IWA Publishing books

After manpower, energy is the highest operating cost item for most the wastewater utilities. Over the last decade, the implementation of new technologies to meet new effluent limits and water quality standards has considerably increased energy consumption by the sector. The price of energy has also substantially increased in the same period. In North America and Europe, some utilities have reported significant increases in energy costs in recent years, and with oil prices continuing to fluctuate

Worldwide, many regions have a great potential to cover part of their pressing water needs by renewable energy powered water treatment processes using either thermal or membrane based technologies. Not only arid and semiarid regions are increasingly exposed to water shortage but also many other regions face a limitation of freshwater resources either by increasing contamination of surface water bodies and/or groundwater resources unsuitable for drinking and irrigation purposes either due to thei

The use of shallow geothermal energy (SGE) systems to acclimatize buildings has increased exponentially in the Netherlands and worldwide. In certain areas, SGE systems are constructed in aquifers also used for drinking water supply raising the question of potential groundwater quality impact. Impacts of Shallow Geothermal Energy on Groundwater Quality provides a hydrochemical and geomicrobial overview of the effects of ground source heat pumps and aquifer thermal energy storage. The area is inv