An investigation into the reasons behind the water shortage on Gotland. The project investigated several key factors and proceeded with the design of a surface water treatment plant in one of Gotlands old quarries left behind by the cement industry. The project also investigated and questioned the traditional methods of designing infrastructural buildings through a more architectural lens. The hope was to show a proposal that works but also acts as a pedagogical invitation to learn about where our most important resource comes from.

Thesis (M.Dev.) -- University of Limpopo, 2018 / The purpose of this study was to determine the challenges that hinder the Greater Tzaneen Municipality from rendering water service delivery to Mokgolobotho villagers and the villagers’ perceptions of their livelihoods without adequate municipal water supply. The study employed both quantitative and qualitative research. Two groups of respondents participated in the study. The data was gathered from 100 respondents from Mokgolobotho village, and of the 100 respondents, 90 were residents from 30 households, 1 chief, 3 indunas, 1 ward councillor,3 ward committee members and 2 NGOs. The respondents from the community (households) were randomly sampled and a questionnaire was administered to them ,while those who participated in the interview were purposefully sampled. The scarcity of water at Mokgolobotho village has a negative impact on a number of aspects; the economic development of the village, the academic performance of learners, health of the community members is also at risk as they share water with animals (Mopani Herald, 2014:3) and it also increases the death rate caused by car accidents as villagers cross the R36 Lydenburg main road to get water at the Dan Extension 2 (Reconstruction and Development Programme Settlement). The Department of Water Affairs is very aware of the anomalies in water distribution, where people reside adjacent to water sources and yet have no access to a source of safe and reliable drinking water. Section 27 of the Bill of Rights in the Constitution states that everyone has the right to have access to sufficient water, and the state must take reasonable legislative and other measures to achieve the progressive realization of this right. The Greater Tzaneen Municipality has failed to implement this section of the Bill of Rights at Mokgolobotho Village. The study recommends that the fulfilment of the constitutional mandate by the Greater Tzaneen Municipality and the active involvement of all the stakeholders will solve the water service delivery problem in Mokgolobotho Village.

The design, construction and testing of a reverse-osmosis (PV-RO) desalination system for fresh water shortage area is presented. The system operates from salt water or brackish water and can be embedded in a renewable energy power supply system, since many fresh shortage areas are remote and isolated. Special attention is given to the energy efficiency of small-scale reverse osmosis desalination systems. Limitations of conventional control strategy using toggle control are presented. Based on this, an objective of creating a small-scale reverse osmosis desalination system was set out. Initially, the background information is presented. This includes the natural resources crisis and main desalination technologies and the viability of the integration with renewable energy source. A reverse osmosis (RO) desalination system was assembled and set up at the Curtin University of Technology, Perth, Western Australia Supervisor Control And Data Acquisition (SCADA) system was built using a Human Machine Interface software and a programmable logic controller (PLC). Instrumentation that included signal conditioners was made in analysis of the system characteristics. Initial testing of the system was conducted after the system design and configuration was accomplished. Testing results were used as a guideline for the development of the whole system. / Modelling and simulation of the system components in MATLABSimulink is presented, together with a discussion of the control systems modelling and design procedure, in which the aim was to improve the efficiency of the reverse osmosis system. Simulations show the designed reverse osmosis system with Proportional Integral and Derivative (PID) controller has better performance than other controllers. This consequently leads to a lower overall cost of the water, as well as reducing full maintenance cost of the electric drives in the reverse osmosis unit. Additionally, the configuration of the remote control system through General Package Radio System (GPRS) network is depicted. After the PID control algorithm was programmed into the Programmable Logic Controller (PLC), system experiments were carried out in short durations and long durations. System performance was monitored and experimental results prove that the new control strategy applied increase the water productivity and is able to improve the system efficiency up to 35%. Based on the data obtained from the simulations and experiments, Mundoo Island was chosen to be the location for a case study. The electric load profile of the island was derived from the Island Development Committee in Mundoo. / A water demand profile was created and modelled in Matlab to be the input of the reverse osmosis system. The electric load of the reverse osmosis system was generated from Matlab simulation. This result was entered in Hybrid Optimisation Model for Electric Renewables (HOMER) simulator. Having the designed RO unit as one of the electric loads, the entire remote area power supply (RAPS) system was tested in simulations which shows the energy cost is AUS$0.174 per kWh, lower than the Island Development Committee budget estimation of AUS$0.25 per kWh. The cost of the water treatment is very promising at AUS$0.77 per m3.

This report examines the cultural and economic growth of the Texas Hill Country resulting from the construction of the Highland Lake chain. It compares the current political and social climate of the region with the historical past, and offers solutions to avert an inevitable collision between a rising population and the constraints of limited water resources. / text

The detailed determination of the probabilities of occurrence of certain levels of water deficit (WD) is important for the farming planning and environmental management in the public and private administration. Such information not available for the central region of Rio Grande do Sul State. The objective of this study was to determine the total and maximum water deficits, the probability of their occurrence at different levels in a month, ten- and fifteen- day periods basis during the year, for different soils of the central region of Rio Grande do Sul State, under the scope of the meteorological station of Santa Maria (MSSM), to adjust techniques of geoprocessing for their spatialization and to evaluate the differences due to the adoption of daily, ten days or monthly periods of sequential water balance (SWB), and the use of two potential evapotranspiration estimation (ETP) methods. Daily meteorological data measured in the MSSM from August of 1968 to July of 2004 where used to calculate the ETP, with Penman-Monteih, Penman and Thornthwaite methods. The WDs were determined by SWB, for daily, ten days and monthly periods, for different capacities of available water storage (CAS) of region soils, obtained with the application of pedotransfer equations to the physical properties of each horizon and considering the depth of the soil explored by the native vegetation roots. For total WD values (TWD) and maximums (MWD) of each period, higher than 50, 40, 20, 10 and 5mmdistribution functions were adjusted and the probabilities of its occurrence for each five days, ten days or month periods in different soils were obtained and geographic distribution of values was done by geoprocessing techniques. It was verified that the monthly and ten days period values of WD of the soil adjusted to the log-normal, gamma and exponential functions, whit the best adjustment obtained with the log-normal for the months with higher WD and whit the gamma function for the months of lower WD of autumn, winter and spring. Shalower soils (Charrua) had the lower CAD, 40mm, and deepest ones (Cerrito) 215mm. In April and August months, there was not significant risk of WD, mainly in soil with the higher CAD. The probability of occurrence of MWD, accumulated during continuous periods without rain (pDHM), is a function mainly of the period of the year and the CAD of the soil: in soils with lower CAD, pDHM > 50mm is higher in December and January (18%), about 10% in November and lower than 5% in the other months, null from April to September; in soil of higher CAD, pDHM >50mm does not exceed 1.7% of the years in any month, but it raises with the reduction of the MWD to 40, 20, 10 and 5mm. There is not clear relationship betwen variation of the probability differences of occurrence between TWD and MWD and the CADs of the soil; the differences tend to be more related to the magnitude of the probabilities, mainly for deficiencies higher than 50, 40 and 20mm; the difference of probability between TWD and MWD is higher, depending on how high are the occurrence probabilities. In the periods of higher WD, pDHTs of ten days period for the different soil are lower then pDHMs of ten days period, decreasing to less than 5% from April to September and with increase of CAD. pDHT in fifteen days periods does not reach high values as in monthly and ten days periods, because of the lower number of considered days; the distribution of the deficiencies during the year is similar to other periods (monthly and ten days), MWD and TWD, but with better definition of beginning and end of the periods wiht different levels of WD. The monthly ETP estimated by Thornthwaite method is higher than the monthly total of the daily values of ETP estimated by the Penman method from January to July, but are not different from September to November. Decreasing TWD from 50 to 5mm, monthly probabilities of SWB on a daily basis are higher than SWB on a monthly basis, mainly during spring and summer, with an opposite trend during winter. / A determinação detalhada das probabilidades de ocorrência de certos níveis de deficiência hídrica (DH) é fundamental para o planejamento agropecuário e a gestão ambiental na administração pública e privada, o que ainda precisa ser realizado para a região central do Rio Grande do Sul. Objetivou-se determinar as deficiências hídricas totais e máximas, a probabilidade de sua ocorrência de diferentes níveis em períodos mensais, decendiais e qüinqüidiais ao longo do ano, em função da unidade de mapeamento de solo para a região central do Estado do Rio Grande do Sul, abrangida pela estação meteorológica de Santa Maria (EMSM), ajustar técnicas de geoprocessamento para a sua espacialização e avaliar as diferenças decorrentes da adoção de balanço hídrico seqüencial (BHS) diário, decendial ou mensal e da utilização de dois métodos de estimativa da evapotranspiração potencial (ETP). Utilizaram-se dados meteorológicos diários, medidos na EMSM, de agosto de 1968 a julho de 2004, para calcular a ETP, com os métodos de Penman-Monteih, Penman e Thornthwaite. As DHs foram determinadas por BHS, em escala diária, decendial e mensal, para as diferentes capacidades de armazenamento de água disponível (CAD) dos solos da região, obtidas com a aplicação de equações de pedotransferência às propriedades físicas da cada horizonte e considerando a profundidade do solo explorada pelas raízes da vegetação nativa. Aos valores de DH totais (DHT) e máximos (DHM) de cada período, maiores do que 50, 40, 20, 10 e 5mm, foram ajustadas funções de distribuição, com as quais obtiveram-se as probabilidades de sua ocorrência em cada qüinqüídio, decêndio ou mês nos diferentes solos, cuja distribuição geográfica de valores foi efetuada através das técnicas de geoprocessamento. Verificou-se que os valores mensais e decendiais de DH do solo se ajustam às funções log-normal, gama e exponencial, sendo o melhor ajuste com a log-normal nos meses com maior DH e a função gama nos meses de menor DH do outono, inverno e primavera. Os solos menos profundos (Charrua) possuem a menor CAD, 40mm, e os mais profundos (Cerrito) a maior, com 215mm. Nos meses de abril a agosto, não há risco de DH significativa, principalmente nos solos com a maior CAD. A probabilidade de ocorrência de DHM, acumulada durante períodos contínuos sem chuvas (pDHM), é função principalmente da época do ano e da CAD do solo: nos solos com menor CAD, a pDHM >50mm é mais elevada em dezembro e janeiro (18%), cerca de 10% em novembro e é menor do que 5% nos demais meses, sendo nula de abril a setembro; nos solos de maior CAD, a pDHM >50mm não ultrapassa 1,7% dos anos em qualquer mês, mas aumenta com a diminuição da DHM para 40, 20, 10 e 5mm. Não existe relação definida quanto a variação das diferenças de probabilidade de ocorrência entre DHT e DHM com a CADs dos solos; as diferenças tendem a estar mais relacionadas à magnitude das probabilidades, principalmente para deficiências maiores que 50, 40 e 20mm; a diferença de probabilidade entre DHT e DHM é maior, quanto maiores são as probabilidades de ocorrência. Nos períodos de maior DH, as pDHT decendiais para os diferentes solos são menores do que as pDHM decendiais, decrescendo para menos de 5% de abril a setembro e com o aumento da CAD. A pDHT em períodos quinqüidiais não alcança valores elevados como em períodos mensais e decendiais, o que é uma função do menor número de dias considerados; a distribuição das deficiências ao longo do ano é semelhante aos outros períodos utilizados em DHM e DHT mensais e decendiais, mas com melhor definição de início e final dos períodos de DH de diferentes níveis. A ETP mensal estimada pelo método de Thornthwaite é maior do que o total mensal dos valores diários de ETP estimados pelo método de Penman nos meses de janeiro a julho, mas não apresenta diferença de setembro a novembro. Na medida em que DHT decresce de 50 para 5mm, as probabilidades mensais obtidas com BH diário são maiores do que aquelas obtidas com BH mensal, principalmente na primavera e no verão, havendo tendência inversa no inverno.

Submitted by Deyse Queiroz (deysequeirozz@hotmail.com) on 2018-05-17T19:06:32Z No. of bitstreams: 1 FÁBIO ITANO DOS SANTOS ALVES - DISSERTAÇÃO PPGHT 2015..pdf: 1182667 bytes, checksum: 2f2770796d85ad1b88f30419dfd3afe4 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-05-17T19:06:32Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 FÁBIO ITANO DOS SANTOS ALVES - DISSERTAÇÃO PPGHT 2015..pdf: 1182667 bytes, checksum: 2f2770796d85ad1b88f30419dfd3afe4 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015 / A utilização de água residuária pós - tratada na agricultura é considerada uma alternativa fundamental em virtude da escassez hídrica principalmente em regiões áridas e semiáridas. O objetivo desta pesquisa foi avaliar o efeito de uma água residuária pós - tratada na irrigação da cultura do quiabeiro e de suas atribuições ao solo irrigado. O experimento foi conduzido em lisímetros instalados numa área dentro do Centro de Ciências e Tecnologia Agroalimentar (CCTA/ UFCG) situado no Campus de Pombal - PB em ambiente não controlado, no período de Fevereiro a Setembro de 2014, no delineamento estatístico em blocos completos casualizados, composto de seis tratamentos (doses de N) e quatro repetições. Os tratamentos foram constituídos das seguintes doses (D0= Apenas a irrigação; D1= 40 kg ha-1 ; D2= 80 kg ha-1 ; D3= 120 kg ha-1 ; D4= 160 kg ha-1 ; D5= 200 kg ha-1 de N). A cultura utilizada foi o quiabeiro cv. Santa Cruz 47. Foram avaliadas as variáveis de crescimento como diâmetro do caule, altura de planta, número de folhas, área foliar e fitomassa. Para a variável de produção foi avaliado número de frutos, diâmetro do fruto, peso unitário do fruto e produção. As doses crescentes de N proporcionaram um aumento em todas as variáveis de crescimento avaliadas e de produção de frutos de quiabeiro. / The use of post wastewater - treated in agriculture is considered a fundamental alternative because of water scarcity mainly in arid and semi-arid regions. The objective of this research was to evaluate the effect of wastewater post - treated irrigation of okra culture and its tasks to irrigated soil. The experiment was conducted in lysimeters installed in an area within the Center of Science and Agrifood Technology (CSAT/UFCG) located in the Campus Pombal - PB in uncontrolled environment, from February to September 2014, the design was randomized complete block , with six treatments (N levels) and four replications. The treatments consisted of the following doses (D0 = only irrigation, D1 = 40 kg ha-1 ; D2 = 80 kg ha-1 , D3 = 120 kg ha-1 ; D4 = 160 kg ha-1 ; D5 = 200 kg ha-1 N). The culture used was the okra cv. Santa Cruz 47. We evaluated the growth variables such as stem diameter, plant height, leaf number, leaf area and biomass. For the production variable number of fruit was assessed, fruit diameter, unit weight, and fruit production. The increasing doses of N provided an increase in all growth variables evaluated and fruit yield of okra.

Denna rapport undersöker grundvattenmagasin på öar i Stockholms skärgård och hur de förväntas påverkas av klimatförändringarna. Främst granskas grundvattnets kvantitet och kvalitet fram till år 2100 utifrån två olika klimatscenarion framtagna av FN:s klimatpanel. Detta kopplas sedan till hur boende på ön kan komma att påverkas av dessa förändringar samt hur de kan hantera de problem som förväntas uppstå. Vidare undersöks kommuners roll samt lösningar de kan bidra med. Ämnet kopplar till det svenska miljömålet ”Grundvatten av god kvalitet” som betonar vikten av kunskap om dagens grundvattenstånd i utsatta områden, till vilka kustnära regioner tillhör.  För att besvara frågorna som ställts i rapporten har bland annat litteraturstudie, fältstudie, intervjuer, modelleringar av månadsvisa grundvattenstånd samt beräkningar av risk för saltvatteninträngning i brunnar tillämpats. Fältstudien gjordes på Aspö, en typisk skärgårdsö i Stockholm, för vilken sedan all modellering och beräkningar utförts på. Aspö fungerar därför i denna rapport som modell för Stockholms skärgårdsöar.  I modelleringar och beräkningar har aspekter som vattenanvändning, geologi, nederbörd, evapotranspiration och växtperiodens längd beaktats. Resultatet från modelleringarna tyder på stora risker för sinande grundvattenmagasin på skärgårdsöar under sommarmånaderna, både i dagsläget och i framtiden. Under sommaren är grundvattenbildningen liten till obefintlig och vattenanvändningen som störst, på grund av den stora mängd sommarboende i skärgården, vilket kan leda till vattenbrist och vattenkvalitetsproblem. På grund av en förlängd växtperiod som hämmar grundvattenbildningen förväntas dessa problem bli värre i framtiden. Vad gäller beräkningarna av saltvatteninträngning är det brunnar i strandnära lägen som löper störst risk. Eftersom en höjning av havsnivån förväntas till följd av ökad medeltemperatur, förväntas risken för saltvatteninträngning öka än mer i framtiden.  Både modelleringarna och beräkningarna tyder på att en sparsam vattenanvändning gör situationen mindre ansträngd. Utöver detta föreslås att kommunen utvidgar kartläggningen av riskområden med hjälp av lagstöd för att ta över delar av ansvaret som idag främst vilar på fastighetsägaren för den enskilda vattentäkten. / This thesis examines groundwater reservoirs of islands in the Stockholm archipelago and  how they will be affected by climate change. Mainly the quality and quantity of reservoirs in the year 2100 are looked at based on two different climate scenarios developed by IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change). That gets connected to how the inhabitants on the islands will be affected by the changes and how they can deal with the potential problems that arises. Furthermore, the municipalities’ roles will be examined along with the solutions they can contribute with regarding water shortage. The subject of the thesis also connects to the Swedish environmental goal “Good-Quality Groundwater” which puts an emphasis on the importance of knowledge regarding groundwater levels in exposed areas such as coastal regions.  To answer the questions posed in the thesis, methods such as literature review, field study, interviews, modeling of monthly groundwater level and calculations of the risk of saltwater intrusions in wells have been applied. The field study was done on the island Aspö, a typical archipelago island in Stockholm, for which all the modelling and calculations later have been made. Thus, Aspö acts as a model of Stockholm’s archipelago islands in this thesis.  In the modelling and calculations factors like water usage, geology, precipitation, evapotranspiration, and the length of the growing season have been considered. The results of the groundwater modelling indicate a great risk of diminishing groundwater reservoirs on archipelago islands during the summer months, both now and in the future. In the summer the groundwater recharge is little to nonexistent and the water usage at its peak, due to the large quantity of summer occupants in the archipelago, which can lead to a water shortage and problems with the water quality. Because of a prolonged growing season that disturbs the groundwater recharge, these issues are expected to become worse in the future. When it comes to the calculations of the saltwater intrusions in wells, the wells closest to the coasts are at a greater risk. Since an increase in the sea level are to be expected due to a rise in global temperature the risk for saltwater intrusion also increases.  Both the modelling and the calculations indicates that a sparing water usage will make the situation less strained. In addition, it’s suggested that the municipalities should expand their mapping of sensitive areas through legal support to shoulder some of the responsibility that today rests on property owners of the individual water supply.

Vattenförsörjningsproblemen är stora i Stockholms läns kustområden. Enskilda brunnar försörjer invånarna med grundvatten, dock är förutsättningarna dåliga för större uttag. I takt med ett ökat permanentboende i den peri-urbana skärgården ökar även behovet av vatten, som är människans absolut viktigaste resurs. Ett ökat uttag hotar med högre risk för saltvatteninträngning och sinade brunnar. Vattenbrist lär kunna bli allt vanligare även i takt med klimatförändringarna. För att säkra en framtida hållbar utveckling för skärgården måste därför alternativa lösningar på vattenförsörjningsfrågan hittas.  Många av de större öarna i skärgården har naturliga vattenreservoarer också ovan mark i form av sötvattensjöar. Arbetets huvudsyfte har därför varit att undersöka möjligheten till att kunna nyttja dessa vattenlager som en del i öarnas vattenförsörjning. Fokus för arbetet har legat på att kartlägga vattenbehovet idag och i framtiden, vilka vattentillgångar som finns samt hur dessa kan användas och implementeras utifrån dagens vattenproduktion på tre valda öar, Ornö, Svartsö och Vindö.  Genom intervjuer och kontakter med öbor samt litteratur- och fältstudier har resultaten kunnat visa att vattenförsörjningen från sjöarna idag som mest endast ligger på cirka 10 procent av den totala förbrukningen. Vidare bedöms möjligheten vara god till att kunna utöka användningen av sjöar på öarna i vattenförsörjningssyfte. Särskilt gäller detta oligotrofa sjöar i närheten av bebyggelse. Samtidigt kan det finnas många olika intressen för en sjö i skärgården och vattenförsörjningen är en stor kostnadsfråga. Upprättande av gemensamma, kombinerade vattenlösningar anses vara gynnsamt, med ett renat sjövatten sommartid som kan avlasta grundvattenreservoarerna. / The water supply problems are large in Stockholm County's coastal areas. Individual wells supply the inhabitants with groundwater, however, the conditions are poor for larger outlets. In step with an increase in permanent housing in the peri-urban archipelago, the need for water, which is man's most important resource, is also increasing. An increased outlet threatens with a higher risk of saltwater penetration and drained wells. Water shortage is likely to become more common even in step with climate change. In order to secure a future sustainable development for the archipelago, alternative solutions to the water supply issue must therefore be found.  Many of the larger islands in the archipelago also have natural water reservoirs above ground in the form of freshwater lakes. The main purpose of this study has therefore been to investigate the possibility of being able to use these water reservoirs as part of the islands' water supply. The focus of the study has been on mapping the water demand today and in the future, what water resources are available and how these can be used and implemented based on current water production on three selected islands, Ornö, Svartsö and Vindö.  Through interviews and contacts with islanders as well as literature and field studies, the results have been able to show that the water supply from the lakes today constitutes at most only about 10 percent of the total consumption. Furthermore, the opportunity to be able to increase the use of lakes on the islands for water supply purposes is considered to be good. This mainly applies to oligotrophic lakes in the vicinity of built-up areas. However, there can be many different interests for a lake in the archipelago and the water supply is a major cost issue. Establishment of joint, combined water solutions is considered beneficial, with purified water from lakes in the summertime that can relieve the groundwater reservoirs.

Die Modellierung aller auf der gesamten Einzugsgebietsebene relevanten Abflussbil-dungsprozesse ist unter aktuellen Fragestellungen unumgänglich. Ziel dieser Arbeit ist die quantitative Analyse und Abbildung der Wechselwirkungen zwischen Oberflächen- und Grundwasser mit Hilfe von gekoppelten Modellen, die vor allem bei der Simulation von Wassermangelsituationen eine wesentliche Rolle spielen. Dazu wurden die notwendigerweise zu berücksichtigenden Prozesse und die Anforderungen seitens der Modellierung diskutiert. Es wurde herausgestellt, dass Rückkopplungen und Wechselwirkungen einerseits zwischen Grund- und Oberflächengewässer, andererseits zwischen Grund- und Bodenwasser unter Einbeziehung der saisonal wechselnden Vegetationswirkung im Modell berücksichtigt werden müssen. Aus einer großen Modellvielzahl wurde das Modellierungssystem ArcEGMO-PSCN-ASM als geeignet ausgewählt und für diese Fragestellung weiterentwickelt. Die Interaktionen zwischen Oberflächen- und Grundwasser wurden anhand verschiedener Modellsimulationen analysiert. Der Austausch zwischen Fließgewässer und Grundwasser, sowie die Rückwirkung der Grundwasserstände auf das Oberflächenwasser zeigte den größten Einfluss auf die Modellergebnisse. Die Wasserstandsdynamik in den Fließgewässern und der Kapillaraufstieg zeigten nur lokale Effekte. Die Praxistauglichkeit des gekoppelten Modells wurde in zwei Fallbeispielen getestet, die sich mit verschiedenen Lösungen zur Bekämpfung von Wassermangelsituationen beschäftigen. Die Ergebnisse der Simulationen zeigen deutlich, dass mit Hilfe des gekoppelten Modells Bewirtschaftungsmaßnahmen im Gewässer selbst sowie im ober- und unterirdischen Einzugsgebiet adäquat abgebildet und quantitative Aussagen mit einer hohen Praxisrelevanz gewonnen werden können. Diese Arbeit leistet damit sowohl einen wissenschaftlichen Beitrag zum Modellverständnis als auch den Nachweis einer praktikablen Modellanwendung in unterschiedlichen Einzugsgebieten. / The modeling of all relevant runoff processes in a catchments area is indispensable considering the actual questions (like Water Framework Directive and climatic change). This investigation aims the quantitative analysis and demonstration of surface- and subsurface water interactions, which are relevant for simulating northeastern German regions with water scarcity, by using coupled models. Therefore processes, which necessarily must be considered, and requirements on the part of the modeling, were discussed. It was exposed / presented that feedbacks and interactions of surface water and subsurface water on one hand and (oder besser: as well as?) groundwater and soil water including seasonal vegetation development on the other hand must be considered in the model. The modeling system ArcEGMO-PSCN-ASM was chosen / selected out of a huge amount of models as appropriate for this task. It was further adopted / developed to this task in co-operation with Dr. Pfützner (BAH-Berlin). The interactions of surface water and groundwater where analyzed by various simula-tions. The exchange between stream water and groundwater as well as the feedback of groundwater levels to surface water had the most influence to the model results. Dynamic stream water levels and capillary rise had only local effects and low impact on the catchments average. The suitability for practical use of this coupled model where tested at two sample areas, with various solutions to deal with water scarcity. The model results illustrate clearly that using coupled models water management treatments as well in the river itself as in surface and subsurface catchment areas can be shown adequately and quantitative statements with a high practice relevance can be achieved. The results of the present study contribute both a scientific contribution to the model understanding and the proof of a practicable application of models in different catchment areas.

Water shortage issues have been growing concerns in many cities around the world in recent years, especially in Eastern cities of Australia, which is the driest continent on the earth. The aim of this PhD thesis is a development of a model to study the use of waste incineration energy supplemented by alternative energy to power seawater desalination. It is to aid the freshwater supply of a drought stricken city in Eastern Australia. My work contributes to a development of efficient model in a simpler understandable way to reduce efforts required for modelling complex multi domain problems. This research is motivated by the successive severe drought conditions that affected many Australian cities in the past few years, compounded with an additional strain from a fast growing population. While we dump our waste into the Australian landscape, in more densely populated cities in Europe and Asia, the waste is incinerated to obtain thermal energy for various purposes. The waste is used as an energy source while at the same time reducing the amount of space needed for landfill. Seawater desalination has been uccessfully practiced for quite some time particularly in the Middle Eastern countries. To deal with increasing water shortage crisis, many cities around the world have opted or are considering seawater desalination to supplement their freshwater supply. The combination of both - waste incineration and seawater desalination - has rarely been studied. This is a twofold problem that requires modelling the problem of water demand and supply together with waste incineration to find a sustainable solution. This is a complex task. The effort needed for this can be reduced by using a modelling approach that is more efficient than the traditionally used statistical approaches. In this thesis, I present a comprehensive model developed using a dynamic system approach combined with artificial neural networks. It simulates water demand and supply as well as the possible amount of the desalinated water that can be produced using the energy from clean city waste incineration. This is done while taking in various influential factors including population growth and irregular weather patterns. This research comprises a literature review on seawater desalination and waste incineration, the establishment of water demand and supply dynamics of Gold Coast City as my case study and identifying any modelling difficulties that need to be overcome. This is followed by the development of a comprehensive model and its components, model calibration and simulation experiments. It was found that with the energy of waste incineration, up to 60% of the freshwater demand could be fulfilled by seawater desalination in a sustainable way.