Category: News

WaCCliM Strategy Workshop 2019: building paths towards a climate-smart sustainable water sector on a local, national and global scale

November 29, 2019 | WaCCliM
Team building walk to the Seven Mountains               ©GIZ/Elaine Cheung

13.-15.11.2019 Bad Honnef, Germany
The Strategy Workshop of the global project Water and Wastewater Companies for Climate Mitigation (WaCCliM) brought together its team, coming from Germany, Jordan, Mexico and Peru.

The event aimed at defining the strategic lines and activities of the project’s new extension phase, as well as the exchange of experiences among countries, the recapitulation of lessons learnt and team building. The workshop comprised several interactive activities, presentations and personal as well as professional exchanges among the team members, including a meaningful walk along the Rhine River to the Seven Mountains.

 

The active participation of the team allowed the strategic construction of future project activities to strengthen the assistance to water and wastewater companies in climate change mitigation. Additionally, the project defined the outlines to include the resilience component through the search for co-benefits in adaptation, as well as the sustainability of the project in its final stage in 2022. Likewise, strategic lines were set out for the implementation of the digital component in the urban water sector and the institutionalization of the elaborated tools. Furthermore, the team identified the opportunities for actions of the water sector towards the fulfillment of the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) of each partner country.

 

Impressions of the Workshop ©GIZ/Elaine Cheung

How is Climate Change Mitigation linked to Madaba’s newly installed Pumps?

October 30, 2019 | WaCCliM

Water and energy consumption are strongly linked. In order to have the adequate quantity and pressure of water in our households, water must be pumped from a reservoir to a treatment plant and then to a distribution system. This is a highly energy consuming process. For utilities, energy consumption is usually a major item of expenditure. The water sector consumes up to 4% of the worldwide electricity generation. Water supply systems are responsible for around 40% of this consumption, 80% of which is accounted for pumping systems [1,2]. Inadequate calibration and aging of equipment result in energy losses, which can lead to a significant decrease of the pumping system’s efficiency and increase the energy costs for utilities. This lays out significant potential for energy and cost efficiency improvement and, at the same time, for reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

Climate change is not the only challenge for the water management in Jordan. With one of the lowest levels of water availability per capita, Jordan is among the most water-scare countries in the world [3]. Water scarcity and meeting the demand for water supply are major problems the country faces nowadays. The circumstances will be aggravated in the future due to population growth, refugee influx and economic development, which will increase the water demand.  Moreover, the depth of the groundwater reservoirs and the large distances to end-consumers, make pumping systems and transport of water the most energy intensive processes, representing around 14% of the country’s overall energy consumption.

The company Miyahuna operates the water supply system in the city of Madaba. Aiming to face the growing challenges of water demand and seeking co-benefits in climate change mitigation and adaptation, the project WaCCliM (Water and Wastewater Companies for Climate Mitigation) assists the water company in the look of opportunities for energy, costs and GHG reduction measures.

A baseline study was conducted to identify opportunities for GHG and energy reduction using ECAM (Energy Performance and Carbon Emissions Assessment and Monitoring), a tool that enables utilities to quantifiy their carbon footprint. The results showed that the energy consumption of the pumping system for water supply is the highest energy consumer and GHG emission source, with approximately 27,250,000 kWh/year and the related GHG emissions around 17,547,000 kgCO2eq/year.

Improvement scenarios for the pumping system were analysed using ECAM. As shown in Fig.1, the impact of installing new pumps would save up more than 650,000 MWh/year, resulting in the avoidance of more than 400,000 kgCO2eq/year.

Fig. 1. Energy savings and avoidance of CO2 emissions in Miyahuna, Madaba, Jordan

After analysing the benefits, the company decided to improve the pumping system by installing six new horizontal centrifugal pumps, three of them (400m³/hour/60m) with motor power equal to 110 kW, and the remaining three (400m³/hour/200m) with motor power equal to 355 kW. The new pumps installed in Miyahuna are energy efficient and controlled by Variable Frequency Drives (VFDs) to maximize the energetic and economic savings (Fig. 2). The first readings since July 2019 show that the monthly energy consumption has decreased by more than 40% when comparing to the same months in 2018, and energy costs were reduced by almost half.

Fig. 2. Comparison between former and new pumping system ©MIYAHUNA

 

This initiative helped the company to:

The company Miyahuna has not only improved the energy efficiency in its system, but has adopted a low-carbon, climate-friendly policy and is now a leader of carbon-neutral water utilities.

 

Sources:

  1. World Energy Outlook (2016): Water-Energy Nexus. International Energy Agency. https://www.iea.org/publications/freepublications/publication/WorldEnergyOutlook2016ExcerptWaterEnergyNexus.pdf
  2. Coelho, B.; Andrade-Campos, A (2014): Efficiency achievement in water supply systems–A review. Renew. Sustain. Energy Rev. 30, 59–84.
  3. World Health Organization (WHO) (2019): Jordan: Water is life. https://www.who.int/heli/pilots/jordan/en/

WaCCliM will continue fighting Climate Change until 2022

October 1, 2019 | WaCCliM

The WaCCliM project will be extended until 12/2022. WaCCliM supports a low-carbon and resilient urban water sector in Jordan, Mexico, Peru and globally. Following a positive response to WaCCliM’s assistance on climate change mitigation to the water and wastewater utilities in the partner countries, the extension of the project seeks to incorporate resilience in the water and wastewater utilities, support in the implementation of climate objectives relevant to the water sector and the institutionalization of the developed tools.

(more…)

The Roadmap to a Low-Carbon Urban Water Utility

September 25, 2019 | WaCCliM

“The Roadmap to a Low-Carbon Urban Water Utility, a legacy from the WaCCliM project, builds on the experiences gained during the implementation of the project. It will support water utility managers around the world in their efforts to improve performance and achieve carbon neutrality of their utilities while raising the awareness of policy-makers to the substantial contributions the water sector can provide in meeting greenhouse-gas reduction targets. Local action is needed to support global targets!”

Thomas Stratenwert, Head of Division – General, European and International Water Management Issues
Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety, Germany

The Roadmap to a Low-Carbon Urban Water Utility presents water professionals with an approach to address their most pressing challenges, while reducing carbon emissions through measures that either have a return on investment through energy or water savings, or that correspond to planned investments as part of the asset management plan to maintain or improve their services. Utilities adopting this approach are contributing to a carbon-neutral future, by instigating a change of mind-set, not only in urban water management but also by inspiring all other urban services through sharing the risks and the urgency to act to avoid aggravated impacts of climate change, from which water utilities are among the first victims: water scarcity, flooding and deteriorated water quality.

Why a roadmap and for whom?

The transition to low-carbon urban water utilities is an innovative idea, currently embraced only by a few forward-thinking utilities. This roadmap is directed at urban water utility managers in charge of planning future actions, as well as at the stakeholders who will support the utility’s action plans. Since only a few ‘early adopter’ utilities have embarked on a low-carbon transition, this roadmap intends to support other utilities in understanding and championing the need for contributing to a carbon-neutral future, and to guide them through a process of change. This roadmap can be applied to all utilities worldwide, but was specifically developed with utilities in emerging economies in mind, because the service performance and data management challenges are often prominent in their operations and future planning.

Setting a path for utilities to transition to low-carbon

The Water and Wastewater Companies for Climate Mitigation (WaCCliM) project supports potable water and wastewater utilities –also referred to as urban water utilities – with the implementation of measures that enhance their service performance and lower their carbon emissions. The project is a global initiative, with the overarching goal to transition to a carbon-neutral urban water sector. The approach laid out in this document was specifically developed with water utilities in emerging economies in mind within the context of the WaCCliM project, but it can serve utilities anywhere as climate change is a global problem. It targets reducing the water, energy and carbon footprints of urban water utilities through an iterative five-step process which may be used by utilities to find their own path to a low-carbon future. The roadmap is intended to guide urban water utility managers through these steps and leads to resources hosted on the Knowledge Platform ‘Climate Smart Water’, which follows the same structure as this roadmap.

The Roadmap to a Low-Carbon Urban Water Utility is available in English, Spanish and Thai.

                (more…)

Vacancy // Internship Opportunity at Water and Wastewater Companies for Climate Mitigation (WaCCliM)

May 16, 2019 | WaCCliM

The GIZ programme “WaCCliM” is looking for an intern with a background in water and/or environmental sciences, development studies, information and communication sciences, or a related discipline. The candidate must be currently enrolled as a student or graduated not longer than six months ago and should be fluent both in English and German.

Location: Bonn

Assignment period: 08/01/2019 – 01/31/2020

Type of employment: full-time

Application deadline: 05/28/2019

Job description

Limiting climate change requires substantial and sustained reductions in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in all sectors of the economy, including the water sector. Energy intensity and GHG emissions associated with water management are poorly understood and have only partially been considered in water management and planning. However, water managers in developing and emerging economies are challenged to meet an increased demand for water and wastewater services of a growing urban population coupled with reduced water availability and the growing pressure to reduce energy consumption and GHG emissions. Therefore, utilities have a big role to play in moving towards low-carbon and climate resilient water systems by effective mitigation efforts that consider both, energy use as well as GHG emissions. Furthermore, water and wastewater utilities have to adapt their operations to extreme weather conditions. By implementing combined mitigation and adaptation measures in the water sector, utilities can benefit in multiple ways.

The global project ‘Water and Wastewater Companies for Climate Mitigation’ (WaCCliM) cooperates with the partner countries Jordan, Mexico and Peru. The German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU) supports this project as part of the International Climate Initiative (IKI). The objective of WaCCliM is to advise water and wastewater utilities on their way to carbon neutrality and improved climate resilience. By this, the water sectors in the partner countries become climate smarter. The key objectives of the programme are 1) to integrate GHG reduction technologies such as energy efficiency, water loss reduction as well as energy and nutrient recovery into the operations of selected water and wastewater utilities; 2) to improve political and institutional framework conditions for climate protection in the water sector and 3) to develop capacities for climate protection in the water and wastewater sector. A key aspect of the programme is the successful replication of the pilot projects in the countries. The project is implemented jointly with the International Water Association (IWA).

Your tasks

This internship presents a unique opportunity to gain first-hand experience on how the water sector can contribute to protect our climate and improve climate resilience. The work provides valuable insights into carbon accounting methods for the water industry as well as technology cooperation, policy advice and implementation of measures to reduce GHG emissions in three partner countries. The intern gains insight into challenges and the sensitive issue of communication with and between manifold partners from diverse backgrounds and with varying interests and capacities. The focus of this internship will be on assisting the development of a new project phase and elaborating communication products as well as supporting knowledge management of the project. Under the supervision of senior team members, the intern will be expected to support the team on a range of functions, including:

  1. Assist project team in the development of strategy and planning documents for the new project phase of WaCCliM
  2. Coordinate, edit and draft text, factsheets, publications for inclusion on the WaCCliM website, newsletters, media releases
  3. Support the development of an impact-oriented monitoring system
  4. Support to the internal and external communication of the global programme and the activities in the countries (e. g. preparation of presentations, fact sheets, reports and agendas, intranet appearance etc.)
  5. Assist project team in the preparation and implementation of a meeting of project partners in Germany including a study tour
  6. Support project progress reporting and knowledge management
  7. Ad hoc assignments and support to the project team

Your profile

The successful candidate should have at least a bachelor’s degree in water and/or environmental sciences, development studies, information and communication sciences, or a related discipline and be studying at master’s level.

The candidate should have strong communication skills to raise awareness on the under-recognized opportunity of GHG mitigation in the water sector. The candidate should be highly proactive and organized, able to communicate effectively and to work in a team, but also with the ability to work under pressure and deliver at short notice. The candidate will be able to manage and prioritize a number of tasks. Excellent interpersonal and verbal/written communication skills, particularly in written and spoken English and German are required.

Assets would be, but are not conditional prerequisites: experiences in media relations, working knowledge of Adobe Illustrator/Adobe InDesign, PR, Spanish skills, work experience in emerging economies and/or private sector companies.

Notes

  • Please be informed that you are only allowed to apply for this internship, if you are currently enrolled as a student or graduated not longer than six months ago.
  • Monthly stipend of €1.580,- (gross).
  • GIZ would like to increase the proportion of employees with disability, both in Germany and abroad. Applications from persons with disabilities are most welcome.
  • For further information, please contact Mr. Rued (soeren.rued@giz.de)

Application
GIZ Job Portal

WaCCliM supports Thai domestic wastewater management, moving Thailand towards becoming a low carbon society

November 30, 2018 | Elaine Cheung

The Wastewater Management Authority (WMA) and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH organised a closing ceremony for the Water and Wastewater Companies for Climate Mitigation (WaCCliM) project in Thailand. WaCCliM Thailand has supported the introduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation measures in the wastewater system of 4 pilot areas.

With the world focusing its efforts on limiting global temperature rise to 1.5 ºC, every sector has started planning how it can achieve the reduction target. According to the Thailand Greenhouse Gas Management Organization (TGO), 47.5 percent of GHG emissions from the waste sector come from wastewater management, making up 2 percent of national emissions. To reduce national emissions, Thailand has issued a Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) roadmap (2021 – 2030). The reduction target for wastewater management is 700,000 tons carbon dioxide (CO2) equivalent by 2030.

Water and Wastewater Companies for Climate Mitigation or WaCCliM Project is funded through the International Climate Initiative (IKI) of the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU). The project was initiated in 2014 with the global objective to reduce the carbon footprint of water and wastewater utilities by introducing carbon-reducing measures while maintaining or improving performance, and supporting the development of a new strategy and framework for climate mitigation in the water and wastewater sector. The experiences gained from the project approach in each pilot area will be integrated into a national guideline for water and wastewater utilities to move towards carbon neutrality. In Thailand, the WaCCliM project has worked in 4 pilot areas, namely Chiang Mai, Songkhla, Krabi and Chonburi provinces, advising on mitigation measures to improve performance and reduce carbon emissions. In the meantime, WaCCliM Thailand has also supported the Wastewater Management Authority (WMA) in developing a new framework for domestic wastewater utilities in relation to climate mitigation. The results from project implementation will serve as guidelines for other wastewater utilities in Thailand.

One of the results from this cooperation is the ECAM (Energy performance and Carbon emissions Assessment and Monitoring) Tool, the first assessment tool for water and wastewater utilities to estimate GHG emissions and which can be used for Monitoring, Reporting and Verification (MRV). From the initial estimation in the Thai pilot areas, around 7,500 tons CO2 equivalent can be avoided each year, a 28 percent reduction compared to business-as-usual (BAU).

Mr. Chira Wongburana, Acting Director General of Wastewater Management Authority (WMA) noted that climate change is one of the areas to which WMA is giving priority. “We are therefore working closely with municipalities to provide high-quality wastewater treatment services, while increasing awareness of domestic wastewater management and the impact on water resources from improper management. Since climate change can be affected from wastewater management; electricity consumption and treatment processes, there is an opportunity from wastewater sector to support climate mitigation. We also plan to use ECAM Tool for planning a strategy to achieve climate mitigation in domestic wastewater sector of Thailand in the future. The ECAM Tool we received from the WaCCliM project is applied to the results and used within the Thailand Wastewater Monitoring and Reporting Center. This reports the GHG emissions results from real-time electricity consumption and these results will be reported and can be viewed through our web page. This tool is open and free to access via wacclim.org. The website also provides methodology guidelines and training documents for interested organisations who would like to assess GHG emissions from the water sector. With the project now ending, WMA is ready to go beyond the project scope and use the ECAM Tool on other domestic wastewater utilities for which WMA has responsibility.”

Ms. Chutima Jongpakdee, WaCCliM project manager, GIZ Thailand said “During the 4 years of cooperation, WaCCliM Thailand has supported WMA by proposing mitigation measures to improve the performance of the domestic wastewater system and develop a strategy which will serve as a framework for climate mitigation in the domestic wastewater sector. The most important component in achieving the reduction target sustainably is quality of data. GIZ together with the International Water Association (IWA) have thus focused on capacity building of WMA staff over the 4 years, providing them with knowledge on how GHG emissions in wastewater systems are produced both directly and indirectly, as well as training them in using the ECAM Tool so they are able to assess GHG emissions by themselves. This approach raised awareness among WMA staff involved in data collection and operating the treatment system and helped them understand why collecting data is essential to assess the level of emissions produced from their system. This improved quality of data is important for developing a national framework on climate mitigation in the domestic wastewater sector. The final developed framework will be feasible and achievable. The sector will then support local authorities in moving towards a low carbon society.”

Closing remarks of Ms. Chutima Jongpakdee, WaCCliM project manager, GIZ Thailand

When climate protection helps save costs – Mexico’s transition to a low-carbon water sector

October 29, 2018 | Elaine Cheung

In the state of Guanajuato in Mexico, two water utilities in San Francisco del Rincón and Purísima del Rincón participated between 2014 and 2018 as pilot utilities in an innovative approach to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions through improved efficiency of water and wastewater treatment services.

The urban water cycle in Mexico accounts for up to 5% of the total GHG emissions in the country. In order to reduce their emissions and to save costs at the same time, the two utilities pioneered implementation of the Roadmap to a Low-Carbon Urban Water Utility in Mexico. SAPAF (Sistema de Agua Potable y Alcantarillado de San Francisco) operates the utility that is responsible for the water supply and sewage collection in San Francisco del Rincón, while SITRATA (Servicio de Tratamiento y Deposición de Aguas Residuales) is responsible for operating the wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) shared by the two municipalities. Together, they applied the roadmap developed by the Water and Wastewater Companies for Climate Mitigation (WaCCliM) project, a joint initiative by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH and the International Water Association (IWA). It focuses on mitigation and also helps raise awareness to ensure that water utilities play an active role in reducing their carbon footprint instead of merely adapting to the consequences of climate change.

Diego Dávila (left), Director of SITRATA, describing aspects of the biogas storage unit to the personnel of other WWTPs in the state of Guanajuato; Photo: © Jürgen Baumann

Diego Dávila (left), Director of SITRATA, describing aspects of the biogas storage unit to the personnel of other WWTPs in the state of Guanajuato; Photo: © Jürgen Baumann

As part of the roadmap, an initial baseline assessment of the two utilities identified untreated wastewater as the main source of GHG emissions in the urban water cycle. Consequently, SAPAF constructed collectors to increase the wastewater treatment coverage, thus avoiding 2,500 tonnes CO2-eq per year, which is equivalent to the annual emissions of 830 compact cars per year1 and represents a reduction of 40% of the total emissions in their operation area.

The increased wastewater received by the common wastewater treatment plant posed a new challenge to SITRATA, which had to treat a larger volume without access to additional funds. To overcome this problem, the utility focused on two aspects: optimising the aeration process and improving biogas production to generate electricity for internal consumption. SITRATA managed to reduce the energy consumption per cubic meter treated by approximately 10% and produces 155,000 kWh annually through its cogeneration system using the methane generated in the anaerobic sludge digestion process; work is ongoing to increase this amount.

Cogeneration system in the San Gerónimo WWTP operated by SITRATA; Photo: © Andrés Rojo

Cogeneration system in the San Gerónimo WWTP operated by SITRATA; Photo: © Andrés Rojo

Following the lead of SAPAF and SITRATA, the utility in Moroleón, SMAPAM (Sistema Municipal de Agua Potable y Alcantarillado Moroleon), has also started to implement the WaCCliM approach. Efficiency measures in the water supply system have already led to a reduction of 6% in the electricity SMAPAM consumes for pumping. This includes replacing the least efficient pumps in the system and implementing programmes to reduce water consumption by the population, thus leading to less water needing to be pumped and as a result water and energy being conserved. The next step for the utility is to identify and reduce water losses in the distribution system, which are directly related to high energy consumption. WaCCliM is supporting the analysis of water losses and modelling of the distribution network.

In the neighbouring state of Querétaro, assessment studies on pumping stations supported by the WaCCliM project have led the State Water Commission of Querétaro to allocate 2 million pesos (approx. EUR 100,000) to implementing measures to enhance the efficiency of the pumping stations. In Chihuahua, a state located in the north of Mexico, the utility in Parral has also showed great interest in the WaCCliM approach. After an initial energy performance evaluation supported by the WaCCliM project and the renovation of some of its equipment, the utility is using its own funds to continue with additional studies, including the modelling of the distribution network and identification of possible points to optimise in the operating system.

These success stories in Mexico will encourage other water and wastewater utilities to contribute to climate change mitigation while improving service levels and reducing operational costs.

 

This article was originally published on the International Climate Initiative website.

1The number of cars was determined using the emission factor of CO2 (g/km) per car model, assuming that a car travels a total of 15,000 km per year. A mean emission value of nearly 3 tonnes/car per year was calculated. http://www.ecovehiculos.gob.mx/ecovehiculos/ (in Spanish)

ECAM tool gears up water sector towards achieving greenhouse gas reduction target

August 2, 2018 | WaCCliM
Water is a basic need for every life form on the planet. As the population grows and countries continue to develop, the demand for water also increases significantly. As a result, the waste produced from the use of water is also rising.  The water and wastewater sectors face challenges in increasing demand for water, improving water quality standards as well as the need to adapt to climate change. And with the global community pledging to limit global temperature rise to 1.5C, all sectors have started to pave their ways towards solutions that will meet the target.
The Nationally Determined Contribution Roadmap on Mitigation has been set out for 2021-2030, and is divided into energy and transport, industrial processes and product use, and waste sectors. Within the waste sectorin Thailand, municipal wastewater treatment accounts for 47.5% of the total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. In the wastewater sector, GHG emissions are indirectly and directly generated from energy used in wastewater treatment and treatment processes.
Thailand has 101 municipal wastewater treatment facilities.

Source: Pollution Control Department, Thailand

To drive GHG emissions reduction in utilities, the ECAM (Energy Performance and Carbon Emissions Assessment and Monitoring Tool) was developed by the Water and Wastewater Companies for Climate Mitigation Thailand (WaCCliM) project, which is part of the International Climate Initiative (IKI). The tool can be used for GHG emissions assessment, energy performance assessment and identifying opportunities to improve operational efficiency and services for reducing CO2 emissions in the water and wastewater sectors.
It follows a tiered approach. Tier A helps utility managers and operators to understand the overall energy usage and total GHG emissions at the system-wide level. Tier B provides details on energy use and GHG emissions at the individual stage level of the urban water cycle. The web-based tool enables utilities to identify areas of improvement and evaluate solutions and scenarios for developing a feasible carbon reduction strategy as well as future reporting needs on climate mitigation.

The reduction of the GHG emissions will

1. Reduce energy use
2. Reduce cost of the operation
3. Reduce the impact of untreated wastewater in natural water sources
4. Achieve the GHG reduction target of the country

The ECAM tool is free and available at http://wacclim.org/ecam/index.php. Guidelines, calculation principles and training documents are also provided.

Recently, municipal and Bangkok-based officers from the Thai Wastewater Management Authority participated in a workshop on the ECAM Tool and GHG emissions in wastewater sector. The workshop not only provided technical knowledge but also an opportunity to train others in this area.

Thailand ratified the Paris Agreement in September 2016. The country’s Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) intend to reduce GHG emissions by at least 20% by the year 2030 compared to the projected business as-usual level.

Nuevo portal promueve enfoque climático en el sector de agua y saneamiento

August 2, 2018 | WaCCliM

By Andrés Rojo.

El lanzamiento del novedoso portal “Climate Smart Water” busca impulsar a los organismos operadores de agua y saneamiento a integrar una visión clara de cómo sus actividades están ligadas al cambio climático, y como pueden tomar medidas para mejorar su eficiencia y reducir su huella de carbono.

El Portal “Climate Smart Water” es un nuevo recurso para que las empresas prestadoras de servicios (Organismos Operadores, como se les conoce en México – O.O.) de agua y saneamiento, integren una visión clara del vínculo que tienen las actividades de proveer agua potable y tratar aguas residuales con el cambio climático.

 

 

En México y gran parte del mundo, la mayoría de los O.O. tienen una labor delicada: El agua es fundamental para una vida digna, así como para cualquier actividad productiva, por lo que la gestión adecuada y sustentable de los recursos hídricos se vuelve crítica para un desarrollo sustentable; sin embargo, debido a cuestiones políticas y sociales la realidad de muchos O.O. es de poca continuidad en su dirección, dificultades financieras, ineficiencias y pérdidas de agua importantes.

Por ello los O.O. tienen un fuerte enfoque en reducir costos operativos para continuar la provisión del servicio frente a una población en crecimiento, normas ambientales más estrictas, y nuevos e impredecibles efectos del cambio climático, cuyos principales impactos del mismo se dan a través de eventos meteorológicos que involucran el ciclo del agua.

Ante esta situación delicada, hay una oportunidad importante para que se reconozca que los impactos al sector de agua y saneamiento no son el único vínculo con el cambio climático, sino que también hay una contribución significativa de gases de efecto invernadero (GEI); esto debido a las emisiones producidas para la energía requerida para suministrar el agua a las ciudades, y por la producción de GEI en el manejo y disposición de las aguas residuales.

 

 

El tener claridad la relación de cambio climático y los O.O. permite incrementar aún más la conciencia de lo importante que es asegurar servicios de calidad, ahora y planear hacia el futuro, implementando mejoras que al mismo tiempo ayuden a mitigar los efectos del cambio climático.

El portal “Climate Smart Water” provee una hoja de ruta que permite a los O.O. identificar el vínculo de sus actividades con la mitigación del cambio climático, y provee herramientas y recursos para evaluar cómo reducir su huella de carbono.

La estructura de la hoja de ruta cuenta con 5 pasos escalonados.

• Proporciona información sobre la importancia de reducir la huella de carbono

• Una herramienta en línea permite contabilizar las emisiones de los sistemas que administra el O.O.

• La misma herramienta permite identificar oportunidades de mejora

• Proporciona información sobre cómo implementar soluciones en las áreas de oportunidad identificadas

• Tras la implementación, permite monitorear el desempeño del O.O. y cómo se han reducido o modificado las emisiones de GEI a través del tiempo

La dirección del portal es http://climatesmartwater.org/

 

 

El portal “Climate Smart Water” se desarrolló dentro del marco del Proyecto Global “Empresas de agua y saneamiento para la mitigación del cambio climático” (WaCCliM, www.wacclim.org), proyecto implementado por la Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH y la Asociación Internacional del Agua, que forma parte de la Iniciativa Internacional de Protección del Clima (IKI) del Ministerio Federal de Medio Ambiente, Protección de la Naturaleza, y Seguridad Nuclear (BMU) de Alemania.

Mexico Tackles Climate Change through Innovation and the Renewal of its Water Sector

April 15, 2018 | WaCCliM

By Elaine Cheung and Tatiana Cuervo.

 

Mexico ambitiously committed to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions when it ratified and formally joined the Paris Agreement in 2015. Today, almost three years later, the water sector in Mexico is showing promising results. Pilot utilities of the Water and Wastewater Companies for Climate Mitigation (WaCCliM) Project have achieved a reduction of more than 2,500 t CO2e each year.

Wastewater treatment plant operated by SITRATA

In Mexico, the water sector faces multiple challenges. Water and wastewater utilities have a difficult task meeting the water demand while offering low tariffs. This challenge, coupled with a complex regulatory framework, has led to unsustainable water abstraction practices. With rising water scarcity, Mexico’s water sector will face even more challenges during the coming decades. Greater focus on its energy requirements, GHG implications, clear GHG reduction targets as well as the recognition of numerous co-benefits of a circular economy of water will be a crucial part of the policy responses to these challenges.

Wastewater treatment plant operated by SITRATA

Despite these difficulties, Mexico’s water sector has a tremendous potential to foster a positive transition towards climate mitigation and adaptation. In order to achieve its goals, the Mexican government has included efficient water supply management, treatment of wastewater, and the recovery of energy as strategies to achieve its climate commitments. Consequently, since 2013, the WaCCliM Project has been supporting Mexican water utilities in taking actions to reduce their carbon footprint. Within this scope, the Energy Performance and Carbon Emissions Assessment and Monitoring (ECAM) tool was developed to help water utilities to identify their main GHG emission sources and saving opportunities in a holistic manner.

The WaCCliM project is a joint initiative between the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH and the International Water Association (IWA) and is part of the International Climate Initiative (IKI). In Mexico, the WaCCliM project is working with the National Water Commission (CONAGUA) and the National Water Association of Mexico (ANEAS).

Technical visit to the wastewater treatment plant in San Jerónimo during the implementation of the WaCCliM project

The WaCCliM pilot utilities of San Francisco del Rincón, SAPAF and SITRATA, are pioneering the way towards sustainable, low-carbon urban water management. Following the WaCCliM roadmap, they have introduced innovative measures that resulted in energy consumption reductions of more than 25%. Likewise, they have lowered their operational costs and improved productivity: In 2016, the utility increased its wastewater treatment coverage by 30%. More than 2,500 t CO2e are now avoided each year, equivalent to annual emissions of 650 people living in Mexico[1]. Additionally, the operation of the biogas cogeneration system provides energy from the wastewater that would be sufficient to power 100 Mexican households[2]with clean energy. Besides economic and operational benefits, WaCCliM utilities are taking the lead in GHG emissions accounting and GHG mitigation in the water sector, seizing the opportunity to become more efficient and effective in an uncertain future.

A carbon-neutral development requires all sectors to innovate and pursue solutions to climate challenges. In Mexico, the water sector has taken a big step forward and is pioneering the way for other sectors and countries around the world.

[1] 3866 kg/capita/yr (2014), Source: World Bank

[2] 1652 kWh/hh/yr (2014), Source: World Energy Council

 

 

ECAM training workshop, hosted by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH in Mexico City from 7 to 8 February 2018, aimed to strengthen capacity building, and to support the application of technical tools in the field of climate change mitigation and carbon footprint reduction in water and wastewater utilities

 

 

Foto credits: SAPAF, GIZ México, Ranjin Fernando.