$$News and Reports$$

Apr. 28, 2015
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BGU's Prof. Asher Brenner of the Environmental Engineering Unit and Prof. Evyatar Erell of the Bona Terra Department of Man in the Desert have joined with colleagues from three other universities to create a scientific action program “Creating Water Sensitive Cities in Israel” thanks to a grant from The Jewish National Fund/Keren Kayemet L’Israel. The other three universities are The Technion: Israel Institute of Technology, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Australia’s Monash University. 

The way we manage urban water shapes almost every aspect of our urban environment and quality of life. Water Sensitive Cities adopt and combine decentralized and centralized water management solutions to deliver water security in both water-poor and water-abundant futures, healthy aquifers and urban streams, improvements in urban climates and landscapes, and a reduction in the city’s carbon footprint, the researchers say. 

Erell will be responsible for Project 2: Water Sensitive Urban Planning & Design
Exploring integrative urban design solutions for water sensitive innovations
 

Aim: To understand how and where water sensitive strategies can be incorporated into an existing urban fabric to recharge the aquifer and to assess potential enhancement to quality of life, especially the urban microclimate. 

Approach: Identify, using GIS in conjunction with other computer tools, effective strategies for application of storm water harvesting in existing urban locations on the coastal plain by means of detailed mapping of topography, surface cover, infrastructure and building typology. Computer modelling of microclimate and pedestrian thermal comfort will support assessment of the benefits of water-sensitive urban design strategies and actions. Methodologies developed may be used to support development of urban master plans in other cities, in Israel and abroad. 

Brenner will be responsible for Project 3: Water Sensitive Technologies
Hybrid biofilters for dual stormwater and groundwater treatment 

Aim: Develop and test the hybrid biofilters for stormwater harvesting and treatment in the wet season months (short period under Israeli climate, and unique rainfall regime and pollutants loads), and groundwater remedial treatment in the dry seasons (long Israeli summer) that will also serve for continuous preservation of the biomass (plants & bacteria) in the treatment systems.  

Approach: Pollution removal mechanisms will be studied in laboratory scale biofiltration columns, focusing on stormwater pollutants profile, nitrate, and specific industrial pollutants (e.g. perchlorate, heavy metals and fuel contaminants) removal under variable conditions (e.g. low to high hydraulic and pollution loads). The system design will then be optimized for multi-operational mode and will be retrofitted in pilot systems for field validation.