When most people hear the word disruptive, they think “disturbing,” “unsettling,” “harmful,” and even “dangerous.” However, as we use the term here, it is far less sinister. It simply means using a new or emerging technology that displaces an older, established technology.
Waterless urinals are a perfect example. Before 1991, North America was home to few, if any, waterless urinals. Virtually all urinals available for installation used three to five gallons of water per flush. But slowly, no-water urinal alternatives have caught on. They disrupted entire markets and changed the way purchasers select restroom fixtures in commercial facilities.
But waterless urinals are not the only disruptive technology that has been introduced in recent years when it comes to water. Here are a few more we should know about, especially now, as aridification sets in around parts of the U.S.
Smart Irrigation
For generations, farmers have had to determine which crops need water and how much, virtually by instinct. However, due to the dwindling supply of water – especially in agriculture and especially for farmers in the western half of the United States – using intuition to determine crop water demand is out of the question. The old instinct method is being replaced with the Internet of Things (IoT). Today, “smart” irrigation systems tell farmers exactly which crops need more water and which do not. These systems can also report where leaks may be found.
Smart Metering
Smart metering systems have been making significant inroads in helping India prevent water waste. Installed in apartment buildings, these systems quickly report any sustained upsurge in water usage and where it is happening. Building owners and managers can rapidly locate a leak and repair it. It is estimated that this technology has curbed water consumption in Indian apartment buildings by as much as 35 percent.
Advanced Desalination Systems
Contrary to what many think, desalination systems, which remove salt from water, making it potable (drinkable) for humans and other living things, are not new. Desalination methods date back to the 16th century and were based on evaporation. However, in the 20th century, very arid countries such as Saudi Arabia and Israel started building large-scale desalination plants. These plants shared two things in common: they were expensive to operate and very energy demanding.
Today, disruptive technologies have been introduced that make these plants far less costly to operate as well as less energy-intensive. Some are even designed to run on renewable energy sources. This is a significant breakthrough. As the world population grows, it will be placing greater and greater demand on dwindling water resources. Getting water from oceans is one of our best options.
Disruptive Groundwater Technologies
It is estimated there are three million trillion gallons of groundwater around the globe today. That's a tremendous amount of water that can meet the needs of the entire world's population for decades to come. However, getting to that water has always been a problem. Some of it is thousands of feet under the surface, making it impossible to reach or, if physically possible to reach, cost-prohibitive. New extraction technologies have been introduced that are lowering costs and replacing old digging systems. Reliable access to underground water is becoming a reality. However, ground water needs to be replenished – and it can take ten times more water than what was extracted for replenishment.
Investments
A few years back, many investors took it for granted that the old ways of using water on farms, metering, removing salt from water, and digging for water were here to stay. Now they believe many more water-related disruptive technologies have yet to be invented. These new disruptive technologies are opening the doors to even more opportunities, and investors are now willing to take the risk and invest in them.
Although it is true we are facing some severe water challenges around the globe, thanks to these and many more disruptive technologies, it’s possible that many of these challenges will be addressed and at least reduced in the not-too-distant future.
Waterless Co., Inc: Pioneers in Advancing Water Efficiency
Klaus Reichardt is CEO and founder of Waterless Co, Inc, Vista, Calif. Reichardt founded the company in 1991 with the goal of establishing a new market segment in the plumbing fixture industry with water efficiency in mind. Reichardt is a frequent writer and presenter, discussing water conservation issues. He can be reached at klaus@waterless.com.
