CHAPTER1(WRE)
beneficial purposes.
REPORTER: TAJORA & BONOTE
WATER RESOURCES
Water resources are sources of water that are useful or potentially useful to
humans.
TYPES OF WATER RESOURCES
1. Saltwater Resources - is abundant in the surface of the planet.
However, saltwater is currently not particularly useful when it comes
to potable water supplies.
2. Groundwater Resources - is the most plentiful of all freshwater
resources. As water percolates into the ground through layers of soil,
clay, and rock, some of it adheres to the topmost layers to provide
water to plants.
3. Surface water Resources - is the water that exists in streams and
lakes. This water is primarily used for potable water supply,
recreation, irrigation, industry, livestock, transportation and
hydroelectric energy. Over 63 percent of the public water supply is
withdrawn from surface water. Irrigation gets 58 percent of its water
supply from surface water. Industry gets almost 98 percent of its
water from surface water systems. Therefore, surface water
conservation and quality is of the utmost importance.
WATER RESOURCE ENGINEERING
Water resources engineering is a specialty of civil engineering that focuses
on water supplies, irrigation and waste disposal, it also relates to the task of
supplying water that’s fit for human use, and developing efficient methods of
avoiding damage from floods (excess water).
The applications of water resources engineering include:
 Design of various hydraulic structures such as breakwaters and
dams, sewage conduit.
 Management of waterways-flood and erosion protection.
 Environmental management - this includes prediction of mixing and
the transport of different types of pollutants in surface water.
 Hydroelectric-power development.
 Irrigation, water supply and navigation- in which water is utilized for
Different aspects that water resources engineering is used:
Water resource engineering is used not only to design modern water
management systems, but oversee the construction & maintenance of these
installations and systems as well. A rising population and the constant need
for more water necessitate the use of this branch of engineering for aspects
such as:
 Flood forecasting, flood management
 Reservoir operation
 Dam break analysis
 River ecology
 River management, navigation
 Sediment transport &river morphology
 Basin-wide water resource planning
 River water quality, point load and non-point assessments
 Conjunctive use of surface water and groundwater
 Wetlands
 Watershed management
 Soil &groundwater contamination
What is a water resources engineer?
A water resource engineer develops new systems and equipment for all
levels of water resource management facilities. The systems designed by
these engineers ensure that the public is provided with a constant supply of
uncontaminated and clean water for living, drinking as well as recreational
purposes.
Water resources engineers work in government organizations or private
consulting firms that are involved in projects for supplying water to urban and
rural areas, or dealing with the hazards of water contamination. They also
work in organizations that are involved in work related to hydrology and with
various governmental entities at the municipal, state as well as national level.
Duties that a water resources engineer performs
A civil engineer plays a crucial role in the optimal design and planning as well
as the operation of modern water resource systems. This field involves in-
office as well as on-site work at the construction sites and water resource
engineers may also work in industrial settings when supervising the
maintenance activities on advanced equipment.
A water resource engineer may have to deal with various aspects and tasks
in this field and the duties that a water resources engineer performs can
include:
 Water treatment facilities
 Natural springs
 Underground wells
 Support land development projects
 Generate master plans
 Optimize water distribution system operations
 Storm water and wastewater systems
 Design plans and systems that intelligently and safely deliver clean
water
 Make reliable renewal decisions
 Accurately model water system operations
 Deliver high-quality design solutions with minimal capital investments
 Reduce emergency response time
REPORTER: LAVIÑA & EWAY
WATER CONTROL
A water control structure means a permanent structure placed in a farm
canal, ditch, or subsurface drainage conduit (drain tile or tube), which
provides control of the stage or discharge of surface and/or subsurface
drainage. The primary purpose of the water control structure is to improve
water quality by elevating the water table and reducing drainage outflow.
WATER CONTROL STRUCTURES:
1. Flumes are water control structures, usually constructed of steel,
aluminum, or concrete, which are installed in a dike to convey water,
control the direction of flow, or maintain a required water surface
elevation.
2. Dikes are embankments constructed of earth or other suitable
materials to protect land against overflow or to regulate or contain
water. Dikes are also used to impound water for the preservation of
water quality, limiting the discharge of sediments and segregating
waters. Dikes allow the control of water levels to maintain the depth
from rooting zone to water table for optimum cranberry growth and
productivity.
3. Dams are often used to control and stabilize water flow, often for
agricultural purposes and irrigation.
4. Spillway is a structure used to provide the controlled release of
flows from a dam or levee into a downstream area, typically the
riverbed of the dammed river itself.
There are two main types of spillways: controlled and
uncontrolled.
A controlled spillway has mechanical structures or gates to
regulate the rate of flow. This design allows nearly the full
height of the dam to be used for water storage year-round,
and flood waters can be released as required by opening
one or more gates.
An uncontrolled spillway, in contrast, does not have gates;
when the water rises above the lip or crest of the spillway it
begins to be released from the reservoir. The rate of
discharge is controlled only by the depth of water above the
reservoir's spillway. Storage volume in the reservoir above
the spillway crest can only be used for the temporary storage
of floodwater; it cannot be used as water supply storage
because it is normally empty.
5. Floodgates, also called stop gates, are adjustable gates used to
control water flow in flood barriers, reservoir, river, stream,
or levee systems. They may be designed to set spillway crest
heights in dams, to adjust flow rates in sluices and canals, or they
may be designed to stop water flow entirely as part of a levee
or storm surge system. Since most of these devices operate by
controlling the water surface elevation being stored or routed, they
are also known as crest gates. In the case of flood bypass systems,
floodgates sometimes are also used to lower the water levels in a
main river or canal channels by allowing more water to flow into a
flood bypass or detention basin when the main river or canal is
approaching a flood stage.
6. A weir is basically an obstruction in the flow path in an open
channel. Weirs are commonly used to control the flow rates of rivers
during periods of high discharge. Sluice gates (or in some cases the
 height of the weir crest) can be altered to increase or decrease the
volume of water flowing downstream. The weir will cause an
increase in the water depth as the water flows over the weir. The
greater the flow rate, the greater will be the increase in depth of flow.
REPORTER: REBUTA & NAPOLES
USES OF WATER:
Agricultural
It is estimated that 70% of worldwide water is used for irrigation, with 15-35%
of irrigation withdrawals being unsustainable. It takes around 2,000 - 3,000
litres of water to produce enough food to satisfy one person's daily dietary
need. This is a considerable amount, when compared to that required for
drinking, which is between two and five litres. To produce food for the now
over 7 billion people who inhabit the planet today requires the water that
would fill a canal ten metres deep, 100 meters wide and 2100 kilometers
long.
Food and agriculture are the largest consumers of water, requiring one
hundred times more than we use for personal needs. Up to 70 % of the water
we take from rivers and groundwater goes into irrigation, about 10% is used
in domestic applications and 20% in industry. Currently, about 3600 km3 of
freshwater are withdrawn for human use. Of these, roughly half is really
consumed as a result of evaporation, incorporation into crops and
transpiration from crops. The other half recharges groundwater or surface
flows or is lost in unproductive evaporation. Up to 90% of the water
withdrawn for domestic use is returned to rivers and aquifers as wastewater
and industries typically consume only about 5% of the water they withdraw.
This wastewater from domestic sewage systems and industries should be
treated before being dismissed.
Industrial
It is estimated that 22% of worldwide water is used in industry. Major
industrial users include hydroelectric dams, thermoelectric power plants,
which use water for cooling, ore and oil refineries, which use water in
chemical processes, and manufacturing plants, which use water as a solvent.
Water withdrawal can be very high for certain industries, but consumption is
generally much lower than that of agriculture.
Water is used in renewable power generation. Hydroelectric power derives
energy from the force of water flowing downhill, driving a turbine connected
to a generator. This hydroelectricity is a low-cost, non-polluting, renewable
energy source. Significantly, hydroelectric power can also be used for load
following unlike most renewable energy sources which are intermittent.
Ultimately, the energy in a hydroelectric power plant is supplied by the sun.
Heat from the sun evaporates water, which condenses as rain in higher
altitudes and flows downhill. Pumped-storage hydroelectric plants also exist,
which use grid electricity to pump water uphill when demand is low, and use
the stored water to produce electricity when demand is high.
The industries that produce metals, wood and paper products, chemicals,
gasoline and oils, and those invaluable grabber utensils you use to get your
ring out of the garbage disposal are major users of water. Probably every
manufactured product uses water during some part of the production
process. Industrial water use includes water used for such purposes as
fabricating, processing, washing, diluting, cooling, or transporting a product;
incorporating water into a product; or for sanitation needs within the
manufacturing facility. Some industries that use large amounts of water
produce such commodities as food, paper, chemicals, refined petroleum, or
primary metals.
Domestic
It is estimated that 8% of worldwide water use is for domestic
purposes.These includedrinking water, bathing, cooking, toilet flushing,
cleaning, laundry and gardening. Basic domestic water requirements have
been estimated by Peter Gleick at around 50 liters per person per day,
excluding water for gardens. Drinking water is water that is of sufficiently high
quality so that it can be consumed or used without risk of immediate or long
term harm. Such water is commonly called potable water. In most developed
countries, the water supplied to domestic, commerce and industry is all of
drinking water standard even though only a very small proportion is actually
consumed or used in food preparation.
Domestic water use is water used for indoor and outdoor household
purposes— all the things you do at home: drinking, preparing food, bathing,
washing clothes and dishes, brushing your teeth, watering the yard and
garden, and even washing the dog.
Water generally gets to our homes in one of two ways. Either it is delivered
by a city/county water department (or maybe from a private company), or
people supply their own water, normally from a well. Water delivered to
homes is called "public-supplied deliveries" and water that people supply
themselves is called "self supplied", and is almost always from groundwater.
Recreation Engineering that implies effective use of water

Recreational water use is usually a very small but growing percentage of
total water use. Recreational water use is mostly tied to reservoirs. If a
reservoir is kept fuller than it would otherwise be for recreation, then the
water retained could be categorized as recreational usage. Release of water
from a few reservoirs is also timed to enhance whitewater boating, which
also could be considered a recreational usage. Other examples are anglers,
water skiers, nature enthusiasts and swimmers.
Recreational usage is usually non-consumptive. Golf courses are often
targeted as using excessive amounts of water, especially in drier regions. It
is, however, unclear whether recreational irrigation (which would include
private gardens) has a noticeable effect on water resources. This is largely
due to the unavailability of reliable data. Additionally, many golf courses
utilize either primarily or exclusively treated effluent water, which has little
impact on potable water availability.
Diverse technologies are available for making effective use of water. Among
those which can be recalled easily are “Water purification technology” for
producing drinking water as well as industrial water, “Water Supply
technology” for pumping clean treated water at appropriate pressure,
“Leakage Detection and Prevention technology” for maintaining the town
water supply over long distance as well as “Effluent Treatment Technology”
“Recycle Technology” applicable for the industrial wastewater, “Sewage
Treatment technology” for treatment of domestic household sewage.
The 21st century is often referred to as the Century of Water. Water is
precious as it supports people's lives and running of industry. However,
usable water resources are limited. Effective use of water resources is
becoming an increasingly important issue, in view of the global environment
concerns and economically efficient way of treatment for industrial as well as
municipal sector.

Recreational usage may reduce the availability of water for other users To make the most effective use of the limited water resources, many
at specific times and places. industries in recent years are required to re-use the treated waste water and
to increase the efficiency of water use by integrating water treatment
Environmental facilities.

Explicit environment water use is also a very small but growing percentage of
total water use. Environmental water may include water stored in
impoundments and released for environmental purposes (held environmental
water), but more often is water retained in waterways through regulatory
limits of abstraction.

Environmental water usage includes watering of natural or artificial

wetlands, artificial lakes intended to create wildlife habitat, fish ladders, and
water releases from reservoirs timed to help fish spawn, or to restore more
natural flow regimes.

Like recreational usage, environmental usage is non-consumptive but

may reduce the availability of water for other users at specific times and
places. For example, water release from a reservoir to help fish spawn may
not be available to farms upstream, and water retained in a river to maintain
waterway health would not be available to water abstractors downstream.