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Costs of water treatment due to diminished water quality: A case study in Texas
Author(s) -
Dearmont David,
McCarl Bruce A.,
Tolman Deborah A.
Publication year - 1998
Publication title -
water resources research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.863
H-Index - 217
eISSN - 1944-7973
pISSN - 0043-1397
DOI - 10.1029/98wr00213
Subject(s) - raw water , water quality , environmental science , turbidity , water treatment , water pollution , surface water , pollution , contamination , environmental engineering , water resource management , waste management , environmental chemistry , chemistry , engineering , geology , ecology , biology , oceanography
The cost of municipal water treatment due to diminished water quality represents an important component of the societal costs of water pollution. Here the chemical costs of municipal water treatment are expressed as a function of raw surface water quality. Data are used for a 3‐year period for 12 water treatment plants in Texas. Results show that when regional raw water contamination is present, the chemical cost of water treatment is increased by $95 per million gallons (per 3785 m 3 ) from a base of $75. A 1% increase in turbidity is shown to increase chemical costs by 0.25%.