Water Engineering

Water is the most valuable liquid that we know. It is essential for the lives of fauna, flora and the people likewise. It exists in multiple forms, surrounding us completely. It has been shaping our planet for millions of years, protecting it from overheating and overcooling. Despite the fact that the overall volume of water on our planet remains unchanged, clean water is becoming scarcer all the time because of the rising environment pollution levels. More and more places on the Earth suffer from not having access to sufficient fresh water supplies; precipitation levels in many regions are uneven and irregular. The most remarkable deficiency of high-quality water is experienced in developing countries and in areas with large and rapidly growing population – while in other parts of the world, water is being wasted.
Experience acquired in recent years, however, shows that water must be highly valued regardless of the location. It is vital that we protect water resources and use drinking water reserves sparingly.

Water recycling

Water recycling means reusing cleaned wastewater. Treatment can be applied both to sewage water and to wastewater from diverse industrial branches. Recycling makes it possible to optimize the use of water resources, it reduces the volume of wastewater released into the rivers, seas or oceans. Wastewater free of impurities and hazardous substances is returned to the industrial plants or used in agriculture, thereby saving high quality resources for everyday needs of the population; thus, a larger number of people gets access to safe water with no risk to human health.

One of wastewater treatment methods may be the creation of a sophisticated system of in-ground sedimentation and filtration tanks, lined with JUNIFOL polyethylene geomembranes. The treatment system comprises several purification stages the water passes through; at the end of the process, a liquid fulfilling the required criteria is acquired. Loose materials of various grain sizes are employed as filters in these tanks.

Water storage reservoirs and drainage canals

The purpose of water storage reservoirs is to bridge the periods with low precipitation levels, thereby creating sufficient water supplies satisfying the needs of agriculture, forestry, but also industry and power engineering. The reservoirs may take the form of larger or smaller waterworks, lakes or ponds. These structures must be adequately watertight in order to be able to hold the water in. Should the site be characterized by either inappropriate geological conditions or a shortage of natural sealing material of required quality (reasonably obtainable both from the ecological and the economic viewpoint), the impermeability of the structure(s) must be secured by using some other material. In those cases, JUNIFOL polymeric geosynthetic liners, made from high-density (PE-HD), or linear low-density polyethylene (PELLD), have proven themselves worthy. The membranes are used as lining systems for either entire structures or some of their parts (e.g. dams).

To transport larger volumes of water to the place of final use, drainage canals, lined with the same type of membranes, are used.

Retention basins and flood embankments

Retention basins are waterworks used to retain a certain volume of rainwater for a certain period of time. They protect the sewer systems or watercourses from being clogged up by torrential rainwater. Retention basins are most frequently built in the vicinity of large paved areas and industrial objects.

Massive torrential rain or heavy precipitation may also cause flooding. Human settlements and other buildings are protected from the actions of water by flood embankments. Reliable and safe operation of the embankments requires that the tightness of their upstream slopes is secured – this being again facilitated by JUNIFOL geosynthetic membrane liners.

Artificial snow production

Many ski resorts have been recently experiencing a considerable decline in the availability of natural snow. For this reason, more and more water reservoirs are built near the resorts, thereby making it possible to produce artificial snow in convenient winter conditions. In summertime, water kept in the reservoirs may be used to fulfil the requirements of e.g. forest management.

Interesting projects

WASTE WATER TREATMENT PLANT M'ZAR

Product(s):	JUNIFOL PEHD 1,5 G/G
Location:	Agadir, Morocco
Installation:	2012

OURKISS DAM - UPSTREAM FACE LINING

Product(s):	JUNIFOL PEHD 2,5 SA/SA
Location:	Oum El Bouaghi, Algeria
Installation:	2010