Client:
Regulation and Supervision Bureau for the Water, Waste Water and
Electricity Sector - Emirate of Abu Dhabi
Date
May to September 2011
Challenge
Examination of the findings of a previous water consumption and
return-to-sewer (RTS) project involving many unknowns and multiple
organisations to critically assess the methodologies used by the
Regulation and Supervision Bureau for the Water, Wastewater, and
Electricity Sector for the Emirate of Abu Dhabi.
Description
The key aspect of an RTS calculation is the balance between the
volume of potable water entering and the volume of wastewater
leaving a specific property or group of properties within a
specified period. Understanding the key factors that influence
determination of the volumes of wastewater and potable water was a
critical part of this project. In gaining an understanding of these
factors, an assessment was made of the evidence-based data obtained
from interviews and a subsequent data collection process. Following
this, an opinion as to a level of confidence in the data or lack
thereof was provided.
The project focused on a review and commentary of the Bureau’s
work to date relating to the selection of seven discrete
catchments, the approach to data collection, and interpretation of
this data, and provided a specialist view on the data collection
methodologies used. Other issues that required consideration relate
to infiltration, metering accuracy and matching the boundaries of
the selected catchments.
This project was packaged into three related tasks:
- Review the Bureau’s work to date
- Define the key factors influencing RTS calculations
- Recommend further work required
The Options
This project was part of an initiative to calculate and analyse
RTS rates to provide information and aid in the development of a
long-term water resources strategy for the Emirate, particularly
those components related to typical water consumption patterns from
different property types in the Emirate, water planning and
forecasting tools, and potential volumetric tariff approaches.
The Outcome
GHD developed and implemented an innovative technique to assess
the relative gravity (or seriousness) of the various influencing
factors have in the determination of RTS values. The overall
analysis was based upon an assessment that approximates the quality
of data through a comparison of various indices/indicators/
benchmarks within the range of that specific indices/indicator/
benchmark. This generic approach provided the flexibility to assess
various types of data sets. The quality assessment process
therefore ensured that the data were either designated as reliable,
average (e.g. mediocre) or unreliable.
The assessment process facilitated formulation of recommended
strategies that addressed the anomalies in establishing RTS values
in specific catchments as well as for future RTS studies.
For more information, please contact:
Edgar Johnson
T 61 8 8111 6770