Did you know ... > that nature can significantly treat our drinking water?
)o> that one ofthese techniques is called bank filtration? > where and how is bank filtration being used? :.;... what is the motivation to investigate bank filtration in India? Curious... ? Then take a look inside to learn more! .... " "~ ... ., ' ·-~-·"---. ~ What is bank filtration?, Where is bank filtration P?~~ible? ,Which~ are the case-study sites for lhanl( filtration irl"Saph Pani? . Riverbank filtration (RBF) or simply bank filtration (BF, The efficiency of BF depends mainly on the quality of c ' > &: "'~. ,:.Nainital (Nainital Lake) and Delhi channels and lakes is induced by pumping from conditions required for BF are : (Yamuna River) have been selected as case study nearby production wells to flow through the natural • good hydraulic connection between the surface sites for the project. water and the unconsolidated aquifer aquifer soil, undergoing many positive changes in Agotnmum (Mandakini} • aquifer (alluvium) thickness > 5 m Oohradun ~~noproyag (Alako•nda) water quality before finally mixing with local Rlstikosh Sni\Og>r (Aia~nand•i •• .• __1 • suitable quality of groundwater Halidwat Salpoli (Eesl Nayer) groundwater from the land side and being abstracted f{ ' NiwOolhi (>Now ~illW!Wjoi~bi!La~•~ \ £""': • erosive river bed conditions for direct use or further treatment. [ I ~ Malhura· ~ K"""'«<)9and I Kharagpur BF sho (rivef) abstracted SW. This implies that, V.~odara (Mohl) (Ken..wall) rSo ph Panl BF 1 atwJy site : Removal of palhogcns & organic • GW abstraction is becoming unsustainable, ca~e compounds -Filtration, biodegradation &adsorption ·Redox reattions • Conventional treatment of directly abstracted SW BE sites in India (red dots)..&Saph Pani BE srte.sjblue_dols) Sand and gravt~l !lqurfer -Mixing does not effectively remove turbidity and pathogens, especially during monsoons, The hydrogeology, quality of SW and GW, the • Due to the large volumes of partially and untreated production of OW and proportion and quality of bank Process of bank filtration sewage discharged into SW in India, the most filtrate abstracted is different at each site. The significant advantage of BF is the removal of removal of pathogens by BF compared to directly Why is bank filtration useful? microbial pathogens from drinking water derived abstracted SW is the main advantage. While Srinagar from SW. Along the underground passage from the surface is a newly developed site (since 2010) and is affected water to the abstraction well, natural attenuation Specific aspects of bank filtration by floods, Haridwar experiences complex boundary results in an improvement of various physical, in particular context to India conditions and is occasionally affected by floods. The chemical, and biological water quality parameters. SW quality in Nainital and Delhi is considerably Considering that significant potential for BF exists affected by high concentrations of pathogens from Compared with direct surface water abstraction for and that it is already used at some sites in India, the treated sewage. BF supplements SW and GW drinking water (OW) production, bank filtration has aims of work package 1 of the Saph Pani project are the following advantages: to: abstraction in Srinagar and Delhi and serves as an • Removal of suspended particles, turbidity and • analyse the performance of existing BF sites in alternative to SW in Haridwar and Nainital. pathogens (bacteria, viruses and parasites); urban areas in India in particular context to the • Removal of biodegradable organic compounds removal of organic pollutants and microbial Cover photo: BF well in Haridwar (L. Rossoff, HTWD, 2011) pathogens; (e.g. dissolved organic carbon, trace organics, • evaluate the risk of floods to BF sites and improve pesticides, hydrocarbons and algae toxins); their flood-protection measures; __({~ • Equilibration of temperature and concentration SEVENTH fiM..Y,(WORK • develop remediation concepts for BF in aquifers PROGRAMME changes of dissolved constituents in the bank contaminated with inorganic nitrogen species, and Project supported by the European Commission fi ltrate; to within the Seventh Framework Programme Grant • Attenuation of adsorbable compounds. • determine economic aspects of BF schemes. agreement No. 282911 About the Project ~) Our Partners SAPH
The FP7 project "Saph Pani - Enhancement of • University of Applied Sciences Northwestern natural water systems and treatment methods Switzerland (Coordinator), Switzerland for safe and sustainable water supply in India" • Uttarakhand Jal Sansthan, India addresses the improvement of natural water • National Institute of Hydrology, India treatment systems such as river bank filtration • liT Roorkee, India (RBF), managed aquifer recharge (MAR) and • Veolia Water, India wetlands, building on a combination of local and international expertise. The project aims at • Anna University, India enhancing water resources and water supply • SPT Consultancy Services (SME), India
particularly in water stressed urban and peri • Raipur Municipal Corporation, India urban areas in different parts of the sub • Akshay Jaldhara (SME), India continent. The project focuses on a set of case • National Geophysical Research Institute, study areas in India covering various regional, India climatic, and hydrogeological conditions as well • liT Bombay, India as different treatment technologies. • DHI (India) Water & Environment Pvt Ltd, India For further information visit us on: • Competence Centre for Water Berlin, www.saphpani.eu Germany [email protected] • BRGM Service Eau, France • Centre of environmental management and decision support, Austria \ • University of Applied Sciences HTW Dresden, Germany • UNESCO IHE Delft, Netherlands • International Water Management Institute, Sri Lanka • Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organ ization, Australia Land and Water • FreieUniversitat Berlin, Germany
