Associate Professor The University of Texas at Austin
The Norton Sound region in Alaska is home to 16 remote communities facing extreme weather, which has negatively impacted drinking water services through depleting water sources, impaired water quality, and deteriorating water infrastructure. In the communities that benefit from piped water systems, water is constantly heated and circulated to prevent freezing and maintain proper operations during winter months (October – May), making the operations of these systems intensive. Leakages add a burden to operating and managing water systems due to the negative impact of water losses and economic losses associated with the sunk energy and treatment costs. Faced with (i) workforce challenges, such as untrained personnel and high turnover, (ii) economic challenges due to limited cash economy and high cost of living, (iii) environmental challenges of extreme weather conditions, and (iv) technical challenges such as limited power and telemetry communication, advanced monitoring technologies that facilitate operating water systems and minimize water losses are unsuitable for these communities. This research aims to improve water service, including identifying a suitable form of leak detection, through collaboration with the community and regional technical organizations. We envision a three-phase approach: (i) Archival – digitizing technical information and documenting institutional knowledge; (ii) Informational – developing a hydraulic model that can provide guidance on performance; (iii) Operational – creating a decision-making tool coupling data and the hydraulic model to make operational decisions. This work presents the process, challenges, and success of phases one and two and discusses plans for phase three. We envision these tools to be used by regional technical staff who work with the communities and inform other remote communities facing water service challenges.
