In the late afternoon a few days ago—having missed lunch—I went into a bakery to get a quick snack. Munching on a little pizza, I overheard a couple at the next table. She needed a napkin and he went to get one for her. He returned a moment later, not with one, but with a fistful, which was far more than they could have used even if they both spilled their coffee on the table. Continue reading “Water is free and is that the problem?”
Water is a luxury that we take for granted. We bathe using water, we brew our coffee with it, we cook with it, basically more than half of our daily activities require water. For some, water isn’t nearly as accessible or affordable. Here at Akvo®, we understand the importance of water and thus we created a machine to create water from air, in water stress situations. Continue reading “4 Main Benefits of Atmospheric Water Generators”
Cape Town is in the unenviable situation of being the first major city in the modern era to face the threat of running out of drinking water.
However, the plight of the drought-hit South African city is just one extreme example of a problem that experts have long been warning about – water scarcity.
Despite covering about 70% of the Earth’s surface, water, especially drinking water, is not as plentiful as one might think. Only 3% of it is fresh.
Over one billion people lack access to water and another 2.7 billion find it scarce for at least one month of the year. A 2014 survey of the world’s 500 largest cities estimates that one in four are in a situation of “water stress”
According to UN-endorsed projections, global demand for fresh water will exceed supply by 40% in 2030, thanks to a combination of climate change, human action and population growth.
It shouldn’t be a surprise, then, that Cape Town is just the tip of the iceberg. Here are the other 11 cities most likely to run out of water.
1. São Paulo
Brazil’s financial capital and one of the 10 most populated cities in the world went through a similar ordeal to Cape Town in 2015, when the main reservoir fell below 4% capacity.
At the height of the crisis, the city of over 21.7 million inhabitants had less than 20 days of water supply and police had to escort water trucks to stop looting.
It is thought a drought that affected south-eastern Brazil between 2014 and 2017 was to blame, but a UN mission to São Paulo was critical of the state authorities “lack of proper planning and investments”.
The water crisis was deemed “finished” in 2016, but in January 2017 the main reserves were 15% below expected for the period – putting the city’s future water supply once again in doubt.
2. Bangalore
Local officials in the southern Indian city have been bamboozled by the growth of new property developments following Bangalore’s rise as a technological hub and are struggling to manage the city’s water and sewage systems.
To make matters worse, the city’s antiquated plumbing needs an urgent upheaval; a report by the national government found that the city loses over half of its drinking water to waste.
Like China, India struggles with water pollution and Bangalore is no different: an in-depth inventory of the city’s lakes found that 85% had water that could only be used for irrigation and industrial cooling.
Not a single lake had suitable water for drinking or bathing.
3. Beijing
The World Bank classifies water scarcity as when people in a determined location receive less than 1,000 cubic metres of fresh water per person a year.
In 2014, each of the more than 20 million inhabitants of Beijing had only 145 cubic metres.
China is home to almost 20% of the world’s population but has only 7% of the world’s fresh water.
A Columbia University study estimates that the country’s reserves declined 13% between 2000 and 2009.
And there’s also a pollution problem. Official figures from 2015 showed that 40% of Beijing’s surface water was polluted to the point of not being useful even for agriculture or industrial use.
The Chinese authorities have tried to address the problem by creating massive water diversion projects. They have also introduced educational programmes, as well as price hikes for heavy business users.
4. Cairo
Once crucial to the establishment of one of the world’s greatest civilisations, the River Nile is struggling in modern times.
It is the source of 97% of Egypt’s water but also the destination of increasing amounts of untreated agricultural, and residential waste.
World Health Organization figures show that Egypt ranks high among lower middle-income countries in terms of the number of deaths related to water pollution.
The UN estimates critical shortages in the country by 2025.
5. Jakarta
Like many coastal cities, the Indonesian capital faces the threat of rising sea levels.
But in Jakarta the problem has been made worse by direct human action. Because less than half of the city’s 10 million residents have access to piped water, illegal digging of wells is rife. This practice is draining the underground aquifers, almost literally deflating them.
As a consequence, about 40% of Jakarta now lies below sea level, according to World Bank estimates.
To make things worse, aquifers are not being replenished despite heavy rain because the prevalence of concrete and asphalt means that open fields cannot absorb rainfall.
6. Moscow
One-quarter of the world’s fresh water reserves are in Russia, but the country is plagued by pollution problems caused by the industrial legacy of the Soviet era.
That is specifically worrying for Moscow, where the water supply is 70% dependent on surface water.
Official regulatory bodies admit that 35% to 60% of total drinking water reserves in Russia do not meet sanitary standards
7. Istanbul
According to official Turkish government figures, the country is technically in a situation of a water stress, since the per capita supply fell below 1,700 cubic metres in 2016.
Local experts have warned that the situation could worsen to water scarcity by 2030.
In recent years, heavily populated areas like Istanbul (14 million inhabitants) have begun to experience shortages in the drier months.
The city’s reservoir levels declined to less than 30 percent of capacity at the beginning of 2014.
8. Mexico City
Water shortages are nothing new for many of the 21 million inhabitants of the Mexican capital.
One in five get just a few hours from their taps a week and another 20% have running water for just part of the day.
The city imports as much as 40% of its water from distant sources but has no large-scale operation for recycling wastewater. Water losses because of problems in the pipe network are also estimated at 40%.
9. London
Of all the cities in the world, London is not the first that springs to mind when one thinks of water shortages.
The reality is very different. With an average annual rainfall of about 600mm (less than the Paris average and only about half that of New York), London draws 80% of its water from rivers (the Thames and Lea).
According to the Greater London Authority, the city is pushing close to capacity and is likely to have supply problems by 2025 and “serious shortages” by 2040.
It looks likely that hosepipe bans could become more common in the future.
10. Tokyo
The Japanese capital enjoys precipitation levels similar to that of Seattle on the US west coast, which has a reputation for rain. Rainfall, however, is concentrated during just four months of the year.
That water needs to be collected, as a drier-than-expected rainy season could lead to a drought. At least 750 private and public buildings in Tokyo have rainwater collection and utilisation systems.
Home to more than 30 million people, Tokyo has a water system that depends 70% on surface water (rivers, lakes, and melted snow).
Recent investment in the pipeline infrastructure aims also to reduce waste by leakage to only 3% in the near future.
11. Miami
The US state of Florida is among the five US states most hit by rain every year. However, there is a crisis brewing in its most famous city, Miami.
An early 20th Century project to drain nearby swamps had an unforeseen result; water from the Atlantic Ocean contaminated the Biscayne Aquifer, the city’s main source of fresh water.
Although the problem was detected in the 1930s, seawater still leaks in, especially because the American city has experienced faster rates of sea level rise, with water breaching underground defence barriers installed in recent decades.
Neighbouring cities are already struggling. Hallandale Beach, which is just a few miles north of Miami, had to close six of its eight wells due to saltwater intrusion.
Source: BBC.com Image Source: Getty
Last week drought in São Paulo was so bad, residents tried drilling through basement floors for groundwater. As reservoirs dry up across the world, a billion people have no access to safe drinking water. Rationing and a battle to control supplies will follow Continue reading “Why fresh water shortages will cause the next great global crisis”
Drinking water out of thin air. That is what one of the stalls claimed to produce with a machine called Atmospheric Water Generator.
Drinking water out of thin air. That is what one of the stalls claimed to produce with a machine called Atmospheric Water Generator.
“You don’t need any natural or artificial source of water be it a tap, a tank, a pond or a river,” smiled the man at the counter.
AKVO, a Calcutta-based company, manufactures drinking water using a air-to-water technology which replicates the natural process of condensation by simulating the dew point, which allows it to produce water continuously.
The machine produces water ranging from 30 to 1,000 litres, depending on the product specification, from atmospheric moisture in the air and filters out the dust and micro particles in air through a powerful organic filtrating process. It reportedly has litle maintenance cost, unlike other purifiers.
“Decline in rainfall, depletion of fresh water resources and increase in population are posing great threats to humanity. In the days to come, when we will have to face water scarcity, such a product would be a blessing,” the company official at the stall said.
The machine that produces 30l daily will cost Rs 60-70,000 and will be available in a couple of months. The 100l Akvo is available in the market and costs about Rs 1 lakh. Orders are coming in from Dubai and South Africa, he said.
Read the article here: Telegraph India
“We’re going to run out of water much much earlier than we’ll run out of oil,” warned Peter Brabeck-Letmathe, chairman of Nestlé, at the OECD Forum in May 2012. Continue reading “Fresh water concerns: 2017”
The young-preneur plans to work on other sources of water, energy and renewables that can take us to the next step of sustainability.
There is a saying that being an entrepreneur isn’t just about starting a business, but about looking at an opportunity, grasping it with both hands and following it through. This is the philosophy that drives this second generation entrepreneur who has been striving to bring in innovation and diversification ever since he joined the family business in September 2007.
There are many things which a person learns as an entrepreneur and it does not change with respect to one being a first generation or second generation, the challenges are similar. It is always the thought process which makes all the difference. His father and mentor, Harbans Singh Bagga, founder, Trishan Group of Companies and an enthusiast for diversification – Navkaran Singh Bagga always had the opportunity to be a risk-taker.
Trishan Group, with an annual turnover of approximately INR 95 Crores, is a diversified group of companies with interests in International Trade, Hospitality and High Precision CRCA Steel. Established in 1999 with its flagship company Trishan Exports Pvt Ltd, with International Trade in Export and Import of Bicycles and various Engineering Goods, the group diversified into hospitality with the Dee Empresa Hotel in 2007. Further Expansion has led the group into the acquisition of Walzen Steel Pvt Ltd. now Trishan Metals Pvt Ltd.
Presently Navkaran is the Director of Trishan Exports Pvt. Ltd, and also the Director at Trishan Metals Pvt. Ltd. which a joint venture with IFB Industries Ltd. for manufacturing specialised Automotive Grade Steel. Currently, he is also the Chairman of Alfa Network, the Youth Forum of ASSOCHAM which has a clear focus on promoting Entrepreneurship in India.
Though tough, Navkaran Singh enjoys the challenges that come with handling multiple businesses. “The rule that I follow is to love what you do. If you don’t love it, you will never have the capability or the inclination to look beyond the obstacles and the difficulties,” he enthused,
In addition to managing the diverse verticals of the family business, this young-preneur has now come up with an innovation to solve the growing water crisis of the country. Navkaran is currently working on AKVO, which promises to provide safe and pure drinking water using the AWG (Atmospheric Water Generator) technology.
According to a report by WaterAid, a global advocacy group on water and sanitation; India has around 63.4 million people living in rural areas without access to clean water. That is more than the combined population of Punjab, Haryana and Uttarakhand. With 67% of India’s population living in the rural areas and 7% of the rural population living without access to clean water, India’s rural poor are highly vulnerable to the effects of extreme weather events and climate change.
16% of India’s rural families have piped water. Only 26.9 million out of 167.8 million households (16%) in rural India have piped water, according to data provided by the ministry of drinking water and sanitation to the Rajya Sabha (upper house of Parliament) on February 6, 2017.
AKVO replicates the natural process of condensation by simulating a dew point, which allows it to make water continuously, even in low humidity conditions. The endeavour is to combat water issues experienced worldwide by providing environmentally conscious water options to homes, businesses, industries and in an emergency situation as a complete disaster relief solution.
Navkaran has always been very environmentally conscious and has always strived to use the best environmental practices in his personal life. The thought of generating safe drinking water had always intrigued him as he read about the growing water crisis across India.
“Once I looked into this untapped source of water, I engaged a research team to study the possibility of building a system. It took me over a year to build the first running machine. After a thorough research on Indian climate, the market viability, competitors and the industry the development aspect of the AWG machine was initiated,” shared Navkaran.
Team AKVO, headed by Navkaran, includes 10 members for R&D and has Pradeep Verma, an ex- Berkshire Hathaway, who has joined as Head of Global Business.
“We must bring about a change in the agriculture sector. I plan to think, innovate and invest in newer and cost-efficient technologies while using the earth’s natural resources as a platform. The technology used by AKVO must find its way towards common usage where it can be effectively used, such as in hospitals, railways and municipalities, as a source of potable water. Besides, it must reach the rural populace and find large-scale use in India by 2050. I also intend to work on other sources of water, energy and renewables that can take us to the next step of sustainability,” concluded the young Bagga.
Read the article here: Entrepreneur.com
Less than three percent of earth’s water comes from fresh water sources and is virtually the only source for all the drinking water. Continue reading “Fresh Water Pollution”
Bhubaneswar: Currently India holds the undesirable title of having the highest number of rural people without access to clean water. Although being home to nearly a sixth of the world’s population, India only gets 4% of the Earth’s fresh water. Already more than half of Asia’s third-biggest economy faces high water stress. By 2030, demand is expected to outstrip supply by around 50%. With scientists and geologists trying to find avenues to arrest the attrition of groundwater and climate change, it is time our Country gets its first indigenously manufactured Atmospheric Water Generator (AWG) technology. Designed by Kolkata, AKVO, a unit of Trishan Exports Pvt. Ltd. Is the vision of second generation entrepreneur, Mr. Navkaran Singh Bagga, Director, AKVO and his team of researchers. The prototype of this new price efficient purifier based on AWG platform was showcased in Kolkata, which will soon be launched along with the industrial machines of AKVO 1000 and AKVO 5000 models across India.
Speaking elaborately about this dream project, Mr. Navkaran Singh Bagga, Director, AKVO, said, “With only 60% of water ready for consumption by 2030, India and rest of the world is staring at a global crisis, unless we care about our environment. The hour has come to try and find sustainable solutions to minimize the use of groundwater and innovate to develop cost efficient technology to provide clean drinking water for mankind. The Indian market is still in its nascent stage when it comes to adopting AWG technology. At AKVO, we are working towards manufacturing the most cost efficient AWG machine indigenously to cater to both industrial and household use. The depleting fresh water reserves along with rapid industrialization in India should augment the demand for AWG products in next few years. Alongside manufacturers need the policy and regulatory support from Government, Municipal bodies and Environment Activists to propose installation of AWGs to address the need of fresh drinking water.”
In line with the vision of the Hon’ble Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi, AKVO will be manufacturing all the products indigenously in India at their manufacturing unit near Kolkata. The current capacity of the company is 800 Industrial units per Month and will be scaled up to 2000 units over the course of next 6 months. It is the vision of Mr. Navkaran Singh Bagga, who as a second generation entrepreneur from Kolkata has come up with a solution to find answer with resilience required to save undue usage of groundwater and year on year operating and maintenance cost with RO filters. With the Union Government already planning adequate measures to address the depleting groundwater crisis and unavailability of clean drinking water, a product like AKVO is ideal for industrial demand, homes, public and private institutions, defence and a perfect model for natural disasters to aid human need and prevent contamination. The most abundant source of fresh water is the Earth’s atmosphere. AKVO AWG replicates the natural process of condensation by simulating the dew point, which allows it to make water continuously using plug and play method. AKVO AWG machines can generate water entirely depending on the level of humidity and atmospheric temperature which is ideal in Indian conditions for AWG machines to function to its optimum level.
On this momentous occasion, Mr. Harbans Singh Bagga, Managing Director, Trishan Exports Pvt. Ltd. said, “As a responsible Corporate entity this dream project will reduce unnecessary usage of groundwater and give mankind an answer to save the world for future generations.”
As the country faces a ground water crisis, a Kolkata-based entrepreneur has come out with a solution to generate water by extracting atmospheric moisture and making it usable for drinking purpose.
AKVO, a unit of Trishan Exports, has developed a prototype which is ready with its commercial production, using Atmospheric Water Generator (AWG) technology, with capacity to produce 1000 litre per day pure water. The company is in the process to start production of equipment for domestic use also.
The equipment run on the basic principle of converting atmospheric vapour into liquid form and purify it further so that it can be used for drinking. “It’s like harvesting humidity when it is in the air,” said director of AKVO Navkaran Singh Bagga, who was in the capital recently, while speaking to this newspaper.
The device consists of a system wherein the water extracted from the atmosphere is subjected to four-stage purification. Some minerals are added in the process to make it sweet to drink. So at the end of the process, the final water is completely safe for drinking and is just like an RO water. The USP of the product is that it uses unlimited source of water, which is natural and abundant and that no separate purification is required. Humidity/moisture is present everywhere. If some moisture at a particular place is used for condensation, moisture of surrounding areas fills in at that place after some time. Normally, the humidity is around 80% at a temperature of 28 degree Celsius.
A few hotels and organisations in Kolkata have started using the equipment, which Bagga claims is “fully indigenous”. A 1000 litre capacity equipment costs Rs 9 lakh. Right now, the cost of domestic equipment is coming close to about Rs 1 lakh, which according to Bagga, is too costly for domestic consumers. “We are working out ways to cut the cost so that it can be made available at a reasonable price of Rs 35,000 to Rs 40,000. We hope we will be able to do it very soon,” he said.
Bagga is talking to Indian Railways and municipal corporations across the country for installing this equipment which can solve the drinking water problem to a great extent. For water ATMs, this device can be used instead of RO, he said, adding the most abundant source of fresh water is Earth’s atmosphere which should be tapped for our use.
When asked if separate equipment needed to be manufactured as percentage of humidity varies from place to place, he said: “We are trying to customise the product depending on the humidity of a particular location. For example, it will be easier to extract water in places like Kolkata or Chennai because of the presence of high quantity of moisture in the atmosphere, but it will consume more power in dry places like Rajasthan. We are trying to come out with a solution which can work best in low humidity areas.”
Read the article here: Sunday Guardian Live
