New Trends in Water Quality Management

Abstract

In the present water quality management practice the ambient water quality is determined on the basis of classification of recipients. This system disregards, however, the fact that the majority of hazardous micropollutants is tending to accumulate in suspended solids and may contaminate the bottom sediment. The proposed water quality management system is aiming at providing potable water of good quality without any regards to classification of surface waters. The tasks are outlined on the basis of morphological, hydrological, hydraulic and technological conditions of drinking water production. In this approach both the previous events i.e. deposition or scouring of polluted bottom silt and the transport of suspended solids with coupled micropollutants are involved. The new system is focused on Danube river, since the water supply or rather the bank-filtered water resources along it is endangered at many locations by accumulated pollutants in bed load.

Water Quality Changes during Riverbank Filtration in Budapest, Hungary

“…This may be due to the high river flow velocity of 0.8-1.6 m/s, the depth of the river and the related shear forces. At such levels of flow velocity, fine particles do not settle, only coarse sand and gravel do [11]. At many other RBF sites worldwide, clogging profoundly affects the infiltration rates of river water and results in a highly active biological layer in the riverbed which often notably contributes to water quality changes, especially considering oxygen consumption and attenuation of organic compounds [11][12][13][14][15].Budapest Waterworks operates 756 RBF wells to supply water to 1.89 million inhabitants.…”