CE EL 4 –

WATER AND
WASTE WATER
ENGINEERING
CHAPTER 1
1.1 Review of Hydrology Aspects
of Water Supply
1.2 Water Quality and Quantity
1.3 Drinking Water Standard
1.1 Review of Hydrology Aspects of Water Supply
Hydrology is the science of water occurrence, movement and transport in nature. It gives weight
toward the study of water in the Earth and is concerned with local circulations related to the
atmosphere, lithosphere, biosphere, and hydrosphere leading to water movement, distribution,
quality, and environmental aspects.

Broadly, it deals also with the physical as well as chemical relationships. In general, it is
concerned with natural events such as rainfall, runoff, drought, flood and runoff, groundwater
occurrences, their control, prediction, and management. It also covers the practical and field
applications for water resources assessments with simple rational calculations leading toward
proper managements.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/earth-and-planetary-sciences/hydrology#:~:text=Introduction,material%20components%20of%20the%20environment.
 1.2 Water Quality and Quantity
‘Water quality’ refers to the physical, chemical and biological attributes of water that affect its ability to
sustain environmental values. ‘Water quantity’ describes the
mass of water and/or discharge and can also include aspects of the flow regime, such as timing, frequency
and duration.

• Water of adequate quality and quantity is central to the health and integrity of the environment. The
presence or absence of water, and its quality, largely determines the species richness and diversity of a
particular region. It can also be a trigger to breeding and recruitment behaviours for some species.
Changes in the quality or quantity of water may result in immediate change in the structure and
function of ecosystems, including the numbers and types of organisms that can survive in the altered
Environment.
• Good water quality and quantity are not only important to support healthy ecological communities;
they are equally important for human water users. On 30 September 2010, the United Nations Human
Rights Council adopted a resolution recognizing that the human right to safe drinking water and
sanitation is a part of the right to an adequate standard of living (UNHRC 2010). The availability of
adequate supplies of clean water is one of the most important building blocks for economic and social
structures of society. It determines the viability of a region to support industries such as agriculture,
fishing, irrigation, manufacturing and mining. Over history, it has shaped the geographic distribution
of human populations and their quality of life and culture.

https://www.waterquality.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/characterising.pdf.
1.2 Water Quality and Quantity
Six environmental values that are conducive to public benefit, safety, health
or aesthetic enjoyment and which require protection from the effects of
pollution and altered flow regimes. They are:

• aquatic ecosystems
• primary industries (irrigation and general water uses, stock drinking
water, aquaculture and
human consumption of aquatic foods)
• recreation and aesthetics
• drinking water
• industrial water
• cultural and spiritual values.

https://www.waterquality.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/characterising.pdf.
 1.2 Water Quality and Quantity
How water quantity affects water quality?

Water quantity is a fundamental driver of water quality. The nature of the relationship
between water quantity and quality is complex and depends strongly on the
characteristics of individual catchments. Water quality can be directly attributable to
the following three characteristics of catchment and local hydrology, which cause
daily and seasonal fluctuations in water quality:

• source of water (snow melt, rainfall/surface run-off, groundwater, tidal waters,

irrigation
transfers, flow releases from dams or point and diffuse sources)
• hydrological variability, referred to as the flow/watering regime (magnitude,
timing, frequency and duration of flows)
• in-stream processes (transport/retention, evapo-concentration/dilution,
mixing/stratification, reaeration, and nutrient and carbon cycling).

https://www.waterquality.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/characterising.pdf.
 1.2 Water Quality and Quantity
• Source of water
Water quality varies amongst different catchments and different types of aquatic ecosystems. Much
of this variation can be explained by the sources of water.

Natural sources of water include snow melt, rainfall/surface run-off, groundwater and tidal waters.
Human-derived modifications to catchments have altered the quantity, quality and balance of these
natural sources and introduced
new water movement pathways—for example, irrigation transfers, flow releases from dams and point
and diffuse sources. The quality of source water shapes the evolution and ecology of aquatic ecosystems.

In natural, unmodified catchments, inputs to the water cycle include snow melt and/or rainfall with
associated surface run-off to rivers and wetlands and groundwater recharge. Groundwater discharge can
support base flows in rivers, lakes and wetlands. The hydrology of lakes and wetlands depends on their
level of connection with water sources. Some lakes and wetlands are connected to rivers, while others
can be isolated and located within low points in the landscape that receive rainfall runoff from the
catchment. Estuarine and near-shore marine environments have a unique blend of fresh catchment
inflows and marine tidal waters. Each of these sources is characterized by differences in water quality
(for example, temperature, salinity, alkalinity, nutrients and organic carbon and metal concentrations),
which can be also be a function of altitude, topography, soil type and vegetation cover.
https://www.waterquality.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/characterising.pdf.
1.2 Water Quality and Quantity
• Source of water
Human-derived catchment modifications and land use have not only altered the natural water cycle but also changed
the water quality of natural sources. For example, water tables have risen as a consequence of extensive irrigation. This
has led to increasing salinity in some streams from saline groundwater discharge during low flows. Another example is
the construction of large dams on waterways, which has led to changed flow regimes and water quality downstream.

Dissolved and particulate substances, such as eroded soils, nutrients, salts, toxins, pathogens and other contaminants,
are transported from the surrounding catchment into aquatic ecosystems after rainfall. They can enter waterways and
wetlands by point or non-point (diffuse) pathways. Point sources are typically continuous and from a specific location
(usually a pipe or drain). They include stormwater and sewage treatment plant or industrial discharges. Sewage
treatment plant wastewater discharges are common sources of nutrients in waterways. The load of point source inputs
to waterways is typically proportional to the level of urbanization in the catchment.

Non-point sources are not as easily identifiable. These sources of contaminants include run-off from farms, roads or
lawns and erosion within a catchment. Leakage from septic tanks or sewer exfiltration from underground pipe
networks can also be classified as diffuse sources. Nutrients and suspended solids are common in non-point source run-
off from farms and agricultural land, from use of fertilizers, stock access to waterways and effluent management.

Mining operations (like coal mining or coal-seam gas operations) may also affect water quality through dewatering
discharges to waterways/storages, generation of sediment-laden run-off, chemical handling and storage, water and
sewage operations, creek redirections and subsidence. Contaminants of concern in mine-affected water include salts,
heavy metals, anions, cations, process chemicals, acid mine drainage and suspended solids. One of the major impacts
to water quality can result from the cumulative effects of concurrent waste discharges (including dewatering) from
large numbers of mines in the catchment and also from the discharge of floodwater from mines after heavy rainfall.
https://www.waterquality.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/characterising.pdf.
 1.2 Water Quality and Quantity
• Hydrological variability
Water quality responds rapidly to short-term changes in flow. Much of this variability in water quality
results from changes and relative contributions in the sources of water (storm flows containing
catchment run-off versus base flows). Groundwater is an important contributor to flows in many rivers
and wetland systems. It is a relatively constant and stable source of water compared with surface flows
and can maintain water levels in ecosystems during extended dry periods. Groundwater quality varies
and can often contain higher salinity levels, dissolved nutrients and metals than surface water run-off.
Therefore, water quality in river systems and wetlands can vary depending on the relative proportion of
groundwater contributions to surface inflows.

Wetlands and lakes are inundated with water either permanently or seasonally. Unmodified wetlands
and lakes typically fill during the wet season and slowly dry during the dry season. These wetting and
drying cycles can be important ecologically as well as for water quality purposes. The wet season filling
refreshes water quality, diluting salinity levels and entraining organic matter for food webs. The drying
cycles are important for releasing carbon and nutrients that promote subsequent growth by algae,
bacteria, plants and animals.

https://www.waterquality.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/characterising.pdf.
 1.2 Water Quality and Quantity
• Hydrological variability

In natural river systems, water quality is supported by a variable flow regime whereby each flow component (high
flows, low flows and cease-to-flows) fulfils particular functions to restore or maintain water quality and a range of
ecological and geomorphological functions. For instance, low flows provide warm, clear conditions suitable for
nutrient cycling and primary production. Higher flows provide dilution of ions and toxins and entrainment of a fresh
supply of nutrients and carbon to support ecological services. Cease-to-flow periods in temporary streams can dry out
the sediments, releasing carbon and nutrients that enable new life to flourish when flows return.

Extremes in flow variability, which occur during severe droughts and major floods, often cause extremes in water
quality. Although such extreme events have a low frequency of occurrence, when they do occur they often have major
consequences for water quality in aquatic systems. Droughts can cause rivers to experience prolonged low flows or
cease-to-flow periods. Wetlands, lakes and reservoirs experience very low water levels or dry out completely.
Consequently, these water bodies may experience extremes in water temperature, low dissolved oxygen levels,
thermal or saline stratification of the water column, evapo-concentration of ions and toxins and algal growth
supported by calm, warm water conditions. Floods can cause widespread catchment erosion resulting in
unprecedented nutrient, suspended solids and toxicant loads to fragile near-shore environments. They can also cause
sewage treatment plants and sewers to overflow, delivering pathogens (including water borne illnesses), nutrients and
toxicants to waterways.

Flow variability is closely related to the physical, chemical and biological components of water quality.

https://www.waterquality.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/characterising.pdf.
1.2 Water Quality and Quantity

• In-stream Processes

Physical, chemical and biological processes that occur within a water body are
important drivers of water quality. These processes are described in Table 2.
Each of these processes is influenced by flow and can dictate the contaminant
loads and in-stream concentrations. They can either improve or degrade water
quality. For example, sedimentation is an in-situ process that occurs when the
velocity of the flowing water slows to allow suspended particles to settle out.
This process increases water clarity, which is important to provide light for
photosynthesis by aquatic plants.

https://www.waterquality.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/characterising.pdf.
1.2 Water Quality and Quantity

• In-stream Processes

Many of these in-stream processes have been affected by anthropogenic land

uses such as agriculture and urbanization (Baker 2003, Quinn et al. 1997). This
has affected the water quality in many systems. Eutrophication is a symptom
that an ecosystem has exceeded its assimilative capacity of nutrients from
excessive anthropogenic inputs (Heisler et al. 2008). Not all of the available
nutrients are able to be processed through nutrient cycling and therefore the
water body becomes nutrient enriched.

https://www.waterquality.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/characterising.pdf.
1.3 Drinking Water Standard
Drinking water quality standards describes the quality parameters set for drinking water.
Despite the truth that every human on this planet needs drinking water to survive and that
water may contain many harmful constituents, there are no universally recognized and
accepted international standards for drinking water.[1] Even where standards do exist, and are
applied, the permitted concentration of individual constituents may vary by as much as ten
times from one set of standards to another.

Range of standards
Although drinking water standards frequently are referred to as if they are simple lists of
parametric values, standards documents also specify the sampling location, sampling
methods, sampling frequency, analytical methods, and laboratory accreditation AQC. In
addition, a number of standards documents also require calculation to determine whether a
level exceeds the standard, such as taking an average. Some standards give complex, detailed
requirements for the statistical treatment of results, temporal and seasonal variations,
summation of related parameters, and mathematical treatment of apparently aberrant
results.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drinking_water_quality_standards
1.3 Drinking Water Standard

Parametric values

A parametric value in this context is most commonly the concentration of a

substance, e.g. 30 mg/l of Iron. It may also be a count such as 500 E. coli per
liter or a statistical value such as the average concentration of copper is 2 mg/l.
Many countries not only specify parametric values that may have health
impacts but also specify parametric values for a range of constituents that by
themselves are unlikely to have any impact on health. These include colour,
turbidity, pH, and the organoleptic (aesthetic) parameters (taste and odour).

NOTE:FOR DRINKING WATER STANDARD OF THE PHILIPPINES: SEE THE PROVIDED PDF FILE

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drinking_water_quality_standards