Nearly everything we rely on requires a tremendous amount of water, but most of it we never even see. From wastewater treatment to power generation and agriculture, Ripple Effect explores how and where our water is used. We explain why living in an industrialized society affects our global water supply as well as the impact technology and sound policy can play in helping make meaningful changes.
This four-part miniseries features a diverse group of people who are making a positive impact in water conservation and reuse around the world.
Episode 1 – Water Reuse
Our energy demands, population growth and living standards have a significant impact on water use around the world and often in ways that are unseen. With a focus on a wastewater plant in a high industrial area near Philadelphia, experts discuss how water reuse can not only make more efficient use of water but also be profitable business in industries such as energy, manufacturing and agriculture.
Episode 2 – Resource Recovery
Worldwide problems involving water conservation and energy use can be solved through smart and innovative partnerships. People involved in such innovative partnerships around the world talk about solutions like a U.S. wastewater plant selling water to a waste-to-energy plant or a symbiotic system in Denmark where waste from one industry is used for the benefit of another.
Episode 3 – Digital Water
Big Data is spilling over into the world of water, and technology is being used to address many of the problems of our aging water infrastructure. Those in the water industry talk about how they’re now using predictive analytic software and analytic tools to monitor water usage in order to predict problems before they happen rather than fixing them after the fact and ultimately save billions of gallons of water each day.
Episode 4 – Water Reuse Policy
Experts on climate change and governmental policy as well as a water industry expert discuss how population growth and extreme weather events from climate change are affecting water sustainability and distribution across the globe as well as how governments at the local level can help solve problems with actions like education, incentives and mandates.
Social Content
