Sustainable Alternative Water Sources Use for Lowering …
823
Considering the importance of developing research related to the use of rainwater
and water generated by air conditioners, the present study carried out at the Federal
Institute of Science and Technology of the State of Espírito Santo (Ifes)—campus
Vitória, pointed out the possibility of using alternative sources with satisfactory
results in the economic and environmental scope for the Institution.
This study is justified by its application in a teaching institution as a sustainable
approach because of the support of the Laboratory of Biotechnology and Sustainability (Labiotecs) that is a new and important area for the Undergraduation Course
of Sanitation and Environmental Engineering, contributing to the thinking and decisions policies on sustainability in the Institution as a whole, that aim to foster new
technologies to reduce the use of treated water for non-noble purposes.
This chapter presents a case study of the potential and feasibility of using rain water
drained from roofs and water produced by air conditioning equipment, experiment
designed and installed close to the Laboratory of Biotechnology and Sustainability at
the Institute of Science and Technology of the State of Espírito Santo, Ifes—Campus
Vitória, and aims to demonstrate the water economy through sustainable management
of water resources.
2 Sustainable Management of Water
One of the strategic activities for the management of water resources is the assessment and appropriation of the dynamics of water availability in the river basins
together with the demands for the various uses of water. This activity has as main
product the Water Balance disclosed in the programs and Plans of Basins. The balance between the supply of water and the quantitative (withdrawn) and qualitative
(effluent releases) demands is of fundamental importance to trace the diagnosis of
the watershed, method based on guidelines of the Brazilian Water Resources Agency
(Agência Nacional de Águas 2016).
The state of Espírito Santo presents a dry climate, which is characterized by
negative water balance ranging from −50 to −550 mm per year, in about 68% of
its area, concentrating in the Northern and Northwestern regions. However, they are
also few regions in the southern with low rainfall pattern. The remain area of the
state (32%), presents a rainy climate with positive water balance, ranging from +
50 to +1,000 mm which is concentrated in the Serrana Center-Southern region, at
altitudes normally above 400 m (Incaper 2016).
It is noteworthy that the climatic changes occurred in the last decades have generated changing in the pluviometric pattern in Espírito Santo. Silva et al. (2012)
states that there was an evident change in the rain pattern in the municipality of Vila
Velha, between 1970 and 2011, whose analysis showed a considerable reduction in
the monthly and annual frequencies of daily precipitation events, and there was a
relative increase of heavy rains.
823
Considering the importance of developing research related to the use of rainwater
and water generated by air conditioners, the present study carried out at the Federal
Institute of Science and Technology of the State of Espírito Santo (Ifes)—campus
Vitória, pointed out the possibility of using alternative sources with satisfactory
results in the economic and environmental scope for the Institution.
This study is justified by its application in a teaching institution as a sustainable
approach because of the support of the Laboratory of Biotechnology and Sustainability (Labiotecs) that is a new and important area for the Undergraduation Course
of Sanitation and Environmental Engineering, contributing to the thinking and decisions policies on sustainability in the Institution as a whole, that aim to foster new
technologies to reduce the use of treated water for non-noble purposes.
This chapter presents a case study of the potential and feasibility of using rain water
drained from roofs and water produced by air conditioning equipment, experiment
designed and installed close to the Laboratory of Biotechnology and Sustainability at
the Institute of Science and Technology of the State of Espírito Santo, Ifes—Campus
Vitória, and aims to demonstrate the water economy through sustainable management
of water resources.
2 Sustainable Management of Water
One of the strategic activities for the management of water resources is the assessment and appropriation of the dynamics of water availability in the river basins
together with the demands for the various uses of water. This activity has as main
product the Water Balance disclosed in the programs and Plans of Basins. The balance between the supply of water and the quantitative (withdrawn) and qualitative
(effluent releases) demands is of fundamental importance to trace the diagnosis of
the watershed, method based on guidelines of the Brazilian Water Resources Agency
(Agência Nacional de Águas 2016).
The state of Espírito Santo presents a dry climate, which is characterized by
negative water balance ranging from −50 to −550 mm per year, in about 68% of
its area, concentrating in the Northern and Northwestern regions. However, they are
also few regions in the southern with low rainfall pattern. The remain area of the
state (32%), presents a rainy climate with positive water balance, ranging from +
50 to +1,000 mm which is concentrated in the Serrana Center-Southern region, at
altitudes normally above 400 m (Incaper 2016).
It is noteworthy that the climatic changes occurred in the last decades have generated changing in the pluviometric pattern in Espírito Santo. Silva et al. (2012)
states that there was an evident change in the rain pattern in the municipality of Vila
Velha, between 1970 and 2011, whose analysis showed a considerable reduction in
the monthly and annual frequencies of daily precipitation events, and there was a
relative increase of heavy rains.