Areas of special competence in the Danish public sector - selected examples, Danish Environmental Protection Agency

The Danish model for sustainable water solutions

Areas of special competence in the Danish public sector - selected examples

River basin management
Environmental administration of industrial wastewater
Water saving campaigns and measures
Water loss minimization
Supply policy/tariff systems
Consumer service
Operation and maintenance manuals
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No matter which areas of the water sector you wish to develop - water utilities, sewerage systems or wastewater treatment plants - Danish consultancy companies and manufacturers can provide just the solution you need.

In each of these areas the public sector has a very special and important role to play. The following sections provide examples demonstrating the interaction between the private and the public sectors in Denmark.

River basin management

Objective:

To provide an adequate supply of pure drinking water and to safeguard the ecological quality of the entire aquatic environment through modern management methods.

Background:

Pure water is in short supply. A growing understanding exists that water must be protected against contamination and pollution as well as against overexploitation that might upset the water balance in the area.

River basin management (RBM) takes these issues into consideration by focusing on the water cycle and the relationships between the groundwater, the fresh surface water in watercourses and lakes, and the salt water in fjords and marine waters. RBM takes a holistic approach to administering the water resource, focusing on the fact that water is not only a precious commodity, but also a vehicle for pollution.

Recreational and hygiene considerations must be coordinated in order to ensure good water quality in watercourses and lakes and pure, goodquality groundwater for exploitation as a drinking water resource. RBM facilitates this coordination.

The drinking water supply in Denmark is traditionally based on the groundwater. As intensive farming dominates the Danish landscape, the quality of our groundwater and hence of the drinking water has been under increasing pressure for many years. The consequences of intensive farming have also become obvious in the Danish aquatic environment, parts of which suffer from eutrophication. Danes therefore have a long tradition for coherent administration of the groundwater and surface waters.

In its recently ratified Water Framework Directive the EU requires Member States to ensure good water resource ecological quality through the implementation of RBM. Formulation of the Directive was influenced by Danish experience with many years of aquatic environment administration.

Danish assistance:

	Preparation of RBM strategies and plans
	Implementation of RBM

Environmental administration of industrial wastewater

Objective:

Environmental administration of industrial wastewater aims to enhance resource awareness and recycling, to protect sewerage systems, the treatment plants, the personnel operating them and the recipient waters and to ensure compliance with discharge permits. This is primarily achieved through efforts to reduce discharges of heavy metals and other hazardous substances into the sewerage system at the source.

Background:

Hazardous substances pose a growing problem in the aquatic environment. Industry is a potential source of pollution with heavy metals and xenobiotic substances.

In Denmark, attention regarding pollution of the aquatic environment has shifted in recent years from nutrients and organic matter to hazardous substances. Source-tracing studies reveal that the latter primarily derive from industrial sources.

Under Danish legislation the conditions stipulated in enterprises' discharge permits may be tightened or amended if considered inadequate or inexpedient. Source tracing and regulation thus enable discharges of hazardous substances to the aquatic environment to be reduced to acceptable levels. Infiltration into the sewerage system and sewage sludge are other potential sources of pollution.

Danish assistance:

	Preparation of discharge permits, including choice of water analysis methods and parameters
	Control, including wastewater sampling
	Enforcement of current legislation
	Sewerage system monitoring
	Source tracing
	Monitoring of the wastewater load from industries, including collection of charges, levies and taxes

Water saving campaigns and measures

Objective:

Water saving campaigns and measures are useful means of ensuring sustainable exploitation of the water resource, of increasing the supply capacity in cases where the size and quality of the resource are inadequate, of safeguarding wetlands and of optimizing water utility investments.

Background:

Since the 1980s, Danish water utilities have carried out numerous water saving campaigns and implemented various other initiatives to reduce water consumption. The result is clear: Water consumption has decreased by more than 20% in Denmark over the past 10 years.

The impetus for these initiatives was the increasing contamination of the groundwater resource and the fact that excessive abstraction in some areas was lowering the water table to the detriment of surface water bodies and wetlands. Efforts were thus needed to protect the water resource and limit consumption. The Danish water sector consequently has considerable and comprehensive experience with water saving campaigns and measures.

A reduction of the water consumption will often represent a more attractive alternative for water utilities than investments in expansion of existing abstraction, production and distribution facilities.

Danish assistance:

	Information on experience with water saving campaigns and measures
	Evaluation of the water saving potential
	Evaluation of the water saving potential among different consumer categories
	Suggestions for strategies for water saving campaigns and measures
	Suggestions for organization of water saving campaigns and measures
	Preparation of action plans for water saving campaigns and measures

Water loss minimization

Objective:

To ensure sustainable water abstraction and supply through minimizing water losses at waterworks and from mains networks and through efforts directed at consumers (information campaigns, advisory services, control activities and tariff policies).

Background:

Minimizing water losses often presents a more attractive alternative for water utilities than investments in expansion of abstraction, production and distribution facilities. In cases where the size and quality of the water resource are inadequate, a reduction in water loss might represent a cost-effective way of increasing supply capacity. Minimizing water losses reduces the need for water abstraction and thus paves the way for sustainable development and safeguards wetlands. The economic advantage to consumers of minimizing domestic water losses are an efficient incentive to have leaky installations repaired, to recirculate water for cooling purposes, for installing water-saving equipment, to optimize the operation of existing installations and to economize on water.

In Denmark, the wastage of water has long been prohibited. In order to reduce wastage, Danish water utilities have improved operational conditions and standards for installations and equipment. The pace of development has increased since the 1980s due to increasing water costs and resource problems. The Danish water sector thus possesses considerable and comprehensive experience in minimizing water wastage and loss by water utilities as well as by consumers.

Danish assistance:

	Information about experiences with water loss minimization
	Assessment of the possibilities for minimizing water losses at the utility level, including the waterworks and distribution network
	Assessment of the possibilities for minimizing water losses at the consumer level by monitoring of consumption
	Experience with the effects of tariffs and water meters on water consumption
	Suggestions for strategies and organization of water loss minimization efforts
	Education and training in water loss minimization methods

Supply policy/tariff systems

Objective:

The development of a single unified supply policy based on the size and quality of the water resource and the supply security needs of all consumers (amount of water, pressure, quality, etc.). The policy is to be defined in terms of clearly understandable regulations governing the water utilities. A further objective is transparent and operational tariff systems that ensure equitable sharing of the financial burdens between the various consumer groups.

Background:

Water utilities need to enforce a supply policy defined by the needs of their consumers, the size of their water resource and the capacity of the waterworks while concomitantly complying with local legislation.

The regulations must encompass all conditions pertaining to the supply of water to the consumer, describing in detail consumer rights as well as the obligations of both the utility and the consumer, e.g.:

Water pressure and supply conditions

Monitoring of water consumption

Construction and operation charges

Consumer obligations

Common regulations

The Danish water supply is mainly provided by a large number of public and private water utilities, i.e. a decentralized structure of water suppliers with a de facto monopoly in the districts they service.

Their economies are based on a selfcontainment principle, introduced to protect the consumers against any misuse of the monopoly position. The principle does not per se encompass cost effectiveness, but the small size of the utilities enables the consumers and the control authorities to ensure that the utilities operate efficiently.

Danish assistance:

	Preparation of a supply policy
	Preparation of regulations
	Preparation of tariff systems

Consumer service

Objective:

To improve communication with consumers/customers, to provide better information concerning the function and operation of the municipal water and wastewater utilities, and to keep the services provided by the water sector in line with consumer needs.

Background:

In the 1990s, attention started to focus on the level of service provided to consumers by municipal institutions. The continued development of the service society with its emphasis on IT and marked growth in rapid access to comprehensive information and communication raised demands for efficient service by the public sector as well as insight into its work and services.

The public/consumers have become customers demanding increasingly more from the public services that they pay through taxes. With the water sector, Danish water and wastewater utilities have therefore long been endeavouring to improve the services they provide to their customers.

Danish assistance:

	Information on experience with consumer service
	Information on available service tools, e.g. more efficient telephone service, rapidservice counters, information material adapted to specific consumer groups, homepages, electronic customer service, remote control of meters, CTI (computer telephony integration)
	Assessment of the service tools most suited for specific costumer groups
	Assessment of realistic goals for improving consumer services

Operation and maintenance manuals

Objective:

To ensure optimal operational economy and quality through efficient operation and maintenance.

Background:

In Denmark there is a long tradition for maintaining and optimizing the operation of "old" waterworks. Many well-functioning waterworks have thus been in operation for more than 100 years. Like any new waterworks, these are closely monitored as regards operational economy and quality. Increasing manpower reductions and associated automation contribute to Denmark's extensive experience with optimal operation and maintenance procedures.

Sound operation and maintenance of the waterworks are vital to ensure operational economy and quality. Even a new and well-planned waterplant requires constant monitoring, optimization and maintenance right from the moment it enters into service. Although the scope and methods may differ considerably, a long series of minimal demands generally have to be met.

In line with the development of technology enabling waterworks to operate virtually unmanned, demands are steadily increasing for supply efficiency, quality, control, documentation, cleaner technology and optimized operation. Consumers demand, and rightly so, a continuous supply of the purest and best possible products. Routine control by the engineer and his "nose" for what is right are being replaced by sensors, monitors and "intelligent" SRO systems.

Moreover, operational control has shifted from the plant as such to the desktop computer in an office somewhere. The demands for computer-based tools are constantly changing and programs often become obsolete soon after being introduced.

The prerequisite for optimal operation nevertheless remains comprehensive and efficient registration of the technical facilities and their conditions of operation. In principle, this information could be recorded on paper filed in a binder. However, even the smallest waterworks are best advised to supplement paper registration with electronic registration.

It is important to remember, though, that even the best SRO system only functions if the specifications are unambiguously defined. It is thus important to produce clearly understandable reports containing all key information. For example, energy use per cubic metre of water produced should be measured and controlled at as many steps as possible throughout the entire process.