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Understanding the Limits of Residential Water Conservation through Generalized, Basin-Scale System Dynamics

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dc.contributor.authorWinter, Benjamin Fredericken
dc.contributor.committeechairMarston, Landon T.en
dc.contributor.committeememberLittle, John C.en
dc.contributor.committeememberRippy, Megan A.en
dc.contributor.departmentCivil and Environmental Engineeringen
dc.date.accessioned2023-07-04T08:00:26Zen
dc.date.available2023-07-04T08:00:26Zen
dc.date.issued2023-07-03en
dc.description.abstractPopulation growth and climate change have strained existing water supplies requiring municipalities to shift towards demand management strategies to ensure reliable water provisions. Particularly in the residential sector, water conservation measures and incentives have been utilized to reduce demand during short-term shortages. As water conservation programs are now being commonly utilized as a way to ensure enough water will be available for continued growth, the impacts on a basin-wide scale have yet to be established. By changing the relative water demand for indoor and outdoor uses within a municipality, the amount of water being consumed can thereby reduce the effluent available for downstream communities. This research investigates how the timing of water conservation, water conservation strategy, and population growth impact water availability in a shared basin. A generalized system dynamics model reflecting typical residential water use and availability patterns similar to the southwest United States was utilized. We found that when upstream municipalities focus their initial reductions on non-consumptive demands, downstream municipalities reliant on upstream return flow have to increase their conservation rate to meet demands and maintain population growth. When most of the basin's population is in upstream municipalities, the more influence their change in water use has on downstream water availability. Therefore, consumptive conservation should be the priority of basin-wide conservation programs to ensure return flow is sufficient to satisfy the demands of downstream municipalities.en
dc.description.abstractgeneralPopulation growth and climate change have reduced water supplies for many cities across the United States. This has led to increased water conservation at the household level to reduce the amount of water needed for everyday uses. Efforts like reduced lawn watering and shorter showers have been helpful during short-term dry spells but more cities are using long-term strategies like high efficiency appliances and the removal of green lawns to "free up" enough water for population growth. However, these changes in water use can impact how much water returns to the river and goes downstream for the next city to use. This research looks at how changes in the speed of water conservation, water conservation strategy, and population impacts water availability in a shared basin. Our stylized model reflects typical residential water use and availability patterns similar to the southwest United States. We found that the faster cities within a basin reduce their indoor water use, the greater downstream cities have to reduce their water use in order to have enough available water to meet demands. Also, when most of the basin's population is in upstream cities, the harder it is for the downstream city to have enough water to maintain target population growth. However, reducing outdoor water use first is the best way for every city that shares the same river to stay satisfied.en
dc.description.degreeMaster of Scienceen
dc.format.mediumETDen
dc.identifier.othervt_gsexam:37836en
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10919/115624en
dc.language.isoenen
dc.publisherVirginia Techen
dc.rightsIn Copyrighten
dc.rights.urihttp://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/en
dc.subjectresidential water conservationen
dc.subjectdemand managementen
dc.subjectsystem dynamicsen
dc.titleUnderstanding the Limits of Residential Water Conservation through Generalized, Basin-Scale System Dynamicsen
dc.typeThesisen
thesis.degree.disciplineCivil Engineeringen
thesis.degree.grantorVirginia Polytechnic Institute and State Universityen
thesis.degree.levelmastersen
thesis.degree.nameMaster of Scienceen

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