Combatting Water Scarcity: How Utilities Can Lead the Charge

Climate disruption continues to take the world by storm. From unpredictable rainfall patterns to melting glaciers, elevated sea levels, floods and droughts—most impacts of climate disruption are directly tied to the world’s most precious resource: water. It’s up to all of us – especially utilities – to do what we can to alleviate the demand. As both the demand for water and the occurrence of severe weather events continue to rise, it is imperative to plan a course of action to combat water scarcity and safeguard this invaluable resource. 

To better understand the urgency of this issue, let’s take a look at a few key facts: 

• Only 0.5 percent of water on earth is usable and available fresh water – and climate disruption is dangerously affecting this supply. Over the past 20 years, terrestrial water storage – including soil moisture, snow and ice – has dropped at a rate of one cm per year.¹
• Since 2000, flood-related disasters have risen by 134 percent compared with the two previous decades.²
• Four billion people – almost two thirds of the world’s population – experience severe water scarcity for at least one month each year. ³
• Half of the world’s population could be living in areas facing water scarcity by as early as 2025.⁴

 

Every day, leaking pipes can waste up to 30% of a utility’s water supply. To reduce this unnecessary water loss, meet rising consumer expectations and manage aging distribution systems, utilities and municipalities are transforming how – and how quickly – they approach emerging challenges. The ways water utilities have historically approached combatting water scarcity, such as manually monitoring pipes to “listen” for leaks, have proven inefficient and will no longer suffice. To increase conservation efforts and prevent further irreversible water loss, utilities need to embrace advanced technologies. 

Leveraging Itron Solutions to Curb Water Loss 

Itron is working with our customers around the world to actively tackle the challenges of water loss by leveraging advanced technologies such as smart meters, intelligent networks, analytics and services. It is a glaring concern that over one third of the water pumped from distribution systems is lost, but through the deployment of tools like advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) and data analytics, utilities can swiftly detect and remedy these leaks. AMI enables utilities to understand usage trends, find leaks, pinpoint locations with high demand and put processes in place to optimize water distribution. This approach significantly reduces water waste and plays a vital role in promoting water conservation and sustainability.  

Real-time detection plays a key role in addressing global water scarcity. It eliminates the need for manual detection methods that can be time-consuming and less efficient. It can also eliminate non-revenue water (NRW), which refers to the water lost through things like leaks before it reaches the customer. These leaks can be remedied and targeted through technology that uses spatial analysis of flow, pressure and consumption level to monitor water networks. Pressure-reducing valves (PRV) regulate the pressure inside the pipe to minimize losses at the leak site, while still maintaining sufficient pressure for users. 

To put it simply, Itron can help utilities and cities make the most of their water by providing solutions designed to improve usage, efficiency and conservation outcomes like never before. With Itron’s advanced solutions for water, utilities can:  

• Proactively identify and reduce water loss with acoustic leak sensors. 
• Collect more accurate revenue for every gallon of water you deliver by replacing slow-running mechanical water meters with solid-state smart meters. 
• Easily add applications such as wastewater monitoring and flood sensing from our extensive partner ecosystem. 

 

A Future with Water Conservation at the Forefront 

The role of utilities and cities in combatting global water loss cannot be overstated. Through innovation, integration of solutions like AMI or leak detection systems and adherence to sustainable operations, utilities are leading the charge to preserve our world’s most precious resource. By continuing to embrace and invest in cutting-edge technologies, utilities can make every drop count and secure this invaluable resource for generations to come.