Volume 15, No. 3, 2021
Received: 2021/06/29, Accepted:
Authors:
Aboli A. Ravikar; Deepa A. Joshi; Radhika Menon;
Abstract:
Water conservation simply means using less water, avoiding or minimizing the wastage of water and/or recycling water, so that it can be used again for different purposes. In dry parts of India, conserving water is of prime importance and so, different techniques need to be adopted. In this paper, a model of water conservation
strategies and systems in the residential home, using the city of Aurangabad as a basis, has been explored using the multi-criteria decision-making technique. The Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (FAHP) is applied to structure the decision problem into a hierarchy framework and thereby five criteria were used to evaluate the
elements. The paper is intended to present an integrated model of the major options in residential water conservation in 4 different degrees using a case study. Applications of all the technologies/systems obtained from FAHP are used to address the entire lifecycle of water, right from its arrival on site to its use and eventual expenditure. The study also compares the financial implications among the different systems, where it is found that the payback period is least for plumbing fixtures and highest for wastewater treatment system. It is also observed from the case study that around 39.13% of water savings is achieved after the up-gradation of the existing plumbing fixtures. It is found that dependence on municipal water supply is reduced by 67.30% after recycling water in various sectors in house. The greywater generated in house is completely being used in water
closets and outdoor use. Various internal purposes are satisfied from the harvested rainwater and savings of around 86.75% are achieved. As all of the water requirements are satisfied from the technologies used, less than 40% of wastewater is discharged in the municipal system. So, it is expected that the proposed system will enable occupants to be aware of their water usage and control and reduce water usage levels.
Keywords:
Fuzzy analytic hierarchy process (FAHP), Fuzzy logic, Green building, Sustainability, Water conservation.