Visions of the World’s Most Vital ResourceBY: DOUGLAS RIDLEY - SPRING 2015

Water 1.0 Water Provision

Roman Innovations • At Pompeii, pipelines feature sluice gates that

could shut off the flow of water. This technology was used to prioritize water distribution in times of drought

• The Romans also built a separate water supply system for uses where the quality of water was not as critical, a practice which has been reintroduced in recent years.

• The slope of aqueducts was planned so that water travelled slowly enough to self-purify on its way to the city.

Castellum Divisorium at Nimes, France

Bucket Era

Health After the Fall of the Roman Empire • It was common practice in European

cities to dispose of wastes from slaughterhouses, tanneries, and stables directly into the water supply.

• Efforts to remove wastes from city streets were made a priority after the bubonic plague began to spread throughout the continent in the 14th Century

• Chutes were designed in Swiss housing complexes to efficiently remove wastes

• Although the collection of human wastes resulted in cleaner drinking water, it did nothing to fight pathogenic microbes

Health

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Water 2.0 Water TreatmentIn the early 20th century, scientists began using microbes to oxidize contaminants, by way of sand filters.

The first water treatment plant to use sand filtration in the U.S. opened in 1893 and led to an 80% decrease in Typhoid Fever, in the community of Lawrence, Massachusetts

This success led to the construction of water filtration plants throughout the U.S. over the next 20 years

In the 1890’s, chlorine also began to gain acceptance as a reliable way of purifying water on a large scale.

Water 3.0 Sewage Treatment • Many water stressed cities in the U.S. are beginning to

reuse and recycle wastewater effluent

PresentTHE WATER SITUATION IN THE AMERICAN WEST

Water Consumption by function U.S. Geological Survey 2010

Thermoelectric Irrigation Public Supply IndustrialAquaculture Domestic Mining Livestock

Thermoelectric 45%

Irrigation 33%

Public Supply 12%

Industrial

Aquaculture

Water 4.0 Conservation

Questions?