Part 2 - Water Services Provision and Climate Change Adaptation.

The uptake of innovative technical solutions and water services delivery models to address climate change uncertainties has been hampered by the fragmented nature of policies and the absence of an environment that recognises and then addresses the inherent complexity of the diverse stakeholder base involved in the provision and consumption of water services. Understanding the wider context and end user acceptability of innovations has the potential to improve the uptake and subsequent impact of solutions to the pressure facing the provision of water services, particularly when set against the backdrop of climate change. This special issue focuses on the wider aspects which may contribute towards the delivery of sustainable water management and covers a range of topics including: user attitudes and perceptions to water demand management measures; approaches to understanding and influencing water end users, water-energy linkages and the interactions between community and water service delivery modes. We hope readers will find the collection of presented papers informative, with them in turn contributing towards the development of new areas of research that lead to the development of relevant and impactful solutions. We would like to thank all contributing authors for their hard work and patience in the production of this special issue.

A Laboratory Study into a Novel, Retrofittable Rainwater Harvesting System.

Aims: To establish the system characteristics of a novel rainwater harvesting system. Study Design: A laboratory test rig was used to assess the selected technology. Place and Duration of Study: University of Exeter, Centre for Water Systems between June 2014 and May 2015. Methodology: Previous research has identified that systems should have: 1) reduced capital costs, 2) reduced operational costs and 3) increased ease of retrofitting. To investigate the system’s ability to address these requirements, two full-scale laboratory test rigs have been used to assess flow and power consumption characteristics under a range of installation scenarios. Results: The system was identified to have a mean power consumption of 0.12kWh/m3 during a one hour pump test. Electrical costs were found to increase when the power consumption of the 11W control board was taken into account. Conclusion: Subject to reduction of the standby power consumption of the controller, the novel RWH system assessed in this study has potential to provide non-potable water supplies to households in the UK at a lower power consumption rate than existing water supply systems identified in the literature.

An Analysis of Domestic Water Consumption in Jaipur, India.

Aim: To explore the relation between water consumption and water use behaviour and attitudes, and devices applied in households in urban areas in India. Methodology and Study Site: This paper presents the results of a domestic water consumption survey carried out in Jaipur, India. A questionnaire containing over 60 questions was developed to collect information on households’ characteristics (e.g. family size, household type, and number of children), indoor and outdoor water use activities and their respective frequencies and durations. Information was also gathered on the volume of water used in each of these activities. Over 90 households of different types (standalone houses and apartments in a university campus and Jaipur city) participated in the survey. The survey results were analysed using cluster analysis and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA). Results: The results show that the per capita consumption varies considerably with household type and size. The average water consumption was 183 and 215 litres/person/day for standalone households and apartments, respectively. Water used in bathing and WC's represent the highest proportion of water consumption in both stand-alone houses and apartments. Over 40% of the households reported no use of showers. The per capita water consumption is inversely related to family size especially in stand-alone houses. Conclusion: The information pertaining to water use habits and the qualitative and quantitative analysis can be used as an input to a proposed domestic water efficiency tool (DoWET) which can generate optimal water efficient composite strategies keeping in view a range of sustainability indicators including water saving potential, cost and associated energy consumption of the water saving devices and fixtures available in India.

Part 1 - Climate Change Adaptation: Water Management and the Built Environment.

A changing and more variable climate coupled with urbanization, population growth and shifting living standards has led towards increased frequency of extreme events (droughts and floods). Using water wisely in the built environment has the potential to enhance the resilience of urban water infrastructure to the extreme events. This special issue consists of eight papers mainly focused on aspects of water management in the built environment (i.e. residential buildings). Topics covered, include: domestic water consumption trends, hot and cold water delivery systems, effectiveness of water efficiency measures in buildings, the role of rainwater harvesting, greywater recycling, and the impact of front gardens on attenuating flows and water quality. Sustainable water management in the built environment is the subject of renewed attention in many parts of the world, with public policy and the work of planners rapidly evolving and focusing on the implementation of decentralized and locally based solutions. We hope readers will find the collection of presented papers informative, with them in turn contributing towards the development of new areas of research that lead to the development of relevant and impactful solutions. We would like to thank all contributing authors for their hard work and patience in the production of this special issue.