3S - SEARCH FOR SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS: The Case of Chennai
Mission Statement: It is becoming imperative that tough decisions have to be made if Chennai’s severe water problems have to be solved effectively.
Description of the Project: With an estimated population of about 7.6 million the metropolitan Chennai ranks amongst the top four most populous regions of India. The demand for water has quickly outpaced the limited supplies. Chennai’s water footprint is increasing and if things continue at the current pace, competing uses of water and their increased demand will further lead to serious issues of water availability, access and water quality.
Water Resources Available to Chennai: Chennai does not have access to a perennial river and has to depend primarily on three major irrigation reservoirs and one small reservoir across a river that floods only for a few days during the monsoon. Other supplies arise from ground water wells in peri-urban areas where land is bought to access water. Against the demand of 1,009 million liters per day, it manages to supply only about 766 million liters per day (mld) through the pipeline and lorries. By now 80% of Chennai’s groundwater has already been depleted and being closer to the sea, further exploitation is leading to further salt water intrusion. Chennai gets an average annual rainfall of 1,290 mm. much more than the national average. Important decisions about water supply needed to be made. The options are either ‘Business as usual’ or ‘change.’
Task at Hand: Water conservation and augmentation for improved service delivery.
Imagine yourself in a situation where water supply is few hours a day or at time few hours a week. A large amount of water is being transported by tankers for which consumers pay a high price. With only so much availability users end up competing for water resources. The city needs drinking water for its population, the manufacturing hub and its industries need water for different processes and the farmers need their share of water. In this situation you need to define what the problem is and what the opportunity available is. Prioritize the urgency and look at how can technological innovation/service innovation help? Use your sensibility and methods to match people’s needs with what is technologically feasible and is successful. Brainstorm, sketch, and communicate in your group. Think of any valuable ideas that the group may have for the competing users. Organize and synthesize the possibilities, brainstorm and come up with alternatives. From a design thinking approach there are two possibilities:
1) Ask the consumers what fits their needs from an already developed idea.
2) Understand the needs of the consumers and create something new.
What decisions should the Tamil Nadu Government / Chennai Water Corporation take to augment supply through alternate technology?
© 2013 Vandana Asthana & Kashif HasnieRead less
