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Saving a city millions of gallons of water – one tap at a time

Jennifer Kishan

March 19, 2020 |

The Guardian |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: India, Kolkata

As part of the Fix for Life campaign, members of Active Citizens Together for Sustainability (ACTS) have been working with plumbers to install taps on the free water pipes across Kolkata. Without taps, a significant amount of water goes to waste, and this is the problem that ACTS is trying to fix. The group, informed by locals who submit locations of pipes that need attention, are on their way to their goal of fixing 1,500 pipes.

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Beer Waste Helps Montana Town Save Money On Water Treatment

Rachel Cramer

February 12, 2020 |

NPR |

Radio |

3-5 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Havre, Montana

Finding ways to reuse brewery waste can save water treatment plants money. In Havre, Montana, Triple Dog Brewing has entered into a partnership with the town’s wastewater treatment plant, supplying discarded barley to feed the plant’s microbes. The barley replaces commercial bacteria feed, which would have cost the plant thousands of dollars. The town was also able to avoid having to do costly upgrades to its water treatment plant. Other towns are looking to this process for inspiration.

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Havre's Wastewater Woes Solved By Beer

Rachel Cramer

February 10, 2020 |

Yellowstone Public Radio |

Radio |

5-15 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Havre, Montana

Upcycling spent barley helps to ease wastewater treatment. In Havre, Montana, the town’s wastewater treatment plant uses barley from a local brewery, Triple Dog Brewing, to feed bacteria. The nutrients from the barley give the bacteria a boost, helping to reduce nitrogen and phosphorous levels in the water. The collaboration means that Havre can save on expensive solutions and upgrades to its wastewater treatment plant.

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Are you pouring hundreds of dollars a year down the drain?

Angela Ross

January 15, 2020 |

ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) |

Broadcast TV News |

5-15 Minutes

Response Location: Australia, Melbourne, Victoria

The use of rain gardens and rain tanks - which capture rainwater runoff, clean the water, and reuse the water for plants and gardens - helps to reduce water waste and toxic runoff. One Australian man built a rain garden to cut back on his waste (and his water bill) and estimates that he has cut down water consumption in his house by one third.

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Flint's Water Crisis Spurs Other Cities To Remove Lead Pipes

Monica Eng

December 23, 2019 |

WBEZ |

Radio |

5-15 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Chicago, Illinois

As cities and states across the United States begin to remove lead water pipes, some communities are looking for cost-effective ways to fix them because of the risk of contaminated drinking water. Three cities in the Midwest have started the process and have used innovative ways to raise the funds to replace the aging service lines, which could be a model for other cities like Chicago to follow.

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‘The worth of water' and what conservation strategies are working

Amy Joi O'Donoghue

November 09, 2019 |

Deseret News |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Salt Lake City, Utah

To address worsening droughts and limited water resources in the 2nd driest state in the country, Utah government officials are implementing different methods of water metering throughout the state as a tool for water consumption measurement. Residents can have digital access to the amount of water they are using for landscaping comparative to the amount they should be using. Since this implementation, water consumption has drastically decreased in project areas.

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Fill, Build and Flood: Dangerous Development in Flood-Prone Areas

Laurie Mazur

October 08, 2019 |

U.S. News & World Report |

Multi-Media |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Charlotte, North Carolina

To combat excessive flooding in low-plain areas, cities like Charlotte are passing critical legislation that regulates fill-and-build development, a type of construction that leads to more intense flooding in vulnerable neighborhoods. Charlotte bases flood control plans off future conditions rather than current or past flooding areas, and the city charges a fee for homeowners that, in turn, provides dedicated funding for stormwater management

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How one utility powers its entire plant from wastewater

Christopher Booker Sam Weber Connie Kargbo

June 02, 2019 |

PBS NewsHour |

Broadcast TV Programs |

5-15 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Downers Grove, Illinois

A wastewater treatment facility in suburban Chicago has become energy neutral. By accepting waste from oil and other sources not normally treated together, the facility increases biogas that can power the plant. Besides saving energy, it saves the plant almost half a million dollars each year.

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Tiny Branson has plenty of water. But like other small rural delivery systems in Colorado, it must find a way to meet new state standards.

Kevin Simpson

May 06, 2019 |

The Colorado Sun |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Branson, Colorado

Innovation is the key to resilience. In Branson, Colorado, the community of only 55 residents and with volunteer town council has taken on the massive task of bringing its water system up to compliance with the Colorado Department of Health. Because the state and federal government did not have the specific resources to assist Branson, the community turned to a locally developed, innovative water filtration system and an unorthodox funding campaign to pay for it.

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The Town That Extended ‘Smart Growth' to Its Water

Jason Plautz

April 30, 2019 |

Bloomberg CityLab |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Westminster, Colorado

Haunted by a 1962 drought in the town of Westminster, Colorado, the city's planners now incorporate water data in their planning processes to ensure that they never face the same sourcing issues again. By breaking down the silos between its water management and planning departments, the town has figured out how to manage its finite water resources, even in the face of a ballooning population. Now, other towns are following suit.

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