Sustainable Water Engineering: Theory and Practice

Preface

Having spent two decades working in sustainable development we feel that it is not a bed of roses. Problems in the form of corruption, illiteracy, data inadequacy, skill deficiencies and the inaction of governments are keeping many people away from adequate quality water.

Many books have been written on water engineering but theories published four decades back often cannot be used today because the quantity and quality of the water that is available has changed and so has the world's population and its ways of living. Similarly the large dams built in the past have not proven to be environmentally friendly and have caused conflicts in many cases. Conserving flora and fauna has become more important all over the world and eating meat will just leave a large water footprint.

Sustainability does not happen overnight and needs investment in terms of money, honesty, knowledge, information and time. There have been substantial examples all over the world where the sustainable use of water has been practised, setting an example for others. This book is a package of theory and practice concerning sustainable and unsustainable water use picked from different parts of the world. Unlike books that only elaborate on theoretical knowledge or simply criticize, this book makes an effort to go beyond theories and to explain the practical world we are exposed to. All is not well all over the world but at the same time not all is wrong. The photographs in the book show both the interest ...