Risk management for water conservation area of groundwater catchments

The protection of drinking water resources requires the identification and control of risks in the catchment area.

Resource protection by means of water conservation areas is the first and most important component of the multi-barrier principle of drinking water supply. The aim of the project was to gain experiences and methods to implement risk-based and process-oriented management in water conservation areas.

Its focus was on identifying hazard potentials and performing a risk assessment. The project outcome was first, to demonstrate a procedure for the systematic hazard analysis and second, to develop a qualitative approach for risk assessment with three variations for water conservation areas with a high or low level of exploration as well as a quantitative approach for water conservation areas with numerical groundwater modelling. These approaches were also tested in specific water conservation areas.

TZW developed a qualitative approach towards risk assessment for water conservation areas with a small database so that risk management can still be established with few findings. The hazard analysis is based on existing information. A local, high-resolution hazard detection is unnecessary. The extent of damage and likelihood of occurring could be determined using expert opinions, regulation specifications and similar information, and if applicable, derived from statistical data, operating experiences or the researchers own qualified estimations. Another approach, the development and testing of which TZW was substantially involved in, was a combined qualitative and quantitative approach.

Hazards in water conservation areas can now be recorded and assessed practically and systematically. The individual risks can be prioritised so that the greatest risks in the area per sector can be identified. This then gives a ranking which can be used to derive the management measures that need to be taken.

The collected findings were incorporated in Supplement 2 (DVGW W 100B2 (M)): Risk management for catchment areas of groundwater capture to produce drinking water) and thereby substantiated the standard DIN EN 15 975-2 for the resource protection process step

 

Publications:

DVGW: Merkblatt W 1001-B2 2015-03. Sicherheit in der Trinkwasserversorgung - Risikomanagement im Normalbetrieb; Beiblatt 2: Risikomanagement für Einzugsgebiete von Grundwasserfassungen zur Trinkwassergewinnung [Security in drinking water supply – Risk management during normal operation; Supplement 2: Risk management for catchment areas of aquifers for drinking water production] (2015)
(DVGW Regelwerk. Technischer Hinweis)                

Haakh, F.; Emmert, M.; Bunk, T.; Pfaff, S.: Risikomanagement für Wasserschutzgebiete. In: DVGW energie | wasser-praxis (3), 43–49 (2013)

 

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