Water Conservation
Industrialization
Angela Tran and Madelyn Pedia
January 11, 2019
Overview
Almost every manufactured product uses water during production
Overview
Industrial water uses include fabricating, processing, washing, diluting, and cooling products
Secondary uses include water used for transportation and sanitation needs within the manufacturing facility
Why We Need to Conserve Water
- Growing population means growing need for manufactured products
- Industry is the largest consumer of water in the US
- Unpredictable sources
Growing Needs
- Associate population growth with need for resources
- With increased technology
- We have new goods
- Growing need for manufactured tech
Growing Needs
Unpredictable Sources
- Precipitation and climate change
- Not necessarily reliable
- Escalating drought
- Too much and too little water
Areas of Importance
Areas of Importance
Power Generation and Production
Power production
- Mining and refinement of fossil fuels requires massive amounts of water
- Electricity production uses more water than any other industrial area
- In 2005, about 201,000 million gallons of water were used each day to produce electricity
- It takes a staggering 95 liters of water to produce one kilowatt-hour of electricity
Food Processing
Food processing
- Water is routinely used in food production as an ingredient, for cleaning, sanitation and manufacturing purposes
Textile Production
Textile production
- The textile industry is one of the biggest creators of waste water worldwide
- A large sum of water is used in "wet processing"
- Process where textiles are treated and colored while wet
- It takes 2,900 gallons of water to produce a single pair of jeans
Water Conservation in Industry
Water savings can be achieved in industry through a combination of changing behavior, modifying and/or replacing equipment with water saving equipment to reduce overall water consumption and increase internal reuse.
Benefits
- Potential for cost savings from reducing water use
- Optimized water can ensure water security and community relations through sustainable management of water sources that the firm and surrounding communities depend on
- Socially and environmentally responsible water management can increase marketability of the firm
Benefits of Water Conservation
How to
- Educate employees
- Set up water conservation program
- Have water assessments
- Set operational goals and changes
- Modify and use new equipment
- Reduce and Reuse
How We Should Implement
Methods
Methods
- Quantify water use through audits
- Educate employees
- Use minimal water in cleaning
- Modify equipment
- Reduce, Reuse, Recycle water
- Reverse osmosis to treat
- Sewage water treatment
Resources
Resources
https://sswm.info/water-nutrient-cycle/water-use/hardwares/optimisation-water-use-industries/reduce-water-consumption-in-industry
https://www.ppsthane.com/blog/ways-to-save-water-in-industries-2
https://news.thomasnet.com/imt/2012/04/10/down-the-drain-industry-water-use
https://water.usgs.gov/edu/wuin.html