This book provides information and tools to assist operators in evaluating treatment plant operational changes (such as the changes in treatment efficiency due to changes in the raw water). and to help operators make corresponding water chemistry or other process changes to keep the plant operating properly. Both operators and system managers can use the analysis tools to more easily understand and operate a plant and be able to identify and correct any plant deficiencies.

In 1997, New York City adopted a mammoth watershed agreement to protect its drinking water and avoid filtration of its large upstate surface water supply. Shortly thereafter, the NRC began an analysis of the agreement's scientific validity. The resulting book finds New York City's watershed agreement to be a good template for proactive watershed management that, if properly implemented, will maintain high water quality. However, it cautions that the agreement is not a guarantee of permanent filtration avoidance because of changing regulations, uncertainties regarding pollution sources, advances in treatment technologies, and natural variations in watershed conditions. The book recommends that New York City place its highest priority on pathogenic microorganisms in the watershed and direct its resources toward improving methods for detecting pathogens, understanding pathogen transport and fate, and demonstrating that best management practices will remove pathogens. Other recommendations, which are broadly applicable to surface water supplies across the country, target buffer zones, stormwater management, water quality monitoring, and effluent trading.

This book presents the basic principles for evaluating water quality and treatment plant performance in a clear, innovative and didactic way, using a combined approach that involves the interpretation of monitoring data associated with (i) the basic processes that take place in water bodies and in water and wastewater treatment plants and (ii) data management and statistical calculations to allow a deep interpretation of the data. This book is problem-oriented and works from practice to theory, covering most of the information you will need, such as (a) obtaining flow data and working with the concept of loading, (b) organizing sampling programmes and measurements, (c) connecting laboratory analysis to data management, (e) using numerical and graphical methods for describing monitoring data (descriptive statistics), (f) understanding and reporting removal efficiencies, (g) recognizing symmetry and asymmetry in monitoring data (normal and log-normal distributions), (h) evaluating compliance with targets and regulatory standards for effluents and water bodies, (i) making comparisons with the monitoring data (tests of hypothesis), (j) understanding the relationship between monitoring variables (correlation and regression analysis), (k) making water and mass balances, (l) understanding the different loading rates applied to treatment units, (m) learning the principles of reaction kinetics and reactor hydraulics and (n) performing calibration and verification of models. The major concepts are illustrated by 92 fully worked-out examples, which are supported by 75 freely-downloadable Excel spreadsheets. Each chapter concludes with a checklist for your report. If you are a student, researcher or practitioner planning to use or already using treatment plant and water quality monitoring data, then this book is for you! 75 Excel spreadsheets are available to download.

Monitoring and Evaluation of Practice and Methods in Applied Social Research is a comprehensive guide delving into the core concepts, tools, methods, and approaches of monitoring and evaluation (M&E). This book reveals the roots of M&E, illustrating its evolution from academia into a burgeoning field of science across various contexts. The challenge practitioners face lies in the inconsistent terminology used for identical concepts among humanitarian organizations, hindering the growth of M&E through shared learning. Embracing an abductive approach, this book seeks to establish M&E as distinct fields within social research. In doing so, it bridges the philosophical gap between novice and expert social researchers and provides a consolidated resource based on real-world experiences. Written by an expert with over a decade of hands-on experience in applied social research, this book serves as an invaluable tool, offering insights into the diverse landscape of M&E, enabling students and practitioners to navigate various contexts with ease. Nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), United Nations (UN) bodies, and organizations involved in M&E will also find this book instrumental, creating a bridge of standardized concepts, nomenclature, and approaches.

New York City's municipal water supply system provides about 1 billion gallons of drinking water a day to over 8.5 million people in New York City and about 1 million people living in nearby Westchester, Putnam, Ulster, and Orange counties. The combined water supply system includes 19 reservoirs and three controlled lakes with a total storage capacity of approximately 580 billion gallons. The city's Watershed Protection Program is intended to maintain and enhance the high quality of these surface water sources. Review of the New York City Watershed Protection Program assesses the efficacy and future of New York City's watershed management activities. The report identifies program areas that may require future change or action, including continued efforts to address turbidity and responding to changes in reservoir water quality as a result of climate change.

Water quality monitoring is an essential tool in the management of water resources and this book comprehensively covers the entire monitoring operation. This important text is the outcome of a collborative programme of activity between UNEP and WHO with inputs from WMO and UNESCO and draws on the international standards of the International Organization of Standardization.