vania-janet/multiturn-rag-retrieval-data huggingface dataset:
Drinking water supply and sanitation in the United States
Utilities in charge of public water supply and sanitation systems can be owned , financed , operated and maintained by a public entity , a private company or both can share responsibilities through a public - private partnership . Utilities can either be in charge of only water supply and / or sanitation , or they can also be in charge of providing other services , in particular electricity and gas . In the latter case they are called multi-utilities . Bulk water suppliers are entities that manage large aqueducts and sell either treated or untreated water to various users , including utilities .
Water potential
Water potential is the potential energy of water per unit volume relative to pure water in reference conditions . Water potential quantifies the tendency of water to move from one area to another due to osmosis , gravity , mechanical pressure , or matrix effects such as capillary action ( which is caused by surface tension ) . The concept of water potential has proved useful in understanding and computing water movement within plants , animals , and soil . Water potential is typically expressed in potential energy per unit volume and very often is represented by the Greek letter ψ .
Subsistence agriculture
While this ' slash - and - burn ' technique may describe the method for opening new land , commonly the farmers in question have in existence at the same time smaller fields , sometimes merely gardens , near the homestead there they practice intensive ' non-shifting '' techniques until shortage of fields where they can employ `` slash and burn '' to clear land and ( by the burning ) provide fertilizer ( ash ) . Such gardens nearer the homestead often regularly receive household refuse , the manure of any household chickens or goats , and compost piles where refuse is thrown initially just to get it out of the way . However , such farmers often recognize the value of such compost and apply it regularly to their smaller fields . They also may irrigate part of such fields if they are near a source of water .
Recycling
In the recycling process , television sets , monitors , cell phones , and computers are typically tested for reuse and repaired . If broken , they may be disassembled for parts still having high value if labor is cheap enough . Other e-waste is shredded to pieces roughly 10 centimetres ( 3.9 in ) in size , and manually checked to separate out toxic batteries and capacitors which contain poisonous metals . The remaining pieces are further shredded to 10 millimetres ( 0.39 in ) particles and passed under a magnet to remove ferrous metals . An eddy current ejects non-ferrous metals , which are sorted by density either by a centrifuge or vibrating plates . Precious metals can be dissolved in acid , sorted , and smelted into ingots . The remaining glass and plastic fractions are separated by density and sold to re-processors . Television sets and monitors must be manually disassembled to remove lead from CRTs or the mercury backlight from LCDs .
Hurricane Harvey
Houston officials stated that the Houston drinking water and sewer systems were intact ; however , `` hundreds of thousands of people across the 38 Texas counties affected by Hurricane Harvey use private wells , according to an estimate by Louisiana State University researchers , and those people must fend for themselves . '' Additionally , Harris County , which includes Houston , contains a large number of Superfund - designed brownfield sites that contain a wide variety of toxins and carcinogens . Two Superfund sites in Corpus Christi were flooded .
Thunderstorm
Acid rain is also a frequent risk produced by lightning . Distilled water has a neutral pH of 7 . `` Clean '' or unpolluted rain has a slightly acidic pH of about 5.2 , because carbon dioxide and water in the air react together to form carbonic acid , a weak acid ( pH 5.6 in distilled water ) , but unpolluted rain also contains other chemicals . Nitric oxide present during thunderstorm phenomena , caused by the oxidation of atmospheric nitrogen , can result in the production of acid rain , if nitric oxide forms compounds with the water molecules in precipitation , thus creating acid rain . Acid rain can damage infrastructures containing calcite or certain other solid chemical compounds . In ecosystems , acid rain can dissolve plant tissues of vegetations and increase acidification process in bodies of water and in soil , resulting in deaths of marine and terrestrial organisms .
Soil erosion
The amount and intensity of precipitation is the main climatic factor governing soil erosion by water . The relationship is particularly strong if heavy rainfall occurs at times when , or in locations where , the soil 's surface is not well protected by vegetation . This might be during periods when agricultural activities leave the soil bare , or in semi-arid regions where vegetation is naturally sparse . Wind erosion requires strong winds , particularly during times of drought when vegetation is sparse and soil is dry ( and so is more erodible ) . Other climatic factors such as average temperature and temperature range may also affect erosion , via their effects on vegetation and soil properties . In general , given similar vegetation and ecosystems , areas with more precipitation ( especially high - intensity rainfall ) , more wind , or more storms are expected to have more erosion .
Soil erosion
Soil erosion ( especially from agricultural activity ) is considered to be the leading global cause of diffuse water pollution , due to the effects of the excess sediments flowing into the world 's waterways . The sediments themselves act as pollutants , as well as being carriers for other pollutants , such as attached pesticide molecules or heavy metals .
United Kingdom
In England and Wales water and sewerage services are provided by 10 private regional water and sewerage companies and 13 mostly smaller private `` water only '' companies . In Scotland water and sewerage services are provided by a single public company , Scottish Water . In Northern Ireland water and sewerage services are also provided by a single public entity , Northern Ireland Water .
Wetland
Wetlands are vital ecosystems that provide livelihoods for the millions of people who live in and around them . The Millennium Development Goals ( MDGs ) called for different sectors to join forces to secure wetland environments in the context of sustainable development and improving human wellbeing . A three - year project carried out by Wetlands International in partnership with the International Water Management Institute found that it is possible to conserve wetlands while improving the livelihoods of people living among them . Case studies conducted in Malawi and Zambia looked at how dambos -- wet , grassy valleys or depressions where water seeps to the surface -- can be farmed sustainably to improve livelihoods . Mismanaged or overused dambos often become degraded , however , using a knowledge exchange between local farmers and environmental managers , a protocol was developed using soil and water management practices . Project outcomes included a high yield of crops , development of sustainable farming techniques , and adequate water management generating enough water for use as irrigation . Before the project , there were cases where people had died from starvation due to food shortages . By the end of it , many more people had access to enough water to grow vegetables . A key achievement was that villagers had secure food supplies during long , dry months . They also benefited in other ways : nutrition was improved by growing a wider range of crops , and villagers could also invest in health and education by selling produce and saving money .
Soil erosion
Unsustainable agricultural practices are the single greatest contributor to the global increase in erosion rates . The tillage of agricultural lands , which breaks up soil into finer particles , is one of the primary factors . The problem has been exacerbated in modern times , due to mechanized agricultural equipment that allows for deep plowing , which severely increases the amount of soil that is available for transport by water erosion . Others include mono - cropping , farming on steep slopes , pesticide and chemical fertilizer usage ( which kill organisms that bind soil together ) , row - cropping , and the use of surface irrigation . A complex overall situation with respect to defining nutrient losses from soils , could arise as a result of the size selective nature of soil erosion events . Loss of total phosphorus , for instance , in the finer eroded fraction is greater relative to the whole soil . Extrapolating this evidence to predict subsequent behaviour within receiving aquatic systems , the reason is that this more easily transported material may support a lower solution P concentration compared to coarser sized fractions . Tillage also increases wind erosion rates , by dehydrating the soil and breaking it up into smaller particles that can be picked up by the wind . Exacerbating this is the fact that most of the trees are generally removed from agricultural fields , allowing winds to have long , open runs to travel over at higher speeds . Heavy grazing reduces vegetative cover and causes severe soil compaction , both of which increase erosion rates .
Water supply and sanitation in Abu Dhabi
In Masdar City green spaces and agriculture near the city are to be irrigated with grey water and reclaimed water .
Water splitting
Production of hydrogen from water requires large amounts of energy and is uncompetitive with its production from coal or natural gas . Potential electrical energy supplies include hydropower , wind turbines , or photovoltaic cells . Usually , the electricity consumed is more valuable than the hydrogen produced so this method has not been widely used . Other potential energy supplies include heat from nuclear reactors and light from the sun . Hydrogen can also be used to store renewable generated electricity when it is not needed ( like the wind blowing at night ) and then used to meet power needs during the day or to fuel vehicles . The storable quality of hydrogen helps make hydrogen an enabler of the wider use of renewables , and internal combustion engines . ( See hydrogen economy . )
Dead Sea
At a regional conference in July 2009 , officials expressed concern about the declining water levels . Some suggested industrial activities around the Dead Sea might need to be reduced . Others advised environmental measures to restore conditions such as increasing the volume of flow from the Jordan River to replenish the Dead Sea . Currently , only sewage and effluent from fish ponds run in the river 's channel . Experts also stressed the need for strict conservation efforts . They said agriculture should not be expanded , sustainable support capabilities should be incorporated into the area and pollution sources should be reduced .
Sustainability
Every economic activity produces material that can be classified as waste . To reduce waste , industry , business and government are now mimicking nature by turning the waste produced by industrial metabolism into resource . Dematerialization is being encouraged through the ideas of industrial ecology , ecodesign and ecolabelling . In addition to the well - established `` reduce , reuse and recycle '' , shoppers are using their purchasing power for ethical consumerism .
Recycling
The product 's disposal process requires two recycling loops : product recycling and material recycling . The product or product parts are reused in the product recycling phase . This happens in one of two ways : the product is used retaining the product functionality ( `` reuse '' ) or the product continues to be used but with altered functionality ( `` further use '' ) . The product design is unmodified , or only slightly modified , in both scenarios .
Recycling
Certain requirements must be met for recycling to be economically feasible and environmentally effective . These include an adequate source of recyclates , a system to extract those recyclates from the waste stream , a nearby factory capable of reprocessing the recyclates , and a potential demand for the recycled products . These last two requirements are often overlooked -- without both an industrial market for production using the collected materials and a consumer market for the manufactured goods , recycling is incomplete and in fact only `` collection '' .
Drinking water supply and sanitation in the United States
However , most wastewater was still discharged without any treatment , because wastewater was not believed to be harmful to receiving waters due to the natural dilution and self - purifying capacity of rivers , lakes and the sea . Wastewater treatment only became widespread after the introduction of federal funding in 1948 and especially after an increase in environmental consciousness and the upscaling of financing in the 1970s . For decades federal funding for water supply and sanitation was provided through grants to local governments . After 1987 the system was changed to loans through revolving funds .
Irrigation tank
Ralegaon Siddhi is an example of a village that revitalised its ancient tank system . In 1975 the village was drought - stricken . The village tank could not hold water as the earthen embankment dam wall leaked . Work began with the percolation tank construction by the villagers who donated their labor to repair the embankment . Once this was fixed , the village 's seven wells below the tank filled with water in the summer for the first time in memory . Now the village has a supply of water throughout the year .
Osmosis
Osmosis is responsible for the ability of plant roots to draw water from the soil . Plants concentrate solutes in their root cells by active transport , and water enters the roots by osmosis . Osmosis is also responsible for controlling the movement of guard cells .
Waste minimisation
But in some cases it has a negative environmental impact . If a product is too durable , its replacement with more efficient technology is likely to be delayed . For example , a washing machine produced 10 years ago may use twice as much water , detergent and energy as one produced today . Therefore , extending an older machine 's useful life may place a heavier burden on the environment than scrapping it , recycling its metal and buying a new model . Similarly , older vehicles consume more fuel and produce more emissions than their modern counterparts .
Drinking water supply and sanitation in the United States
Community Water System ( CWS ) . A PWS that supplies water to the same population year - round . Non-Transient Non-Community Water System ( NTNCWS ) . A PWS that regularly supplies water to at least 25 of the same people at least six months per year , but not year - round . Some examples are schools , factories , office buildings , and hospitals which have their own water systems . Transient Non-Community Water System ( TNCWS ) . A PWS that provides water in a place such as a gas station or campground where people do not remain for long periods of time .
Environmental policy of the United States
The history of environmental law in the United States can be traced back to early roots in common law doctrines , for example , the law of nuisance and the public trust doctrine . The first statutory environmental law was the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 , which has been largely superseded by the Clean Water Act . However , most current major environmental statutes , such as the federal statutes listed above , were passed during the modern environmental movement spanning the late 1960s through the early 1980s . Prior to the passage of these statutes , most federal environmental laws were not nearly as comprehensive .
Hurricane Katrina
A June 2007 report released by the American Society of Civil Engineers determined that the failures of the levees and floodwalls in New Orleans were found to be primarily the result of system design and construction flaws . The US Army Corps of Engineers is federally mandated in the Flood Control Act of 1965 with responsibility for the conception , design and construction of the region 's flood - control system . According to report published in August 2015 in the official journal of the World Water Council , the corps misinterpreted the results of a 1985 study and wrongly concluded that sheet piles in the flood walls needed to be driven to depths of only 17 feet ( 5 m ) instead of between 31 and 46 feet ( 9 and 14 m ) . That decision saved approximately US $100 million , but significantly reduced overall engineering reliability .
Drinking water supply and sanitation in the United States
Congress passed the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act of 2014 ( WIFIA ) to provide an expanded credit program for water and wastewater infrastructure projects , with broader eligibility criteria than the previously - authorized revolving funds . Pursuant to the act , EPA established its Water Infrastructure and Resiliency Finance Center in 2015 to help local governments and municipal utilities design innovative financing mechanisms , including public - private partnerships . It is part of the federal government 's Build American Investment Initiative . Congress amended the WIFIA program in 2015 and 2016 . One of the envisaged instruments to boost financing in water infrastructure are Qualified Public Infrastructure Bonds ( QPIBs ) , tax - exempt municipal bonds that can be used by private companies .
Environmental policy of the United States
Hazardous waste regulations began in the United States in 1976 with the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act ( RCRA ) to govern hazardous waste from its initial generation to final disposition ( cradle - to - grave regulation ) and the Toxic Substances Control Act ( TSCA ) to anticipate possible hazards from chemicals . Following the events at Love Canal , the Comprehensive Environmental Response , Compensation , and Liability Act ( CERCLA , or Superfund ) was enacted in 1980 to assist in the cleanup of abandoned hazardous waste disposal sites . In the mid-1980s , the Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments ( 1984 ) and the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act ( 1986 ) were passed .
Drinking water supply and sanitation in the United States
Demand - side management , including the reduction of leakage in the distribution network and water conservation , are other options that are being considered and , in some cases , also applied to address water scarcity . For example , Seattle has reduced per capita water use from 152 US gallons ( 580 L ) per day in 1990 to 97 US gallons ( 370 L ) per day in 2007 through a comprehensive water conservation program including pricing policies , education , regulations and rebates for water - saving appliances . Other cities such as Atlanta and Las Vegas have also launched water conservation programs that are somewhat less comprehensive than the one in Seattle concerning indoor water use . However , Las Vegas has intentionally focused on curbing outdoor water demand , which accounts for 70 % of residential water use in the city , through reductions in turf area and incentives for the use of rains sensors , irrigation controllers and pool covers . At the federal level , the Energy Policy Act of 1992 set standards for water - efficient appliances , replacing the 3.5 US gallons ( 13 L ) per flush ( gpf ) toilet with a new 1.6 gpf / 6 litres per flush maximum standard for all new toilets . By 1994 , federal law mandated that showerheads and faucets sold in the U.S. release no more than 2.5 and 2.2 US gallons ( 8.3 L ) of water per minute respectively . Also in 1994 the AWWA established a clearinghouse for water conservation , efficiency , and demand management , called WaterWiser , to assist water conservation professionals and the general public in using water more efficiently . In 2006 the EPA launched its WaterSense program to encourage water efficiency beyond the standards set by the Energy Policy Act through the use of a special label on consumer products .
National Flood Insurance Program
Participation in the NFIP is based on an agreement between local communities and the federal government that states that if a community will adopt and enforce a floodplain management ordinance to reduce future flood risks to new construction in Special Flood Hazard Areas ( SFHA ) , the federal government will make flood insurance available within the community as a financial protection against flood losses . The SFHAs and other risk premium zones applicable to each participating community are depicted on Flood Insurance Rate Maps ( FIRMs ) . The Mitigation Division within the Federal Emergency Management Agency manages the NFIP and oversees the floodplain management and mapping components of the Program .
Drinking water supply and sanitation in the United States
In the first half of the 20th century water supply and sanitation were a local government responsibility with regulation at the state level ; the federal government played almost no role in the sector at that time . This changed with the enactment of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act of 1948 , which provided for comprehensive planning , technical services , research , and financial assistance by the federal government to state and local governments for sanitary infrastructure . The Act was amended in 1965 , establishing a uniform set of water quality standards and creating a Federal Water Pollution Control Administration authorized to set standards where states failed to do so . Comprehensive federal regulations for water supply and sanitation were introduced in the 1970s , in reaction to an increase in environmental concerns . In 1970 EPA was created by the Richard Nixon administration , and authority for managing various environmental programs was transferred to the new agency . In 1972 , Congress passed the Clean Water Act , requiring industrial plants and municipal sewage plants to proactively improve their waste treatment practices in order to limit the effect of contaminants on freshwater sources . In 1974 , the Safe Drinking Water Act was adopted for the regulation of public water systems . This law specified a number of contaminants that must be closely monitored and reported to residents should they exceed the maximum contaminant levels allowed . From then on , drinking water systems were closely monitored by federal , state , and municipal governments for safety and compliance with existing regulations . The Clean Water Act set the unprecedented goal of eliminating all water pollution by 1985 and authorized massive expenditures of $24.6 billion in research and construction grants for municipal sewage treatment . The funds initially provided an incentive to build centralized wastewater collection and treatment infrastructure for municipalities , instead of decentralized systems . However , the 1977 amendments to the Clean Water Act required communities to consider alternatives to the conventional centralized sewer systems , and financial assistance was made available for such alternatives . In the mid-1990s decentralized systems served approximately 25 percent of the U.S. population , and approximately 37 percent of new housing developments .
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009
One of the primary purposes and promises of the Act was to launch a large number of `` shovel - ready '' projects that would generate jobs . However , a sizable number of these projects , most of which pertained to infrastructure , took longer to implement than they had expected by most . This was largely attributed to the regulatory process that is involved in such projects .