Siraj Tahir

Two part, two continent presentation delivered in US (Chicago) and UK(London) and streamed worldwide.

The chapter helps the reader understand the issues in designing and sizing a rainwater harvesting system, explores the quality of harvested rainwater and treatment methods to bring rainwater to acceptable standards and the issues surrounding user perception and acceptability of rainwater for various uses around the world.

With water scarcity becoming a greater problem for UK's capital, Siraj Tahir, Head of Consulting - Environment & Water at Isle Utilities, takes a fresh look at retrofitting rainwater harvesting in London.

This paper outlines a decision support system for non-potable reuse that incorporates social and institutional factors alongside conventional engineering concerns. Social factors are initially evaluated in terms of public acceptability, institutional capacity, and planning and regulation. This allows for early determination of the feasibility of water reuse in the proposed scheme. The decision support system then proceeds to a network optimisation algorithm that informs the conceptual design of… Show more

This paper outlines a decision support system for non-potable reuse that incorporates social and institutional factors alongside conventional engineering concerns. Social factors are initially evaluated in terms of public acceptability, institutional capacity, and planning and regulation. This allows for early determination of the feasibility of water reuse in the proposed scheme. The decision support system then proceeds to a network optimisation algorithm that informs the conceptual design of the non-potable reuse system. The tool provides the basis for rapid appraisal of the viability of proposed schemes and facilitates technical design that is informed by robust social as well as engineering science. Show less

Openhouse is a European FP7 project with the primary objective of “benchmarking and mainstreaming building sustainability in the european union based on transparency and openness (open source and availability) from model to implementation”, using transparent building assessment methodology, complementing the existing ones, for planning and constructing sustainable buildings by means of an open approach and technical platform. This presentation outlines a methodology that considers water… Show more

Openhouse is a European FP7 project with the primary objective of “benchmarking and mainstreaming building sustainability in the european union based on transparency and openness (open source and availability) from model to implementation”, using transparent building assessment methodology, complementing the existing ones, for planning and constructing sustainable buildings by means of an open approach and technical platform. This presentation outlines a methodology that considers water scarcity when awarding water efficiency credits based on local water availability. Show less

ABSTRACT:
A ‘city of the future’ will be founded upon sustainable urban planning and water management principles. Fundamental transitions in policy, technology and user behaviour will be necessary for this to happen. This paper identifies the potential transitions required in the United Kingdom to enable water reuse to transition from a novel to mainstream concept. Furthermore, it describes some of the real and perceived challenges to achieving the transition from a traditional urban water… Show more

ABSTRACT:
A ‘city of the future’ will be founded upon sustainable urban planning and water management principles. Fundamental transitions in policy, technology and user behaviour will be necessary for this to happen. This paper identifies the potential transitions required in the United Kingdom to enable water reuse to transition from a novel to mainstream concept. Furthermore, it describes some of the real and perceived challenges to achieving the transition from a traditional urban water cycle to a sustainable urban water cycle. Show less

ABSTRACT:
A changing climate will not only affect the water resources, but also increase the likelihood of urban flash floods resulting from more intense burst of rainfall. London’s 8 million people consume 2300 million litres/day (636 million m3 per year), and has a water footprint significantly greater than the capacity of the catchment to sustain indefinitely; resulting in the Environment Agency classifying the South East of England as under ‘sever water stress’. The second challenge is… Show more

ABSTRACT:
A changing climate will not only affect the water resources, but also increase the likelihood of urban flash floods resulting from more intense burst of rainfall. London’s 8 million people consume 2300 million litres/day (636 million m3 per year), and has a water footprint significantly greater than the capacity of the catchment to sustain indefinitely; resulting in the Environment Agency classifying the South East of England as under ‘sever water stress’. The second challenge is the management of urban runoff. The cost of upgrading the drainage infrastructure to cope with projected increases is estimated at £16 billion.
This paper shows that capturing the rainfall from the roofs of 3.5 million buildings in London can play a significant role in managing the water resources whilst reducing the severity of urban flooding; significantly lower cost when compared to new water reservoirs and drainage infrastructure upgrades.
Rainwater harvesting has the potential to meet up to 30% of the water demand of an average house, and a universal adoption has the potential to meet a significant portion of the total water demand of the city.
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