Responses by Gurmit Singh Arora, National President, Indian Plumbing Association.
1. What steps can the plumbing industry take to promote water sustainability in India?
Different key issues that the plumbing industry is targeting to encourage water sustainability in the country are working on increasing the adoption of water-efficient fixtures, using low-flow taps, and dual-flush toilets, which can really help in reducing the consumption of water to a large extent. IPA also encourages rainwater harvesting systems, particularly in water-scarce regions. These systems are capable of meeting up to 60% of the household water demands during the monsoons. At the same time, we argue in favour of changing the approach to seeking and repairing leaks using advanced technologies, such as acoustic sensors and thermal imaging cameras, for better practices. Even small leaks waste thousands of liters in a year, so this is important.
We have been strong proponents of the installation of recycled water systems in high-rise buildings that could treat greywater from showers and bathtubs to make it suitable for flushing purposes and gardening; even such a simple method could save up to 30% of the building’s potable water demand. These, coupled with public awareness campaigns, alone will contribute tremendously to water sustainability in India.
2. How does the Indian Plumbing Association work towards educating professionals and the public about water conservation practices?
The Indian Plumbing Association propagates information on the conservation of water from various fronts. IPA organizes conferences and workshops that bring together plumbing and water experts from across the country and abroad. The experts deliberate on cutting-edge technologies and best practices that lead to efficient water management. Indian Plumbing Conference (IPC) – the national conference of the Indian Plumbing fraternity organized by the Indian Plumbing Association in different cities across the country is an iconic conference whose 29 editions have happened till date. Plumbex India, the largest exhibition of water, sanitation and Plumbing products brings together leading manufacturers of water and plumbing technologies under one roof. They interact with the buyers and the facilitators through this platform.
IPA also engages with the government to influence policy, advocating for initiatives such as a national mandate for the water efficiency labelling of plumbing fixtures. The multi-pronged efforts are going to help in developing a culture of water conservation among professionals and the public.
3. How is the Indian Plumbing Association working to upskill and support plumbing professionals in the face of evolving technologies?
The Indian Plumbing Association is working seriously to upskill and support plumbing professionals in the face of rapidly developing technologies. IPA has initiated a number of steps to ensure that plumbing professionals remain updated with the latest technology and best industry practices.
Key programs include:
A. Indian Plumbing Professionals League (IPPL):This is a knowledge-sharing and skill-building competition launched by the IPA in 2017. It educates participants on innovative plumbing practices through a fun and engaging quiz format. The IPPL, held in both physical and virtual formats, promotes correct plumbing practices and has benefited the building industry by raising awareness of modern techniques.
B. A Guide to Good Plumbing Practices (AGGPP): This publication is a ready reckoner for all plumbing and building professionals and consists of information addressing the issue of proper plumbing practices. It is directed to both construction professionals and the general population. It is also well-structured for those studying engineering courses, architecture, interior design, or even people who are looking to work in plumbing or are looking for plumbing services.
C. Plumb Talk: It is a YouTube video series produced monthly consisting of plumbing experts who simply talk about water, sanitation, health, and plumbing systems. These are short useful talks whose purpose is simply to inform on the modern plumbing code and practices in an attempt to demystify technical plumbing terms to the ordinary or novice person and even educated without being in the plumbing field.
4. How crucial is wastewater management in the context of urban infrastructure, and what role does plumbing play in it?
Wastewater management is important in urban infrastructure planning, as it bears down on public health, environmental protection, and resource conservation. Efficient management in this respect arrests waterlogging, abates diseases resulting from poor quality of water, and prevents water pollution. In this context, plumbing becomes important. It provides the defense line by efficiently gathering wastewater and delivering it to the needed treatment locations. Properly designed plumbing systems keep wastewater from directly getting into sources of fresh water; this is a critical factor in public health. Water recycling or reuse is also furthered by effective plumbing solutions. For instance, it helps in separating greywater and blackwater through dual plumbing systems in buildings, which is going to be very easy for greywater to be treated and reused for non-potable uses, hence saving up to 50% of a building’s water use. Where there is no possibility for central sewage systems, plumbing allows people to use decentralized wastewater treatment systems through small-scale plants integrated into building systems. Therefore, a very important requirement for formulating sustainable, healthy urban environments is good plumbing.
5. Could you discuss some effective water recycling methods that are currently being promoted within the plumbing industry?
The plumbing sector is touting some additional effective methods of recycling water. Greywater recycling is the process of treating wastewater from sinks, showers, and washing machines for secondary use in non-potable applications, which could save up to 50% of household water consumption. Other highly advocated methods include rainwater harvesting, from which up to 40% of the communities’ needs can be met in the monsoon seasons. Blackwater recycling, though sophisticated, is a method gaining momentum for larger developments, with up to 90% recycling of water used. Cooling tower blowdown recycling is feasible and is highly advocated in the industries and commercially to reduce the consumption of the freshwater source. Larger developments are adopting sludge-to-energy systems where wastewater sludge is converted to biogas for energy.
Those techniques will go a long way in minimizing demands on freshwater when properly applied and encourage sustainability in water use. The bottom line is to rightly select the method or combine methods depending on the context of each different project.
6. What are the latest innovations in water recycling that can be adopted at both community and household levels?
The most recent innovations in recycling water address solutions at both the household level as well as the level of communities.
The ʻshower-to-shower’ system recycles water in real-time at the household level, leading to per-shower savings of up to 90%. A ʻwashing machine to toilet’ system captures water that is used in the final rinse for flushing, reducing water demand at the household level by up to 30%. This is part of the so-called ‘sewer mining’—the technology that captures and treats waste localized for non-potable reuse. Constructed wetland technology is being used for ecological treatment of wastewater and providing green spaces, again a 2-in-1 solution for water cleanup and mansion of green infrastructure. Smart water recycling, with the Internet of Things and AI, optimizes treatment and distribution with real-time data and can reduce the demand for freshwater by as much as 100% or more. In fact, atmospheric water generators have an enormous future, especially in solar-rich but water-scarce regions. It showed that massive savings of water are possible within the household and community due to proper technology.
7. How does water jetting technology improve the efficiency and effectiveness of plumbing maintenance?
Water jetting technology has taken plumbing maintenance to a new level of efficiency and effectiveness. It clears blockages, cleans the insides of pipes for debris and grease, down to including tree roots, where other methods may only just cut a path. Such a preventive maintenance tool can thoroughly clean the pipes, removing scale and accumulation before they can cause problems. Water jetting often accomplishes in minutes what traditional methods can only do in hours, making it time- and labor-efficient. The different sizes of pipes and materials make it useful by adjusting the different nozzles and pressure settings in the tool. The water jetting method is environmentally safe, as it uses only water. This not only improves but permits cleaning further up in the pipe systems, much more than most conventional methods allow, up to 100 meters from one point of access. These advantages make it more effective and, in general, more easily applicable in plumbing maintenance with much better results and at lower long-term costs.
8. What does “water smart infrastructure” mean, and why is it crucial for sustainable urban development?
Water-smart infrastructure is a holistic approach that integrates innovation in technologies, sustainability in practices, and intelligence in design to optimize water use, distribution, and treatment in an urban space. This is essential in sustainable urban development in that it tackles the challenge of water scarcity, works to enhance water quality, improves resilience to changing climate conditions, and integrates resource recovery. Smart metering and leak detection systems lead to a large reduction in water wastage. Considering the quality of water in real time makes the quality of the water being conserved constant and also reacts faster to contamination. The utilization of smart stormwater management helps in the reduction of urban flooding. Most take advantage of water, energy, and nutrient recovery, thereby applying circular economy principles to smart systems. It also enables a data-driven decision-making process by the city for identifying and preventing any water-related problems. Water-smart infrastructure optimizes the use and management of water, saving this vital resource; it contributes to energy savings, lowers carbon emissions, and enhances general urban sustainability.
9. How can the plumbing sector contribute to the development of water-smart cities in India?
The plumbing industry is very crucial to the process of developing water-smart cities throughout India. In buildings, water-efficient fixtures accompanied with smart metering systems can lower water consumption by up to 40%. To develop appropriate rainwater harvesting and greywater recycling systems become very essential for water conservation within the sector. It also saves water from losses through smart leak detection technologies within plumbing networks. It can also be supportive of decentralized wastewater treatment systems if these propose the local recycling of water. There is a large scope in the application of IoT and AI in the plumbing systems, and controlling the flow of water instantly. This calls for specialized skills from the industry to design and implement dual plumbing systems for the use of treated wastewater. Lastly, direct interface with the public can generate awareness in the general public for conservation measures related to water. By embracing these technologies and practices, the plumbing sector can be in the vanguard of transforming Indian cities into water-smart urban areas.
