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From source to tap: management of natural organic matter during drinking water production

Summary of the impact

New characterisation tools for natural organic matter (NOM) in drinking water are now used as standard practice within water companies such as Severn Trent Water, United Utilities and Yorkshire Water. The tools inform decisions, and help develop strategic plans on catchment management, source selection, treatment optimisation, and disinfection practice. Water companies experienced difficulties in treating high levels of NOM. Cranfield created a novel characterisation toolkit to measure NOM for its electrical charge and hydrophobicity. Also, new techniques for measuring aggregate properties and emerging disinfection by-products have provided a comprehensive analysis. Two novel treatment technologies are currently marketed. These technologies have raised international interest, resulting in industrial development in Australia.

Submitting Institution

Cranfield University

Unit of Assessment

Aeronautical, Mechanical, Chemical and Manufacturing Engineering

Summary Impact Type

Environmental

Research Subject Area(s)

Chemical Sciences: Analytical Chemistry, Other Chemical Sciences
Engineering: Chemical Engineering

Reducing waterborne diseases from shallow wells in the developing world

Summary of the impact

This study analysed the shallow well drinking water quality of 17,000 rural Malawians. Water officials were advised interim precautions to take regarding grossly contaminated wells. Inter alia, the `Water Resources Investment Strategy', World Bank funded, captured this data to help develop policy. A new MSc course was established to educate water officials. Workshops/Fieldtrips integrated this research into the undergraduate curriculum. An indigenous sustainable natural water purification system was developed to reduce contaminates at source. Initial data indicates that water quality can be improved by up to 80%. This has the potential to improve the water quality for 1.5 million Malawians.

Submitting Institution

Leeds Metropolitan University

Unit of Assessment

Architecture, Built Environment and Planning

Summary Impact Type

Environmental

Research Subject Area(s)

Chemical Sciences: Analytical Chemistry
Biological Sciences: Microbiology
Engineering: Environmental Engineering

Improving UK Regulation of Agricultural Irrigation

Summary of the impact

Research at Cranfield has underpinned national policies for managing and allocating the UK's agricultural water resources over the past 20 years. It has supported major reforms in water policy, abstraction legislation and drought management. It has done this by modelling spatial and temporal variations in demand for irrigation, linking this to the financial impacts of water stress on crop yield and quality, projecting future demand, and assessing climate change impacts and potential adaptations. It has also significantly impacted the agri-food sector, helping agribusinesses assess the viability of irrigation and reservoir investment, encouraging collaboration, and reducing risks in the food supply chain.

Submitting Institution

Cranfield University

Unit of Assessment

Agriculture, Veterinary and Food Science

Summary Impact Type

Environmental

Research Subject Area(s)

Earth Sciences: Physical Geography and Environmental Geoscience
Engineering: Environmental Engineering
Economics: Applied Economics

Improving the performance of water meters

Summary of the impact

Research has led to improvements in the performance over 16 million water meters manufactured by Elster Metering Ltd. since 2008, extending their working lifetimes and reducing maintenance costs. In particular, research on polymeric replacements for the glass in water meters helped Elster establish their product development strategy, and led to changes in the manufactured meter. Brunel University research identifying a specific set of acetal polymers that reduce the degradation of the bodies in water meters has been incorporated in 1.8 million water meters. These meters have less embodied carbon dioxide, and are less prone to theft than the meter with brass components they replace. This innovation allowed Elster to reduce the costs of manufacturing in the UK, thereby maintaining a strong competitive position within the market for water meters.

Submitting Institution

Brunel University

Unit of Assessment

Aeronautical, Mechanical, Chemical and Manufacturing Engineering

Summary Impact Type

Technological

Research Subject Area(s)

Chemical Sciences: Macromolecular and Materials Chemistry
Engineering: Chemical Engineering, Materials Engineering

Virtual Water: the conceptual transformation of public and private sector water policy and metrics

Summary of the impact

The virtual water concept is used to identify and quantify water use which is hidden, or embedded within the production and supply of food and other commodities. Its primary application has been to demonstrate that the majority of water consumed globally is used within the production and trade of food. Introduced and developed by Allan, virtual water research has transformed public and private sector water policy and its metrics in the UK and internationally. Instantiated through conceptual work published in 1993 and 1994 and developed through empirical studies thereafter, virtual water was widely adopted by 2000. The idea is now accepted as an essential element in the framing of policy on water security and its economic systems. Virtual water has been increasingly deployed by advisers to governments, corporations and NGOs, below we provide evidence from the U.S. State department, Coca Cola, WWF and the World Economic Forum, this is by no means a complete list. In 2011 the UK House of Lords and UK government's official response urged the EU Commission to incorporate virtual water in EU Policy. In recognition of the global conceptual impact of virtual water, Tony Allan was awarded the Stockholm Water Prize, 2008. In 2013, in recognition of impact made in preceding years through his virtual water concept and research Allan was also awarded the Foundation Prince Albert II de Monaco Water Award and the International Environmentalist Award of the Florence-based Fondazione Parchi Monumentali Bardini e Peyron.

Submitting Institution

King's College London

Unit of Assessment

Geography, Environmental Studies and Archaeology

Summary Impact Type

Political

Research Subject Area(s)

Medical and Health Sciences: Public Health and Health Services
Economics: Applied Economics
Studies In Human Society: Policy and Administration

Influencing the Regulation of the Water and Sewage Industry and the 2013 Water Bill

Summary of the impact

Research conducted at Aston University on the performance of the water and sewerage industry influenced water industry regulation and the shaping of the Water Bill 2013-14, which had its first reading in the House of Commons on 27 June 2013. Specifically, the research: changed understanding and awareness in the debate preceding the Water Bill by highlighting potential costs associated with vertically separating water companies (Impact 1); influenced the Water Bill's prohibition of mandatory company separation, while also providing evidence that facilitated the Bill's provisions to establish a Great Britain wide retail market for non-household water customers (Impact 2); and changed policy makers' awareness of panel cost and productivity assessment methods, thereby influencing consideration of their future application to regulatory cost assessment (Impact 3) .

Submitting Institution

Aston University

Unit of Assessment

Business and Management Studies

Summary Impact Type

Political

Research Subject Area(s)

Medical and Health Sciences: Public Health and Health Services
Economics: Applied Economics

Influencing international health policy to reduce acute waterborne diarrhoeal disease

Summary of the impact

Diarrhoeal disease is the world's second most common cause of death in children under five years old, killing 760,000 children each year according to the World Health Organisation (WHO). Microbial contamination of drinking water is one of the most important causes. In England and Wales acute diarrhoeal disease is estimated to cost the country £1.5 billion annually. UEA epidemiologists have shown the important role of water supply systems in spreading diarrhoeal disease in developed and developing countries; led WHO research projects on small scale drinking water systems; and influenced WHO policy on small scale drinking water systems in developed and developing countries. Methodological research on epidemiological methods for monitoring and regulating bathing water quality has led to changes in WHO guidance on bathing water quality standards and influenced US Environmental Protection Agency criteria. Hunter's participation in international expert panels facilitated the impact of this research on policy.

Submitting Institution

University of East Anglia

Unit of Assessment

Public Health, Health Services and Primary Care

Summary Impact Type

Health

Research Subject Area(s)

Medical and Health Sciences: Public Health and Health Services

Low energy production of fresh water from the sea by Forward Osmosis

Summary of the impact

University of Surrey has a strong legacy of research into membrane separation and osmosis, culminating the commercialisation of Surrey's spin-out company Modern Water plc. Modern Water plc. was floated on AIM (London Stock Exchange) in June 2007 raising £30m cash with a market value of £70m.

The research itself is having direct impact via the operating desalination plants in Gibraltar and Oman producing high quality drinking water typically using 30% less energy than conventional desalination plants. In Oman, because of the poor quality of the feed water the forward osmosis process uses 42% less energy per litre of water produced when compared to convential equipment. The two plants currently operating in Oman serve 600 people in Al-Khuluf and 800 people in Naghdah.

Submitting Institution

University of Surrey

Unit of Assessment

General Engineering

Summary Impact Type

Technological

Research Subject Area(s)

Engineering: Chemical Engineering, Environmental Engineering, Materials Engineering

Challenging Domination and Promoting Cooperation in Israeli-Palestinian Water Politics

Summary of the impact

This case study focuses on the Israeli-Palestinian water conflict within the context of the Oslo peace process. It documents four areas of impact, the underpinning research and associated engagement and dissemination activity having: (1) [text removed for publication] (2) significantly enhanced public and policy understanding of, and debate on, the Israeli-Palestinian water conflict, within Israel, the Palestinian territories and internationally; (3) [text removed for publication] and (4) contributed to the emergence of influential critiques of international policy on water `cooperation'.

Submitting Institution

University of Sussex

Unit of Assessment

Politics and International Studies

Summary Impact Type

Political

Research Subject Area(s)

Studies In Human Society: Political Science
Law and Legal Studies: Law

Investment Management and Regulation in the Water Industry

Summary of the impact

The impact is a change in the behaviour of water companies in investment planning processes to meet with 5-yearly Periodic Reviews with the industry regulator (Ofwat), and on the requirements by Ofwat for water companies to adopt a cost-benefit approach that takes account of water customer preferences. It is based on findings from a research programme concerned with economic approaches to utility regulation theories and practice. Policies, processes and practices of water companies and Ofwat, at a national level, have been affected, with respect to the 2009 and 2014 Periodic Reviews. The impacts are primarily economic, commercial and organizational, and environmental. The beneficiaries are water companies, their regulators, and customers.

Submitting Institution

University of Liverpool

Unit of Assessment

Business and Management Studies

Summary Impact Type

Political

Research Subject Area(s)

Economics: Applied Economics
Studies In Human Society: Policy and Administration

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