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Using Water for Urban Renewal--Daniel P. Loucks
Pages 61-72

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From page 61...
... New York City has had success in using natural systems to provide clean drinking water and manage storm runoff. The city has saved billions of dollars through integration of diverse methods for controlling water quality, distribution, use, and reuse.
From page 62...
... Urban areas need stormwater management. A region's demands for fresh water are a function of the need to provide clean drinking water and sanitation, to ensure public health in growing urban centers, to create electric and liquid fuel energy, to maintain a healthy environment and well-functioning ecosystems, to grow and process food, and to support the industries and economic development that provide jobs and welfare.
From page 63...
... Wastewater systems typically pump tewater through collection sewers to wastewater treatment plants, and the resulting effluent may be Urban renewal is a primary approach to building new infrastructure, attractsed or released into natural water bodies. Many creeks, streams, and rivers now flow through cities ing job-producing industry, stabilizing communities, and improving resi erground in pipes and tunnels.
From page 64...
... Water supply systems typically pump natural water through pipes or canals to water treatment plants and then through storage and distribution systems to the tap. Wastewater systems typically pump wastewater through collection sewers to wastewater treatment plants, and the resulting effluent may be reused or released into natural water bodies.
From page 65...
... 65 FIGURE 3  There are stark differences in the availability of sanitary facilities between developed and developing countries. Reprinted from Grayman et al.
From page 66...
... out how the city will improve the water quality in New York Harbor, for example, by capturing and retaining stormwater runoff before it enters the sewer system, and from there the harbor, through the use of streetside swales, tree pits, and blue and green rooftop detention techniques to absorb and retain stormwater (Figure 4)
From page 67...
... Together with conservation measures and operational improvements, the widespread adoption of such soft infrastructure can reduce CSOs at less cost than second-tier hard or grey infrastructure. Moreover, green infrastructure provides many quality of life benefits, by improving air quality, increasing shading, contributing to higher property values, and enhancing streetscapes.
From page 68...
... GOVERNANCE CHALLENGES But there are challenges relevant to implementing effective water–urban renewal projects. Experiences in New York City and elsewhere in the United States and abroad suggest that work is still needed to address: 1.
From page 69...
... VALUING, PRICING, AND CHARGING FOR WATER SERVICES Although New York City has some of the best-tasting and safest water in the world, many New Yorkers studiously avoid drinking it. Instead of giving the public water supply the respect it deserves, they purchase 1.25 billion plastic water bottles every year, requiring 60 million gallons of oil to produce and costing the city approximately $8 million annually to dispose of them.
From page 70...
... The trend toward higher water bills is being driven by the cost of paying off the debt on bonds issued to fund expensive repairs or upgrades on aging water systems, increases in the costs of electricity, chemicals, and fuel used to supply FIGURE 5  Smart pipes that can repair themselves reduce leaks without having to be dug up. Reprinted from Grayman et al.
From page 71...
... Many, especially in Africa and Asia, have virtually no or only inadequate infrastructure and limited resources to address water and wastewater management in an efficient and sustainable way. Because of inadequate infrastructure almost 85 percent of all wastewater is discharged to water bodies without treatment, resulting in one of the greatest health challenges, restricting development, and increasing poverty through costs to health care and lost labor productivity (UN 2012)
From page 72...
... A more integrated approach may transform threats into opportunities and address the challenges of urban water management in both developed and developing countries. Do we continue to spend money to treat water to drinking water quality only to use it to fight fires or carry wastes to a wastewater treatment plant?


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