Tomorrow marks the end of American Water Works Association “Drinking Water Week 2013”. If you haven’t already done so, visit their website for information on drinking water week. The site contains some good information on water quality and drinking water as well as downloadable educational materials, contests and more.
A recent article in WaterWorld describes how nitrates found in groundwater may take decades to get filtered out. USGS researchers discovered that groundwater nitrate levels were above expected levels, despite the reduction of nitrogen-based fertilizer in the areas tested.
“In this study, USGS scientists closely examined surface and ground waters at seven study sites from across the nation to determine the portion of stream nitrate derived from groundwater… The slow release of groundwater nitrate to streams may also affect the water quality of large rivers. For example, increases in nitrate concentrations during low and moderate flows in large rivers in the Mississippi River Basin have been observed to be greater than or comparable to increases in nitrate concentrations during high flows.”
Nitrate is a naturally occurring form of nitrogen found in soil. It is also often found in fertilizer, since most crop plants require high levels of nitrates to produce high yields. Issues can arise when water runoff carries excess nitrates from agricultural and urban sources Continue reading
A recent article posted in Scientific America provides some interesting statistics regarding the growing global water crisis and outlines some of the options available to counteract it. From infrastructure upgrades to locating the best locations for new power plants, the article mentions measures that are being taken to address concerns over growing water scarcity.
According to the article “In the United States, there will be a need for 165 percent more water by 2025 above 2000 levels”
The article also states that “Between 2005 and 2030, the number of people living in areas where water demand will exceed available supplies could rise 40 percent, from 2.8 billion to 3.9 billion”
To read the full story, click here to head over to Scientific America.
Research into water is growing faster than the average 4% annual growth rate for all research disciplines, claims a new report presented by Elsevier and Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI) during the 2012 World Water Week in Stockholm. The report, “The Water and Food Nexus: Trends and Development of the Research Landscape” analysed the major trends in water and food-related article output at international, national and institutional levels. Elsevier and SIWI worked closely together on creating the report, which is based on the analysis of Scopus citation data by Elsevier’s SciVal Analytics team.
The growing discrepancy between supply and demand for water is becoming more challenging each year. Developments in water research have the potential to help solve this issue. The report examined the dynamics of global water research between 2007 and 2011, focusing on two strands of research; water resources research, referring to natural and social science studies on water use, and food and water research focusing on the study of water consumption and recycling to produce food. The latter strand is an important theme in this year’s World Water Week thematic focus: Water and Food Security.
Key findings from the report include:
Exploding research landscape
There has been a dramatic growth of water research, with both strands of research growing above the 4% average for all research disciplines. Water resources research is growing at a rate of 9.2% per year, while research into food and water is growing by 4.7% each year. Research is also becoming more collaborative and interdisciplinary, with a dramatic rise in publications from the fields of computer science and mathematics in water resource research; while research from fields within the social sciences have become the fastest growing fields in the food and water research strand.
United States leads research output, but for how long?
Research output is the highest in the United States in both water resources and food and water research, but Continue reading
Hanna Instruments is pleased to announce its newest product, the HI 761 Checker®HC Chlorine Ultra-Low Range. Designed to measure super low range chlorine levels, the HI 761 is the newest addition to the Checker HC line of handheld colorimeters.
This lightweight, portable meter is a fast, accurate and affordable alternative to chemical test kits. The HI 761 Checker Handheld Colorimeter is great for water quality tests, water purification tests, educational use and environmental field applications.
For more information on the new HI 761, click here.
The National Groundwater Association has produced a water-testing brochure for household water well owners living near oil and gas development and completion activities, including hydraulic fracturing.
This free resource includes suggested options for water well owners, information on water quality testing, as well as some additional resources for water quality and testing information.
The brochure can be viewed in PDF form here.
We are pleased to announce our newest product, the HI 749 Checker®HC Chromium VI – Low Range. Designed to measure low range chromium VI levels in fresh water, the HI 749 is the newest addition to the Checker HC line of handheld colorimeters. This lightweight, portable meter is a fast, accurate and affordable alternative to chemical test kits.
The HI 749 is great for water quality tests, plating applications, educational use and environmental field applications.
For more information on the new HI 749, click here.
Introducing the new HI 733 Checker®HC Ammonia – High Range; the latest addition to the Checker HC line of handheld colorimeters. Faster and more accurate than chemical test kits, the HI 733 is designed to measure high ranges of ammonia levels.
The HI 733 features:
- Small palm-sized design
- Accurate from ±1.0ppm ±5% of reading
- Dedicated to a single parameter
- Uses a single AAA battery
- Auto Power Off after 10 minutes in inactivity
- Built-in timer for timed reaction readings
The HI 733 can be used for water quality tests, educational use, wastewater testing, environmental field applications and more.
For more information on the new HI 733, click here.
Introducing the HI 716 Checker®HC Bromine handheld colorimeter. Designed to measure bromine levels, this lightweight, portable meter is a fast, accurate and affordable alternative to chemical test kits.
The HI 716 is great for pool and hot tub testing, environmental field applications, educational use and more.
The HI 716 joins several other new ultra-portable Checker meters including:
HI 705 – For Silica (Low Range)
HI 700 – For Ammonia (Low Range for Fresh Water)
HI 715 – For Ammonia (Medium Range)
HI 733 – For Ammonia (High Range)
Hi 749 – For Chromium VI ( Low Range)
Hi 758 – For Marine Calcium
Hi 761 – For Total Chlorine (Ultra Low Range)
HI 771 – For Chlorine (Ultra High Range)
HI 775 – For Alkalinity
For more information on the new HI 716, click here.
For a full listing of available Checkers, click here.
We are pleased to announce our newest product, the HI 707 Checker®HC Nitrite LR. This palm sized portable colorimeter is designed specifically to measure low range nitrite levels and is a fast, accurate and affordable alternative to chemical test kits.
The HI 707 is great for water quality tests, educational use, freshwater aquariums and wastewater applications.
For more information on the new HI 707, click here.