NEWater: the name is pretty catchy, don’t ya think? How would you feel after I told you it’s “shit water?” Of course, the Singapore government goes to extra lengths to avoid that connotation. They don’t even call it reused waste water, but NEWater! Fancy, schmancy, future stuff we’re talking about here.
But actually, I have to admit it’s pretty cool. PUB, the National Water Agency, has won international awards for NEWater in 2002, 2006, 2008, and 2009 and continues to receive international acclaim. NEWater put Singapore on the map as a global leader in innovative water management.
So what makes it so special?
- Used water collection. All of the used water (remember, “used” not “waste” water) is collected from every household and goes through an extensive piping system to a water reclamation plant. Currently, PUB is developing a Deep Tunnel Sewage System (DTSS) that is a massive, underground pipe that transports used water to treatment plants. In classic Singapore fashion, they call it a “used water superhighway,” ha. Too bad the government doesn’t allow satirists to make fun of that. With long term needs in mind, it should be able to serve the growing demands for at least the next century. This innovation was crowned “Water Project of the Year.”
- Water reclamation. All used water is treated at a water reclamation plant (“waste water treatment plant” to the rest of the world). At this point, most of the water is actually dumped into the ocean because they currently do not have the capacity to treat all of the used water. The rest go to one of four of the NEWater plants.
- Advanced treatment technology. The tour of the Betok NEWater plant was really eye-opening and interactive; as a 22-year-old I felt like a kid at a candy store.
- Stage 1: Microfiltration removes suspended solids and larger particles. High-tech membranes are submerged in treated used water and a vacuum sucks up the water through the membranes.
- Stage 2: Reverse osmosis (RO) removes bacteria, viruses, heavy metals, sulphate, and even disinfection by-products and endocrine disruptors (which I studied in college) with a semi-permeable membrane. These expensive membranes are replaced every five years.
- Stage 3: Ultraviolet disinfection is a completely unnecessary last step. It ensures the death off all organisms, but the water is already highly purified after RO. What they rarely mention is the addition of sodium hydroxide to balance the pH.
- Stage 1: Microfiltration removes suspended solids and larger particles. High-tech membranes are submerged in treated used water and a vacuum sucks up the water through the membranes.
- Here’s a cheesy, but quick overview of the treatment process.
NEWater is actually so clean that almost all of it is sold to industries that require ultra-pure water for industrial processes. Less than 5% is used to top up the water reservoirs during the dry season. That water is additionally treated at water works plants before it’s piped to homes.
Even after learning about the purification process, passing 130,000 water quality tests, and compromising less that 1% of the drinking water, people still have the idea that they’re drinking toilet water in the back of their mind. PUB initiated a huge public awareness campaign giving away free bottles of NEWater. In a classic picture, the beloved Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew is strategically drinking NEWater at a national parade. Ironically, people shouldn’t drink too much pure NEWater because it is too clean.
Currently NEWater supplies 30% of the national water needs (118 MGD million gallons per day), but they aim to triple production capacity to provide 55% of the water demand in 2061.
PUB intentionally does not release the cost of each tap, but I can only imagine how expensive the high-grade membranes are. My first thought about NEWater was the extensive treatment: an extra ultraviolet disinfection step and the ultrapure drinking water is treated again before distribution. But cost is not a factor when they’re dealing with water sustainability, aka national security.
I wonder if we’ll see more rich, water-scarce nations recycling waste water. California actually has one of the biggest water recycling plants in the world, but the water is not used for drinking.
NEWater, as well as the other national taps, is the reason I chose to research in Singapore, a global leader in water sustainability.
Water Ways 