Case studies

A new commercial scale dyeing technology for dyeing synthetic fabric, DyeOx, has been implemented in Taiwan that utilises carbon dioxide (C02) instead of water in the dyeing process. The technology uses no water, no auxiliary chemicals and reduced energy when compared to conventional processes.

The technology was conceived at DELFT University and commercialized by the start up DyeCoo and Tong Siang Co., a dyehouse in Thailand.

Nike, the global sportswear chain, recognizing the potential of the technology in helping to achieve its sustainability objectives, entered into a strategic partnership with DyeCoo in 2012 to implement the waterless dyeing technology in one of their Taiwanese factories. This led to a further three Taiwanese factories, who supply other major sportswear brands such as Adidas, making the investment decision to implement the technology.

In a search for improved irrigation practices, three farms near Milan, installed a drip irrigation system coupled with soil moisture monitoring as part of the AquaTEK™ programme. This system allows farmers to irrigate only when needed, without stressing the plants by supplying too much or too little water. The system also allows for more precise application of fertilisers (fertigation), and thus minimises the leaching of excess nutrients into the ground.

The intervention was developed and implemented through a public private partnership between Monsanto, NETAFIM™ Italia, HydroBio Inc and the University of Milan.

The Lake Victoria Environmental Management Project (LVEMP) is a cross border initiative funded by the World Bank designed to rehabilitate some of the major environmental concerns present in the Lake Victoria Basin.

One of the pollution hot spots targeted under the program was the Kibos Sugar and Allied Industries factory (KSAI) in Kisumu, Kenya. Under a resource efficient and cleaner production project, the factory reduced pollutant loads of its effluent discharge by 70%. This was achieved through a series of process efficiency measures including metering & controlling, leakage reparation, water reuse and improved wastewater treatment.

The government and its regulators require all water companies in England and Wales to plan water resources at least 25 years ahead to ensure secure supplies. This is a twin track approach where the company must consider the cost-effectiveness of demand management measures before they propose resource developments. In 2009 compulsory water metering was identified as the preferred option for meeting the supply demand gap and in 2010 SWS commenced a five year project to install 500,000 intelligent meters. This was accompanied by significant customer engagement and an aggressive leakage reduction programme in order to demonstrate that the company was also working to reduce losses. The metering programme resulted in a 16.5% reduction in water demand.

Yanacocha implemented a comprehensive water management strategy at the mine releasing 35 000 000m3 of treated effluent per year into the local river. Furthermore, as part of a proposed expansion and in order to address environmental concerns and ongoing disputes over water, it decided to extend its water management programme beyond the mine boundary.

In March 2012, Yanacocha formed a public private partnership (PPP) with the City of Cajamarca and the Cajamarca Water and Sewerage Company (SEDACAJ) and agreed to invest $13 000 000 between 2012 and 2020 to finance new water infrastructure projects in Cajamarca. This long-term investment project is administered by the Association of Los Andes Cajamarca – ALAC (a local NGO).

Weak enforcement of groundwater licencing and effluent treatment standards has led to high rates of water use in the textile mills and discharge of toxic effluents into the surface water bodies.

The Water PaCT Bangladesh is a partnership founded to drive the wet processing textile sector in the country towards a more sustainable performance and better water and resource efficiency. The partnership is sponsored by the Kingdom of the Netherlands and numerous international apparel buyers and implemented by the International Finance Corporation (IFC), Solidaridad and the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA). PaCT helps individual factories identify and implement Cleaner Production (CP) measures in water, energy and chemical use in the dye house, within the factories’ utilities and effluent treatment plants (ETPs), and through housekeeping. These measures are typically low-cost and easy to implement bringing quick investment return to the factories.

Egypt has less than 700 m3 per capita per annum freshwater availability of which 85% is withdrawn for irrigation purposes. The Integrated Irrigation Improvement and Management Project (IIIMP) in the Nile Delta has been implemented to improve water distribution, quantity, quality, equity and timeliness and hence to increase agricultural production and alleviate poverty.

In addition, operational responsibilities were decentralized and the irrigation infrastructure was transferred to local water user associations (WUA); a key requirement for the financing provided by IBRD (World Bank).

The locally prioritized improvement plans by the WUAs delivered the rehabilitation of the irrigation system supplying water to 427 100 hectares of farmland. The reduction in leakage in the system coupled with improved on-farm water management made 1 183 million m3 of water available for use and directly benefitted 1.1 million irrigation farmers.

So a plan was launched to increase groundwater recharge through the construction of six recharge structures. Scheduled training programs for local farmers on water efficiency practices were also implemented to reduce withdrawal for agricultural purposes.

This is benefiting more than 4 000 farms on a regular basis. In addition, water efficient agricultural practices were showcased by 136 knowledge farms covering 105 ha in 68 villages. The project was financed by SABMiller India. The initiative has improved the management of the local deep aquifer and the security of supply for the Roches Brewery in Neemrana.

The water services provider, Rustenburg Municipality, was rated as the 3rd most distressed in South Africa and thus unable to raise the finance required to address the problems. To address this challenge, a joint initiative was undertaken between the mines and the municipality to establish a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) with a 22-year concession to finance, upgrade and operate water infrastructure. The key to the success of the SPV was the signing of a long term offtake agreement with the mines for the provision of non-potable treated wastewater. This forms 75% of the SPV’s revenue. The mines previously relied on freshwater that was imported from neighboring catchments. The move to the use of non-potable has enabled the re-allocation of the imported freshwater to the municipality thus increasing the overall freshwater resource that is available in the catchment. Partial improvements in downstream water quality have also been made through better wastewater treatment.