The four national taps of Singapore: a holistic approach to water resources management from drainage to drinking water

 Water resources in Singapore are managed following the principles of a closed loop hydrologic cycle by one agency, the Public Utility Board (PUB), which promotes its management philosophy through the Four National Taps of Singapore program. The four national taps are: water from local catchment areas; imported water (from Malaysia); reused water (known as NEWater); and desalinated water. Given the uncertainty of water imports, the remaining three national taps have become increasingly important and this paper begins with a general overview of the innovative programs implemented by PUB in support of these three taps. Stormwater runoff is captured from two-thirds of Singapore’s land area and stored in reservoirs for subsequent use. Stormwater management is an important component of the catchment area tap and extensive low impact development (LID) implementation has become a priority through the ABC (Active, Beautiful, Clean) Waters Program. Examples of several ABC Waters projects are discussed. NEWater currently supplies 30% of the country’s demand and this is projected to increase to 50% by 2060. NEWater plants take treated wastewater through the additional steps of microfiltration, reverse osmosis and ultraviolet treatment for use primarily in industry, although a portion also is blended into the municipal reservoirs. Singapore’s single desalination plant currently meets 10% of its demand, with a second plant to be completed in 2013 that will more than double production. Also discussed are the results of recently completed pilot projects related to stormwater management including testing of E. coli in runoff from high density residential areas, a blind taste test and survey on acceptance of NEWater, and a survey of Singaporean understanding about stormwater management issues.Water resources in Singapore are managed following the principles of a closed loop hydrologic cycle by one agency, the Public Utility Board (PUB), which promotes its management philosophy through the Four National Taps of Singapore program. The four national taps are: water from local catchment areas; imported water (from Malaysia); reused water (known as NEWater); and desalinated water. Given the uncertainty of water imports, the remaining three national taps have become increasingly important and this paper begins with a general overview of the innovative programs implemented by PUB in support of these three taps. Stormwater runoff is captured from two-thirds of Singapore’s land area and stored in reservoirs for subsequent use. Stormwater management is an important component of the catchment area tap and extensive low impact development (LID) implementation has become a priority through the ABC (Active, Beautiful, Clean) Waters Program. Examples of several ABC Waters projects are discussed. NEWater currently supplies 30% of the country’s demand and this is projected to increase to 50% by 2060. NEWater plants take treated wastewater through the additional steps of microfiltration, reverse osmosis and ultraviolet treatment for use primarily in industry, although a portion also is blended into the municipal reservoirs. Singapore’s single desalination plant currently meets 10% of its demand, with a second plant to be completed in 2013 that will more than double production. Also discussed are the results of recently completed pilot projects related to stormwater management including testing of E. coli in runoff from high density residential areas, a blind taste test and survey on acceptance of NEWater, and a survey of Singaporean understanding about stormwater management issues.

Nutrient cycling in Lagoon of Islands, Tasmania : management to control

This research identified the causes of poor water quality and algal blooms in Lagoon of Islands, a small shallow lake in Tasmania. The findings of this research identified options for rehabilitation and remediation of the lake.

Stochastic models of road geometry and wind condition for vehicle energy management and control

Modeling and simulation is commonly used to improve vehicle performance, to optimize vehicle system design, and to reduce vehicle development time. Vehicle performances can be affected by environmental conditions and driver behavior factors, which are often uncertain and immeasurable. To incorporate the role of environmental conditions in the modeling and simulation of vehicle systems, both real and artificial data are used. Often, real data are unavailable or inadequate for extensive investigations. Hence, it is important to be able to construct artificial environmental data whose characteristics resemble those of the real data for modeling and simulation purposes. However, to produce credible vehicle simulation results, the simulated environment must be realistic and validated using accepted practices. This paper proposes a stochastic model that is capable of creating artificial environmental factors such as road geometry and wind conditions. In addition, road geometric design principles are employed to modify the created road data, making it consistent with the real-road geometry. Two sets of real-road geometry and wind condition data are employed to propose probability models. To justify the distribution goodness of fit, Pearson's chi-square and correlation statistics have been used. Finally, the stochastic models of road geometry and wind conditions (SMRWs) are developed to produce realistic road and wind data. SMRW can be used to predict vehicle performance, energy management, and control strategies over multiple driving cycles and to assist in developing fuel-efficient vehicles.

Power management and control strategies for efficient operation of a solar power dominated hybrid DC microgrid for remote power applications

In this paper, a hybrid DC microgrid consisting of a diesel generator with a rectifier, a solar photovoltaic (PV) system, and a battery energy storage system is presented in relation to an effective power management strategy and different control techniques are adopted to power electronic interfaces. The solar PV and battery energy storage systems are considered as the main sources of energy sources that supply the load demand on a daily basis whereas the diesel generator is used as a backup for the emergency operation of the microgrid. All system components are connected to a common DC bus through an appropriate power electronics devices (e.g., rectifier systems, DC/DC converter). Also a detailed sizing philosophy of all components along with the energy management strategy is proposed. Energy distribution pattern of each individual component has been conducted based on the monthly basis along with a power management algorithm. The power delivered by the solar PV system and diesel generator is controlled via DC-DC converterand excitation controllers which are designed based on a linearquadratic regulator (LQR) technique as as proportional integral (PI)controllers. The component level power distribution is investigatedusing these controllers under fluctuating load and solar irradiationconditions and comparative results are presented.

An overview of the ecology, management and conservation of Australia's temperate woodlands

Australia’s temperate woodlands are environments of cultural and ecological importance and significant repositories of Australia’s biodiversity. Despite this, they have been heavily cleared, much remaining vegetation is in poor condition and many species of plants and animals are threatened. Here, we provide a brief overview of key issues relating to the ecology, management and policy directions for temperate woodlands, by identifying and discussing ten themes. When addressing issues relating to the conservation and management of temperate woodlands, spatial scale is very important, as are the needs for a temporal perspective and a complementary understanding of pattern and process. The extent of landscape change in many woodland environments means that woodland patches, linear networks and paddock trees are critical elements, and that there can be pervasive effects from ‘problem’ native species such as the Noisy Miner (Manorina melanocephala). These consequences of landscape change highlight the challenge to undertake active management and restoration as well as effective monitoring and long-term data collection. In developing approaches for conservation and management of temperate woodlands, it is essential to move our thinking beyond reserves to woodland conservation and management on private land, and recognise the criticality of cross-disciplinary linkages. We conclude by identifying some emerging issues in woodland conservation and management. These include the need to further develop non-traditional approaches to conservation particularly off-reserve management; the value of documenting approaches and programmes that demonstrably lead to effective change; new lessons that can be learned from intact examples of temperate woodlands; and the need to recognise how climate change and human population growth will interact with conservation and management of temperate woodlands in future decades

Influence of land cover on water resources

The influence of land cover on water quality and quantity was examined using a multidisciplinary approach that integrated land use maps, historical databases, and statistical modelling. Systematic changes in the Glenelg Hopkins landscape were identified, in addition to a relationship between greater proportions of vegetation and better water quality.

Application of novel technologies in water reclamation, reuse and recycle

Water reuse has become an integral element of the "total water resources planning and management" along with the other elements such as water conservation, water use efficiency and management of the allocation of existing water sources. Researchers are working actively on the following aspects of water reuse: identification and characterization of different wastewaters that could be reclaimed, development of treatment technologies and effluent standards, quantification of potential gains due to recycling and risk management. The wastewaters that can be reclaimed are domestic and industrial wastewaters, grey water, black water, stormwater and rain water and their potential reuse lies in agriculture, aquaculture, industries, non-potable use in residential and community fronts and indirect and direct potable use. The treatment of wastewater ranges from secondary treatment to advanced treatment, which produces different "Classes" of reclaimed water. This paper evaluates the current status of the research on the above-mentioned important aspects of water reuse with relevant case studies and the future demand for reuse water. The direction in which the future-reuse schemes should be formulated so that they are safe, environmentally sustainable and cost effective are also discussed.

Evaluation of management scenarios for controlling eutrophication in a shallow tropical urban lake

Urban lakes are typically smaller, shallower, and more exposed to human activities than natural lakes. Although the effects of harmful algal blooms (HABs) associated with eutrophication in urban lakes has become a growing concern for water resources management and environmental protection, studies focussing on this topic in relation to urban lakes are rare and knowledge of the ecological dynamics and effective management strategies for controlling eutrophication in urban lakes is lacking. This study applied an integrated three-dimensional hydrodynamics-ecological model for a small shallow tropical urban lake in Singapore and evaluated various management scenarios to control eutrophication in the lake. It is found that in-lake treatment techniques including artificial destratification, sediment manipulation and algaecide addition are either ineffective or possess environmental concerns; while watershed management strategies including hydraulic flushing and inflow nutrients reduction are more effective and have posed less environmental concerns. In this study, inflow phosphorus reduction was found to be the best strategy after evaluating the advantages and drawbacks of the management strategies studied. Runoff from the watershed exerts significant influence on urban lakes and thus an integrated water resources management at the watershed level is critical for the control of eutrophication

Interpersonal trust and control behaviour of Chinese managers

Interpersonal trust is believed to influence the management and control of organisations in China. China's importance as a host country for foreign direct investments (FDIs) through multinational company subsidiaries (MNCs) and international joint ventures (IJVs) is growing rapidly. MNCs and INs located in China often employ local Chinese managers to control their subsidiaries or ventures. This makes it essential for designers of management control systems to have an understanding of the interpersonal trust-sensitive control behaviour of Chinese managers. One of the important aspects of control behaviour is how managers control their subordinates.

This paper examines the relationship between Chinese managers' trust in subordinates and their (Chinese managers') control behaviour towards the subordinates. On the basis of a questionnaire survey of a cohort of managers from Beijing, the study explores the effects of trust on the use of social controls, formal controls, and monitoring.

The findings of this study indicate that a manager's high (low) trust in a subordinate is associated with a low (high) level of monitoring, a high (high) level of social control and a high (low) level of perceived performance. The hypothesis that a superior's high (low) level of trust is associated with a low (high) level of reliance on formal controls was not supported. These findings, while indicative of control behaviour of Chinese managers in particular, also add to the growing academic literature on trust and control in general. In a practical sense, an
understanding of the trust-sensitive control behaviour of Chinese managers is particularly useful in designing and implementing effective control systems for international organisations operating in China.

Assessing the economic benefits of starling detection and control to Western Australia

The common starling (Sturnus vulgaris) has a proven invasion history in many countries, and at a continental scale in North America and Australasia. In Australia, starlings are firmly established throughout the eastern states and Tasmania. Incursions of starlings into Western Australia (WA) represent a significant threat to this State’s agricultural, public amenity and biodiversity assets. We present models of starling population dynamics that incorporate environmental and control effort variability. We incorporate knowledge of starling ecology with economic data to assess the potential economic cost of starlings establishing in WA, evaluating the cost–benefits for each management scenario. We calculated starling population size will approach carrying capacity in WA within as little as 30 years if left unchecked. A population of this size could cost the WA economy up to $43.7 million annually in 2011/2012 dollars. Over a 50 year horizon, the conservative benefit–cost ratio for ongoing detection and control at the current level of expenditure is 6.03:1. However, even under current levels of control, starling numbers are projected to increase to almost 11 million by 2061. Further improvements in the efficiency of starling detection and control and/or an increased level of expenditure on detection and control are required.

Chronic condition management and self-management in Aboriginal communities in South Australia : outcomes of a longitudinal study

OBJECTIVES: This paper describes the longitudinal component of a larger mixed methods study into the processes and outcomes of chronic condition management and self-management strategies implemented in three Aboriginal communities in South Australia. The study was designed to document the connection between the application of structured systems of care for Aboriginal people and their longer-term health status. METHODS: The study concentrated on three diverse Aboriginal communities in South Australia; the Port Lincoln Aboriginal Health Service, the Riverland community, and Nunkuwarrin Yunti Aboriginal Health Service in the Adelaide metropolitan area. Repeated-measure clinical data were collected for individual participants using a range of clinical indicators for diabetes (type 1 and 2) and related chronic conditions. Clinical data were analysed using random effects modelling techniques with changes in key clinical indicators being modelled at both the individual and group levels. RESULTS: Where care planning has been in place longer than in other sites overall improvements were noted in BMI, cholesterol (high density and low density lipids) and HbA1c. These results indicate that for Aboriginal patients with complex chronic conditions, participation in and adherence to structured care planning and self-management strategies can contribute to improved overall health status and health outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: The outcomes reported here represent an initial and important step in quantifying the health benefits that can accrue for Aboriginal people living with complex chronic conditions such as diabetes, heart disease and respiratory disease. The study highlights the benefits of developing long-term working relationships with Aboriginal communities as a basis for conducting effective collaborative health research programs.