WATER
AND SEWAGE
Stormwater,
water supply and sewage infrastructure places a significant cost on
the community in its provision and ongoing maintenance. Sewers are
used to carry leftover waters from toilets, kitchens and laundries in
houses and businesses. This wastewater is mostly water and contains
less than 0.05% solids. Following treatment, wastewater is then
returned to the environment. Nearly half the water used in households
ends up as wastewater. Increasing use of stormwater/rainwater
on site and use of treated effluent provides opportunities to
reduce the overall costs of providing infrastructure.
Schemes
run by water authorities include the selling of treated water for
reuse, providing irrigation for parks and sports grounds. Some homes
are also reusing their own treated wastewater for gardens and toilet
flushing.
Emerging
techniques, such as watermining, have the potential to meet these
challenges and thus provide substantial sustainability benefits for
the community. This requires an integrated approach to urban land and
water based design at all levels from the individual block to urban
waterways and corridors.