Abstract
As various technologies are used for water and wastewater treatment, a global strategy with the objective of comparing and containing the price of water in the future is required. A study was carried out for this reason on production cost component of the price of water. This paper extends the concept of previously reported Water Price Index (WPI) as a metric for the cost of water production that can be adapted to water and wastewater treatment plants to evaluate their performance. Equations that define the contribution of capital and operational expenditure to the WPI are presented. Case studies from Eraring Power Station, Marquette Water Filtration Plant, Perth Desalination II and a theoretically modelled plant demonstrated the applicability of WPI and the benefit it brings to water practitioners.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Abbott M, Cohen B (2009) Productivity and efficiency in the water industry. Util Policy 17:233–244
Cabrera E, Pardo MA, Cabrera E Jr, Arregui FJ (2013) Tap water costs and service sustainability, a close relationship. Water Resour Manag 27:239–253
Cote P, Siverns S, Monti S (2005) Comparison of membrane-based solutions for water reclamaton and desalination. Desalination 182:251–257
Craig G, Griffits P (2003) Seven years experience reusing sewage using micro-filtration on a 2640 mw power station. Membrane Technology Conference. Atlanta
Franceschini F, Turina E (2012) Proposal for a performance dashboard for the monitoring of water and sewage service companies (wascs). Water Resour Manag 26:63–80
Ghaffour N, Missimer TM, Amy GL (2013) Technical review and evaluation of the economics of water desalination: current and future challenges for better water supply sustainability. Desalination 309:197–207
Hernandez-Sancho F, Molinos-Senante M, Sala-Garrido R (2011) Cost modelling for wastewater treatment processes. Desalination 268:1–5
Kumar S, Groth A, Vlacic L (2014) An analytical index for evaluating manufacturing cost and performance of low-pressure hollow fibre membrane systems. Desalination 332:44–51
Molina VG, Marzal MA, Hoeln K-U (2009) Designing membrane systems for the coming future: Perth ii desalination plant. International Desalination Association World Congress. Dubai
Molinos-Senante M, Hernandez-Sancho F, Sala-Garrido R (2013) Tariffs and cost recovery in water reuse. Water Resour Manag 27:1797–1808
Olson R (2001) Startup and first year of operation of a 7mgd microfiltration plant. In: Duranceau S (ed) Membrane practices for water treatment. American Water Works Association, U.S.A
Owen G, Bandi M, Howell JA, Churchhouse SJ (1995) Economic assessment of membrane processes for water and wastewater treatment. J Membr Sci 102:77–91
Park C, Park PK, Mane PP, Hyung H, Gandhi V, Kim SH, Kim JH (2010) Stochastic cost estimation approach for full-scale reverse osmosis desalination plants. J Membr Sci 364:52–64
Pickering KD, Wiesner MR (1993) Cost model for low-pressure membrane filtration. J Environ Eng ASCE 119:772–797
Trimboli P, Lazaredes H, Sadasivam K (2012) Large scale membrane pre-treatment plant for desalination - an australian experience. The International Water Association, Singapore International Water Week. Singapore
Tsagarakis K (2013) Does size matter? Operating cost coverage for water utilities. Water Resour Manag 27:1551–1562
Verrecht B, Maere T, Nopens I, Brepols C, Judd S (2010) The cost of a large-scale hollow fibre mbr. Water Res 44:5274–5283
Zhu AH, Christofides PD, Cohen Y (2009a) Minimization of energy consumption for a two-pass membrane desalination: effect of energy recovery, membrane rejection and retentate recycling. J Membr Sci 339:126–137
Zhu AH, Christofides PD, Cohen Y (2009b) On ro membrane and energy costs and associated incentives for future enhancements of membrane permeability. J Membr Sci 344:1–5
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Kumar, S., Groth, A. & Vlacic, L. Cost Evaluation of Water and Wastewater Treatment Plants Using Water Price Index. Water Resour Manage 29, 3343–3356 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11269-015-1002-2
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11269-015-1002-2