Aquifer recharge with reclaimed water: life-cycle assessment of hybrid concepts for non-potable reuse

• Published in: Journal of water reuse and desalination Vol. 5; no. 2; pp. 142 - 148
• Main Authors: Staub, M., Thouement, H., Remy, C., Miehe, U., Grützmacher, G., Roche, P., Soyeux, E., David, B.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London IWA Publishing 01.06.2015
• Subjects: Agricultural land; Aquifers; Barriers; Case studies; Chemical oxygen demand; Climate change; Councils; Disinfection; Drinking water; Energy costs; Energy demand; Energy efficiency; Energy management; Environmental impact; Groundwater recharge; Hybrid systems; Intrusion; Landscape; Life cycle assessment; Membranes; Mitigation; Natural resource management; Operating costs; Pathogens; Power efficiency; Pressure; Reclaimed water; Reclamation; Replenishment; Reuse; Saline water intrusion; Salinity; Saltwater barriers; Saltwater intrusion; Science; Software; Water consumption; Water quality; Water shortages; Australia; Switzerland; Canberra Australian Capital Territory Australia; Germany
• ISSN: 2220-1319; 2408-9370
• DOI: 10.2166/wrd.2014.037

Aquifer recharge with reclaimed water is a promising means to store and supply on demand reclaimed water of high quality for further non-potable reuse. The reuse applications may include indirect agricultural or landscape irrigation, saltwater intrusion barriers, subsidence mitigation or aquifer replenishment. As an alternative to high-pressure or double-membrane systems, hybrid schemes consisting of a disinfection/filtration step prior to aquifer recharge were assessed in this study regarding their environmental footprint and energy efficiency. A simplified life-cycle assessment (LCA) for a hypothetical case study in a water-scarce country was conducted to compare these hybrid schemes to a double-membrane system working under similar conditions. The results show that there is a significant margin for lowering the environmental impact, energy demand and operational costs if non-potable water quality is targeted. While the hybrid schemes outperform high-pressure membranes for these factors, land footprint and final water quality also need to be considered in the choice of solution for specific conditions.