Just one year after deploying AquaSense, claims Sensus, the town of Santa Maria in California has already saved more than 2 million gallons of water.
“Water utilities and municipalities across the country are looking for ways to strike the right balance between consuming and conserving water,” said Mike Tracy, executive vice president for Sensus in North America. “They must manage the rising costs of energy, capture lost revenue and support new customer service expectations.”
AquaSense was designed to help water utilities do that by building on technologies commonly associated with the smart grid for electricity, but with an approach that focuses on the specific challenges and opportunities facing water utilities.
If there is a leak or inefficiency, for example, the Sensus system helps to identify promptly, typically within hours instead of days or weeks. Smart meters can continually gather water system data, enabling utilities to give their customers valuable information on how to manage their water consumption.
One in three water utilities were in some phase of implementing a smart water program, according to a 2010 study by Oracle. Among the reasons they cite for the move: early leak detection, supplying customer with tools to monitor and reduce water use, providing more accurate water pricing rates, curbing overall water demand and improving their ability to conduct preventive maintenance.
