EC510 Water and Wastewater

Engineering

Sources of water supply

Lecturer: Dr. Stephen Siwila

Department of Civil and Construction Engineering,
The Copperbelt University, School of Engineering.

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 Sources of Water Supply

❖ The source of the raw water may be:

1) Rainwater (directly harvesting rainwater).
2) Water obtained by reclamation (in some cases,
greywater and/or reclaimed treated sewage, or
seawater can be used).
3) Surface water (rivers, ponds, lakes, artificial
reservoirs, etc.)., and
4) Groundwater (boreholes, hand dug wells,
springs, etc.).

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 Rain Water
❖ Rainwater can be harvested by following means:
1.) Roof catchments:
– simple roof water collection systems for households.
– larger systems for educational institutions, stadiums,
airports and other facilities.
– roof water collection systems for high-rise buildings in
urbanized areas.

2.) Ground catchments – the ground is modified specially

by creating treated earth/cemented/paved catchment to
capture rainwater.

3.) Rock catchments – rainwater captured by tanks on

natural, impervious outcrops.

4.) Collection of stormwater in urbanized catchments. 3

Rainwater: Roof catchments

Rainwater from roofs

➢ Rainwater can be collected from house roofs made
of tiles, galvanised metal, concrete, etc

➢ Pipes feed water from the roof and gutters into a

collection tank where it can be stored until needed.

➢ Some form of water treatment may be required.

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 Roof catchments
Rainwater from roofs of houses/dwellings: Water may be
stored in small underground tank, for small individual supplies.
Some form of treatment may be required.

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Ground catchments

From prepared ground catchments:

❖ These are systems that collect and store rain
falling on an area of ground.
❖ The surface of catchments is made impervious
by suitable lining material (tiles, concrete,
rubber/ plastic sheeting, etc), and suitable
slope is given then the water is stored in
moderate size reservoirs.

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Ground catchments

Figure: RWH from prepared catchments

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Ground catchments

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Water obtained by reclamation
(a) Desalination.
➢ Saline or brackish water may be rendered useful for
drinking purposes by installing desalination plants.

➢ The common methods used for desalination include:

distillation, reverse osmosis, electrodialysis, and solar
evaporation.

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 Water obtained by reclamation

❖ Desalination is the removal of salt and impurities from seawater to produce fresh
water.
❖ e.g.by using a membrane filtration installation (reverse osmosis) the salt is
concentrated into a concentrate stream, and desalinated water is ready for use.12
 Water obtained by reclamation

Figure: A desalination plant in Israel

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Water obtained by reclamation

(b) Greywater.
➢ Greywater is domestic wastewater that comes from
sinks, washing machines, showers, dishwashers,
bathtubs, etc.
➢ It does not include fecal matter or water used to
convey excrement (blackwater).

➢ Adequately treated greywater can be used for

irrigation, flushing toilets, etc.

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Water obtained by reclamation

(c) Reuse of treated wastewater.

➢ Effluent (treated waste water) can be treated
suitably so that it may be re-used.

➢ An example of the controlled indirect re-use is

the intentional artificial recharge of groundwater
aquifers by adequately treated waste water.

➢ E.g. In Windhoek Namibia treated wastewater is

used as a water source for potable water
treatment.

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 Water obtained by reclamation

Fig: Treatment plant in Windhoek where wastewater is reused for consumption the
amount of reused wastewater has been increased from 2 to 7 million m3 per year.
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 Water obtained by reclamation

Fig: The Goreangab water treatment plant uses a process that partially mimics
nature to turn sewage from Windhoek's 300,000 residents back into potable water.
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Surface Water Sources
❖ Surface water is the term used to describe
water on the land surface.
❖ The water may be flowing, as in streams and
rivers, or quiescent, as in lakes, reservoirs, and
ponds.

❖ Depending upon the scheme of collection, we

get surface water from the following sources: 19
Surface Water Sources
❖ From rivers by continuous draft: Water may be collected
directly from some large rivers, without any diversion work.

❖ By direct intake from natural lakes. Water may also be

obtained through direct intakes from natural lakes which receive
surface run-off from the adjoining catchment.

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Surface Water Sources

From reservoir storage:

❖ Where supply is not ensured throughout the year, a

dam may be constructed across the river and water
stored in the reservoir.

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 Surface Water Sources

❖ From river diversion: A diversion work e.g. a weir is constructed

across a perennial river and water is diverted into a canal which
leads water to the site of water purification works. 22
Groundwater Sources

❖ Groundwater refers to water, which is stored by

nature, under-ground in the water-bearing
formation of earth's crust.
❖ The groundwater reservoir consists of water
held in voids within a geologic stratum.

❖ Groundwater can be tapped from the following

sources:

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Groundwater Sources

(a) From infiltration galleries or basins.

(b) From wells and bore holes.

(c) From river side radial collector wells.

(d) From natural springs.

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(a)

Infiltration gallery
❖ Horizontal wells that collect water over practically
their entire lengths.
❖ Simple means of obtaining naturally filtered water.
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(b)

Figure:
Shallow
dug well

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 (b)

Fig: Protected dug well with concrete surround and a lid. Note the
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black plastic bucket is suspended off the ground to keep it clean.
(b)Borehole

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(b)

Figure: Drilling rig for a borehole. 30

(c) Fig: Details of a radial well

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(d) Springs

❖ Springs occur where groundwater exits the ground surface

(i.e., where the groundwater surface and ground surface
intersect) and are typically found at the base of a hill.

❖ Artesian springs occur where water from a confined aquifer

is under enough pressure to flow to the surface through
fractures in the rock or soil.

❖ Gravity overflow springs. Groundwater overflows from

underground to the surface by gravity due to impervious
base that prevents further percolation.
❖ Mostly found in sand or gravel aquifers.

❖ The yield varies with the position of the water table.

❖ May dry up during or immediately after a dry season.

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(d) Artesian & overflow
springs as found in nature

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 (d) Protected spring

Fig: Protect a spring source with a catch pit that is large enough to
capture the entire flow and incorporate the features shown here. 34
Considerations for selecting a source of water

❖ The evaluation and selection of the proper water source

should be based on the following issues:
(1) Quantity of water required.
(2) Quality of the raw water.
(3) Elevation.
(4) Location.
(5) Cost.
(6) Environmental impact.
(7) Sustainability.
(8) Water rights.
(9) Possibility of future contamination of the water source.
(10)Potential difficulties in constructing the intake.
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Considerations for selecting a source of water

Quantity of water:
❖ The source should be able to supply enough quantity of water
to meet the water demand of the town throughout the design
period.

❖ In some cases, part of the available source may be used to

meet the present demand and additional units may be
brought into use as demand increases with the passage of
time.

(i) If your choice is groundwater, check the adequacy/yield of the

wells or springs. E.g. carry out pumping tests.
(ii) If your choice is surface water determine the capacity of
storage reservoir or assess if the available flow is adequate.
(iii) It is crucial to know that a sufficient amount of water will be
available for withdrawal during low-flow or drought conditions.
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Considerations for selecting a source of water

Quality of water:
❖ The source should contain water with minimal or no
pollution such that the water can be easily and
cheaply/economically treated.

❖ Thus, the analysis of the raw water quality should be

made to know the various impurities present in it, and to
decide on the required treatment processes.

❖ In some situations, it may be more cost effective to pipe

water a considerable distance from a remote, good-quality
supply than to treat poor-quality water that is available
locally.

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Considerations for selecting a source of water

❖ Some of the principal water quality factors that must be

considered in evaluating the suitability of a water source for
use are:
▪ excessive turbidity,

▪ chemical or radiological contamination,

▪ undesirable taste, odour, or colour,

▪ presence of algae growth, and

▪ water temperature,

▪ microbiological contamination, (e.g. sources with high

levels of microbiological contamination are normally
considered unsuitable for producing drinking water).
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Considerations for selecting a source of water

Elevation:

➢ The source of water supply should (if possible) be at

a higher level so that it becomes possible to supply
water by gravity flow only.

➢ If a water source is at a lower level, it will involve

huge expenditure on the operational and
maintenance costs of pumping.

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Considerations for selecting a source of water

Location:

❖ The source whether surface or groundwater

should be situated as near as possible to the
town or city
❖ because such a location will require less
lengths of pipes and few associated
appurtenances (e.g. valves).

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Considerations for selecting a source of water

Cost:
❖ The selection of a source of water supply should be
such that the overall cost of the water supply project is
brought down to the minimum.

Environmental impact:
❖ What are the predicted environmental consequences
of developing the water source?
❖ Will the benefits of the new supply outweigh any
disadvantages?

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 Common Sources of Water Supply
 Groundwater
⚫ shallow wells

⚫ deep wells

 Surface water
⚫ rivers

⚫ lakes

⚫ reservoirs
 Water Source Evaluation
 Surface vs. groundwater
⚫ Fluctuations in quality and
quantity
⚫ Natural storage

⚫ Protection

 Considerations
⚫ Allowable yield determined
from regulatory constraints
⚫ With groundwater want to
avoid over pumping.
Groundwater vs. Surface Water

Groundwater Surface water

 constant composition  variable composition
 high mineral content  low mineral content
 low turbidity  high turbidity
 low color  colored
 low or no D.O.  D.O. present
 CO2, H2S may be present  low hardness
 high hardness  taste and odor
 high Fe, Mn  Clay, silt, NOM
Surface Water Supplies

➢ Yield is the average flow that can be collected for use

from a river or reservoir over a long period of time.

➢ Safe yield or firm yield is the maximum quantity of

water that can be guaranteed during a critical dry
period.

➢ The safe yield from a reservoir must be > Qday-max.

➢ The variation in river flows can be so great that even a

small demand cannot be met during dry periods,
➢ so a reservoir must be constructed to store water
during wet periods for use during dry periods.

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What is an impounded Reservoir?
▪ An impounded reservoir is an artificial lake formed by
the construction of a dam across a valley.
Surface Water Supplies

Reservoir storage capacity

❖ The storage capacity of an impounded reservoir

needed to meet the demand of continuous supply is
estimated using observed river flow data of a river
on/for which the dam is to be built.

❖ The river flow values for the driest years in as long a

period as is available, say 25 to 30 years; minimum 10
years is recommended.

❖ The storage capacity is determined using the following

methods:
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Reservoir storage capacity

Analytical method
❖ The inflow and demand values in each month are
determined then presented in tabular form.

❖ The differences between the inflow and demand values

(i.e. inflow-demand) is calculated.

❖ Negative -ve values denote deficiency while +ve values

denote surplus.

❖ The minimum reservoir capacity is approx. equal to:

❖ (i) the cumulative deficiency or (ii) surplus if there is
no loss of water over the spillway.
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Reservoir storage capacity

Bar graph method

❖ A bar graph of average inflows for the driest year
against time is plotted.

❖ The area in the graph represents the total volume of

water which enters the reservoir in that year.

❖ The average demand is then plotted on the graph, as

straight line if the demand is uniform and stepped if the
demand is not uniform.

❖ The area of maximum deficit i.e. between inflow and

demand represents min. reservoir storage capacity.

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Reservoir storage capacity

Mass curve method

❖ The cumulative inflow at the point of a proposed
reservoir is plotted against time using data from the
years of minimum flow.

❖ On the same curve the cumulative water demand is

plotted.

❖ The difference between the total water flowing in and

the water demand is the minimum reservoir storage
capacity if the demand is to be met.

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Reservoir storage capacity
Mass curve method: additional information

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Mass curve method

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Reservoir storage capacity
Mass curve method

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 Example

❖ The yield of water from a catchment area in a critical year for each given
month is as given in the table above.
❖ Determine the minimum reservoir storage capacity to allow the volume of
water to be drawn off at a uniform rate assuming that there is no loss
over the spill way. 54
Analytical method

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 Bar graph method
14

12

10
Flow (Mcum)

0
Jan feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Min storage cap. alternative soln.

20.78 20.74
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Mass curve method

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Mass curve method plot

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Practice question (solve using analytical and
bar graph methods.

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Estimating spring capacity: measuring Q using a weir

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Estimating spring capacity: head vs Q

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GW pumping test: Observation wells are needed

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GW pumping test: water level measurement is vital

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 Best wishes &
Thank you for your attention
Prepared & presented by Dr. Eng. Stephen Siwila
Mobile: +260-972-470-543
Email: ssiwilatabbie@yahoo.co.uk
ssiwilatabbie@gmail.com

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