W10 AM Life Cycle Approaches to Water Resources
Wednesday, 16 November 2005: 8:00 AM - 11:40 AM in 341-342

(KEN-1117-513544) Enhancing the Sustainability of Urban Water Infrastructure Using Life Cycle Approaches.

Kennedy, C¹, Sahely, H¹, Racoviceanu, A¹, Filion, Y¹, Karney, B¹, ¹ University of Toronto

ABSTRACT- Several studies undertaken at the University of Toronto have used life cycle approaches in the development of practical tools for measuring and enhancing the sustainability of urban water infrastructure. A life cycle inventory of energy use and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for water treatment systems, which considered chemical manufacturing and transportation, and water treatment plant operation revealed that operational impacts accounted for 94% of total energy use and 90% of GHG emissions. A life cycle energy analysis of water distribution systems accounting for energy use in the fabrication, use and end-of-life stages of water mains for various pipe replacement strategies found that a pipe replacement period of roughly 50 yrs yielded the lowest overall energy expenditure. A life cycle estimation framework was utilized to estimate the GHG emissions from Canadian wastewater treatment facilities; direct on-site emissions due to biological processes and on-site fuel usage accounted for approximately 670,000 Mg/yr CO2 equivalents rising to 1,050,000 Mg/yr once indirect emissions are included. These studies highlight the interconnectedness of water and energy, both essential natural resources and vital inputs into human activity affecting the integrity of ecosystems. Sustainability is achieved in the co-management of these key resources, notably by implementing demand side management schemes for both water and energy conservation and using a systems approach to urban water planning and decision-making. Current research focuses on the development of a decision support tool which integrates the components of the urban water system and utilizes a whole-systems perspective and life cycle approaches to assess different scenarios to enhance its sustainability. The assessment framework includes a physical model of the urban water system representing flows of water, energy and other materials coupled with an economic model and an assessment module which simulates potential scenarios and compares alternatives using sustainability criteria.

Key words: urban water, sustainable infrastructure, energy, LCA