1. Background

Effective reduction of global environmental impacts requires both a clear, integrated, and holistic understanding of the economic and societal that govern such impacts, and the appropriate technologies and instruments of environmental policy that can be applied to mitigate such impacts. In this regard, there is widespread recognition that the management of freshwater resources must be among the highest priorities of business, government, community organizations, and individual households. Nowhere is this recognition more clearly stated than in the milestone, 1987 report, "Our Common Future", by the World Commission on Environment and Development (the Brundtland Commission), and its successor, "Agenda 21" agreed at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (the Rio Conference). These documents emphasized the importance of alternative and unconventional technologies for augmenting water resources in the pursuit of sustainable development. Maximizing the efficiency of use of existing freshwater resources, and augmenting existing sources of water, are vitally important aspects of sustainable development which involve meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs. Economic growth provides the conditions through which protection of the environment can best be achieved, and balanced with other human goals, provides that such development be sustainable.

At present, Eastern and Central European countries are undergoing a process of transition from centrally-planned to market economies. This presents an opportunity to change the basis upon which environmental impacts are accounted for in the economies of these countries. At the same time, the technological changes in the industrial, rural, and municipal sectors present an opportunity to introduce more effective (efficient) means of reducing environmental impacts within the sectors that have traditionally created the greatest degree of environmental impact. While the scale and nature of environmental problems varies in the different subregions of Eastern and Central Europe, most problems are of common origin.

Eastern and Central Europe, with few exceptions, is a well-watered region of Europe, with many rivers and lakes, although relatively few are sizable lakes. Because urbanization and industrial development occurred in the formerly centrally-planned economies without proper measures for environmental protection and sound water management, the state of environment declined, with numerous instances of environmental pollution, water resource depletion, and creation of threats to subsequent development. The lack of efficient technologies of production contributed to high rates of water consumption, especially in power generation, mining, and steel industries. The resultant degradation of surface water quality forced authorities to switch to the extensive use of groundwater, overuse of which for industrial purposes lowered the table of water and caused wells to dry up. In many locations, the surfacial aquifers (water-bearing layers) were completely destroyed or contaminated, forcing many users to exploit progressively deeper ones. While such artificial water shortages are especially characteristic of areas with large industrial water demands and surface mining activities, their impact has extended into many rural areas, where there is an urgent need to install or replace water supply systems.

In some parts of the region, contamination of the drinking water supply is a serious problem. For instance, overuse and contamination by sewage has stressed the piped water supply system in Tirana, Albania, and has resulted in gastrointestinal infections and outbreaks of diarrhoea, dysentery, and hepatitis. In September 1994, the first case with cholera since 1914 was diagnosed after two deaths due to dehydration. Other cases of cholera were observed in Berat, Kucove, Elbasan, Lushnje, Lezhe, and Fier, as well as in Peshkopi, Kruje, and Kurbin. While this epidemic situation was stabilized by the end of November 1994 at the beginning of winter, a further 15 of the 17 persons who had been hospitalized in the Psychiatric Hospital at Elbasan died of this disease.

Throughout the region, technological development has led to the abandonment of traditional practices of water management, such as rainwater harvesting. Furthermore, because these technological developments provided an abundance of water without charge to the consumers, and without regard to the protection of the water resources from which the water was abstracted, many people used water carelessly. As a result of the lack of regard for the environment, many mistakes in catchment area management were made. For example, excessive river beds regulation through construction of numerous weirs, diversions and dams resulted in the drying of bogs, ponds, and small lakes, all of which are essential elements within a watershed and contribute to sustainable water supplies. Hence, while such developments provided abundant water in the short term, the environmental damage that occurred crucially depleted renewable water resources in the longer term. In addition, industrialization, urbanization, and the development of polluting transportation systems over the years discharged high pollutant loads to aquatic ecosystems, their catchment areas, and the surface and ground water system. In many regions, especially those dependent on surface water sources for their water supply, and usually located along the upstream portions of large European rivers such as the Vistula, Oder, Danube, and Dnieper, these actions of the past have created water shortages due to water quality problems as a result of contamination of these rivers with toxic pollutants. Eutrophication, or the enrichment of waterbodies with plant nutrients, likewise is a common problem in Eastern and Central European countries, primarily due to inappropriate infrastructure and poorly functioning communal wastewater treatment facilities which allow large quantities of biogenic materials to enter natural waterbodies. This process is exacerbated by intensive and widespread use of fertilizers in agricultural practices.

Traditionally, governments have responded to the additional water demand created by such artificial shortages by increasing the water supply. However, in many Eastern and Central European locations, this practice is no longer an easy task because of the diminishing of water resources. With depleting water resources and increasing costs of supply, there is a need to maximize the use of existing water and to make use of hitherto unexploited water resources. There are numerous techniques, modern and traditional, for maximizing and augmenting water resources, practised in different parts of the world, and similar techniques for minimizing water use both in industry and in the community. These include wastewater reuse, water recycling, desalination, wastewater treatment, and rainwater harvesting. In Eastern and Central Europe, these techniques also include implementation of technologies that enhance water economy, purify contaminated water, better manage water distribution systems, stimulate proper consumer habits to reduce household water use, preserve and protect catchment areas, and augment retention. While some of these technologies can be, and have been, applied in other regions, their application in Eastern and Central Europe has been often limited by lack of information on the techniques that are feasible and which techniques are available.

Because such limitations are widespread, the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, in Chapter 34 of Agenda 21, called for the transfer environmentally sound technology, through cooperation and capacity building between countries, and identified improved access to information on environmentally sound technologies as one of the priorities to facilitate technology transfer to developing countries and countries with economies in transition. Likewise, Chapter 18 of Agenda 21 encouraged the utilization of appropriate technology in water supply and sanitation. In combination, the primary objective of Agenda 21 is to improve access to technical information so as to enable countries in transition to make informed choices, leading to the use of appropriate technology for their specific situations.

Sustainable development can be promoted by policies designed to encourage development, deployment, and, when appropriate, distribution or transfer of technologies which are intended to reduce, to a justifiable minimum, the use of energy and raw materials, and the creation of wastes and release of contaminants to the environment, in order to produce the goods and services demanded by society. To help water resources managers and planners around the world, and especially in developing countries and countries with economies in transition, improve their environmental performance, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), through its Water Branch and International Environmental Technology Centre (IETC), established a task force to create this Source Book of Alternative Technologies for Freshwater Argumentation in Eastern and Central Europe. The main objective in the preparation of this Source Book was to compile a thorough inventory of available technologies for maximizing the use and augmenting the existing freshwater resources in Eastern and Central Europe. As a result of this practical focus, information on the capital as well as the operation and maintenance costs, ease operation, and suitability of the technologies is also included, and case studies of innovative and cost effective technologies are documented. The technologies identified in this Source Book include alternative technologies that both maximize the efficiency of use of existing freshwater resources and/or augment existing supplies by drawing on unconventional sources of water. It is intended to be a reference manual, presented in a user-friendly format, which contains the information needed to implement a programme of sustainable water resources management. It is specifically designed to assist water resource managers and planners in fulfilling their commitment to environmental stewardship in a comprehensive fashion, but will be of interest and value to environmentalists in general and to all those concerned with water management.

This Source Book is one of five regional guides, the contents of which will be compiled into a global handbook which includes Eastern and Central Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, Asia and the Pacific, Africa, and Small Island Developing States. While each of these regional Source Books will encourage sharing of technologies and experiences within particular geographical regions, the comprehensive Source Book will encourage information and technology transfer between major regions of the globe.

2. Definitions

In this Source Book, technology is broadly defined, including technologies that range from the reintroduction of beaver to the use of water-saving products and ecological information campaigns. While a more narrow definition of technology limits the use of the term to the use of technological equipment, in the sense of machinery, it fails to perceive or include the sense of relationship between nature and society as being affected by the technology and ignores the greater framework within which the technology is developed and selected. Technology, in the broadest sense, encompasses both its forms (as knowledge and know-how, or as embodied in equipment and products) and use as a key factor in all human activities and walks of life. Technologies that maximize the efficiency of use of existing freshwater resources or augment existing sources of water, in this broader sense, are a vitally important element of development in all countries. However, such technologies are especially important in Eastern and Central European countries because, during the era of ideological and economic domination by the Soviet Union in this region, urbanization and industrial development were performed without regard for the proper measures of water management that this broader definition of technology implies.

3. Methodology

Based upon the river systems within the region (see Box), field surveys and detailed inventories of available technologies for maximizing the use and augmenting the availability of existing freshwater resources were carried out in the three principle watersheds, covering the six major subregions, of Eastern and Central Europe; namely, the Baltic Sea basin which includes Latvia and Poland, the Black and Caspian Seas basin which includes Ukraine, Romania, and Hungary, and the Mediterranean Sea basin which includes Albania. The procedure for selecting alternative technologies for freshwater augmentation for inclusion in this regional Source Book was oriented toward technologies that promote sustainable development, and involved an intensive literature survey of methods used to maximize and augment freshwater resources for all human purposes, including agriculture, industry, and domestic or potable use. This survey included wastewater treatment and reuse, water recycling, rainwater harvesting, water savings and storage, as well as "soft" methods for the minimization of water use (e.g., promotion and use of good housekeeping practices, water saving products, educational campaigns, etc.), and encompassed both modern and traditional methods.

A very important source of information used in this study was some registers and guide books that contain descriptions of over 200 technologies; for instance, the Polish Guide-book About The Water Protection Facilities And Services and the Investors' Environmental Guidelines, developed in Ukraine, proved to be excellent resources. It is also important to note that, while every effort has been made to provide accurate information about the costs of the identified technologies, the cost information presented should be treated as indicative only due to inflation, which may be significant in the countries of Eastern and Central Europe, and conversion from the original units (Polish zloty, Latvian lats, Hungarian forint, etc.) to United States dollars.

Three different case studies on the successful application of local technologies for maximizing the efficiency of use of water resources and for freshwater augmentation were identified, including beaver reintroduction, the Vija-biotechnology system of wastewater treatment, and the ecological education campaign "Washing may be Cheaper". However, this survey did not include information about clean technologies which may be used in industry to save water and minimize generation of wastewater.

4. Results of the survey

Progress in the sustainable development of the region is slow and the introduction of new technologies and economic instruments is not as rapid as the decrease in energy and natural resources usage related to economic decline and recession. These latter economic factors have resulted in a decrease in water use, water losses, and water pollution that of sufficient magnitude to reduce overall consumption to sustainable levels. Thus, the main task is to maintain this level of use until at least the year 2000.

The major causes of water losses in the region include widespread use of potable water (both by households and industry) in inappropriate ways (e.g., about one-half of the 4.3 km³ of drinking water consumed annually in Ukrainian cities is used for non-food needs); leakage during transmission through water mains and losses in the water supply systems; user-related losses and waste (amounting to more than 20% of the potable water delivered to households, and 20% to 30% of the potable water delivered to industry); lack of an economic regulatory mechanism to promote the rational use of limited water resources; poor quality of fixtures, fittings, and pipes; shortages of flow-metering equipment, both in households and in industry (to measure water and wastewater volumes); and, shortages of pressure stabilization devices in the water delivery and distribution systems (both system and terminal pressure stabilizers and regulators).

The major causes of water wastage in industry include use of drinking quality water from municipal water supplies in the production processes, where technical quality water would be adequate and is available in sufficient quantities; lack of coordination by regional authorities to promote more efficient usage of water by industrial facilities; use of direct flow-through cooling equipment; lack of water recycling; discharge of relatively pure industrial water as effluent into the sewerage system; widespread lack of water reuse, such as the use of counter-flow cascade washing technology in the electroplating process and the use gun-type nozzles on industrial sites for washing vehicles, equipment, and premises; lack of economic incentives for workers, engineers, and maintenance personnel to promote the rational use and conservation of drinking water; poor maintenance of on-site water supplies (e.g., absence of regular pipe cleaning to ensure maximal mains capacity, pressure regulation, preventive repair, etc.); and, lack of the reserve accumulation ponds which collect water at night to smooth peak water demand during the day in some large cities, which is especially noticeable during summer water shortages.

It is paradoxical that one of the largest sources of "new" water in the region is the water-pipe networks themselves. In the other words, the detection and minimization of leaks is an extremely important method of freshwater augmentation in the region. For example, in Tirana, where the production of water by the waterworks during 1994 was 54.6 million m³, the total volume of water sold totalled only 21.4 million m³, which implies a loss of the water during transmission of 23.2 million m³, or 61%, of production. Annual transmission losses in Ukraine reach about 0.3 km³, or more than 8% of the municipal water supply. In industry, transmission losses reach 18% to 30% of water drawn from municipal water supplies. In Poland, estimated total water losses in water-pipe networks in selected towns amount to 8 000 m³/year/km of network, or, for cities with less than 100 000 inhabitants, to 40 dm³/capita/day of water, and, for cities over 100 000 inhabitants, to 100 dm³/capita/day of water. In Latvia, the City of Riga, which has a water supply network extending over 960 km, must renew at least 70 km of the network which are in a very poor condition. The situation is similar in the other cities of Latvia. It should be noted that the oldest networks, built during the four decades from the beginning of the century to about 1940, are in good condition, with few exceptions. These systems were constructed of 300 mm to 800 mm diameter cast iron pipes with an anticipated lifespan of 50 to 90 years. In contrast, the more recent networks, built between 1940 and 1990 with pipes made in Russia are in poor condition. The main reasons for the failure of the more recent networks include us of a limited selection of materials and lack of internal anti-corrosion coatings; poor quality piping; poor construction of, and foundations under, the pipes; damage to joints and connections; insufficient external corrosion protection (cathode defence); and, generally poor maintenance.

The introduction of water meters in the region has provided the impetus to develop new, water saving technologies and maintain the existing ones effectively. Because it is well known that transmission leaks occur in direct proportion to the pressure in water supply and distribution networks, one of the best ways to decrease the numbers of leaks in large municipal or industrial water supply networks is to optimize and reduce or stabilize operating pressures. Reduction of operating pressure variations in the Ukrainian water supply networks could conserve up to 100 million m³/year of drinking water. This saving could be increased further through the development and introduction of new, low flow-low pressure pipe fixtures and fittings, pressure regulators and stabilizers, pipes, and controlled drive pumps, and, additionally, by the use of ultrasound and electronic diagnostic systems within the network to monitor network conditions and locate and isolate leaks or damages for repair.

Table 1 presents a summary of the results of the survey of technologies in the region, and a brief description of each. Detailed information on each of technologies is presented in Part B. Alternative Technologies. These technologies, however, are only a few examples of environmental friendly solutions for maximizing use and augmenting existing freshwater resources. Nowadays it is indispensable to provide a cost effective, efficient solution for water management.

New direction appeared in the region in the waste water treatment. It is the use of cost effective, renewable natural processes (LEMNA technology, wetlands, ponds, etc.). They are simple, with no need of energy supply, reliable. The government have to support the construction of adequate treatment facilities and moreover the preventive techniques, because environmental protection is far behind economical interests. It is necessary to provide soft loans, subventions, tax reductions. And of course the entrepreneurs, companies, plant operators should change their attitudes with environmental protection like in developed countries.

Most technologies can be recommended for application anywhere in the region without restraints. But usage of some technologies especially based on ecological solutions e.g. hydrobotanical treatment are more efficient in countries with milder climatic conditions.

Implementation of new, best available technologies is very limited according to limited possibilities of financing from enterprises and municipalities and from State budget too. Therefore the high level demands can be addressed only to the new activities of greatest municipal or private projects, but existing activities or enterprises has not possibilities to choose the best available technology and often are working on available technology.

A new system of planning and promotion for urban water supply development should be developed. It is also necessary to develop "The general scheme for drinking water conservation" that is to reflect the strategy of water resource use in short-term and in long-term perspective (up to 25-50 years). In future it would be advisable to prohibit the use of drinking water for industrial needs, in cases there are resources of purified wastewater or unconventional water supply sources. The prohibition is of prime importance with respect the processes, that consume water irretrievably. In other words it is extremely important to develop a fully free market of water with appropriate economic, legal, and informative instruments in all over the East and Central Europe countries. However, it is a need to create new ethic for sustainable living and to translate its principles into practice within educational ecological campaigns for both, the whole of society and specialists, to augment the resources of water.

Humanity must live within the carrying capacity of the Earth. There is no other rational option in the longer term. We must use the resources of the Earth sustainably, prudently and with full harmony with nature and augment water resources above all by strengtening global as the same as local ecosystem capacity with ecological measures - for instance by beaver reintroduction and by efficient and wiser use of it.

TABLE 1. Summary of Alternative Technologies Presented in the Source Book.

5. Organization of the Source Book

This Source Book is presented in three parts. Part A provides an overview of the technologies included in the Source Book and a guide to the use of the book. Part B sets forth a series of technology profiles which briefly describe each of the technologies used to maximize water use efficiency and augment existing water supplies in Eastern and Central European countries, in a consistent and comparable manner. Part C presents selected case studies which highlight the use of specific, innovative technologies described in Part B.

In Part B, each technology profile presents the following information:

· Technical Description, providing a brief description of the technology as applied in the region;

· Extent of Use, indicating the extent to which the technology is applied in the region;

· Operation and Maintenance, describing the operation and maintenance of the technology;

· Level of Involvement, indicating the level of involvement of government, community organizations, private sector organizations, and households needed to implement and maintain the technology;

· Costs, providing information on capital and operating and maintenance costs;

· Effectiveness of the Technology, describing the ability of the technology to accomplish the objectives of application for which it is designed;

· Suitability, describing the geographic and/or hydrological areas where the technology is most applicable;

· Advantages, presenting the political and technical advantages of the technology;

· Disadvantages, presenting the political and technical disadvantages of the technology;

· Cultural Acceptability, describing any socio-cultural inhibitions or barriers to the use of the technology within the region;

· Further Development of the Technology, indicating any additional development needed for apply this technology more widely or in other areas of freshwater management; and,

· Information Sources, providing additional references to the published literature and/or the names and contact details of water resources professionals within the region having experience with, or knowledge of, the technology that might be useful to the reader in determining the suitability of the technology for a similar application.

The technology profiles are presented as follows: freshwater augmentation technologies, water quality improvement technologies, wastewater treatment technologies and reuse, and water conservation technologies.