The National Water Research Institute (NWRI) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, located in California, was founded in 1991. It is devoted to promoting the protection, maintenance, and restoration of water supplies through collaborative research and outreach activities. It is governed by a Board of Directors consisting of representatives of water and wastewater agencies/districts in Southern California.NWRI serves as a major source of water-science research funding in the United States, focusing efforts on issues in drinking water, wastewater, water resources, and water reuse. NWRI also provide knowledge and training in these areas through publications, workshops, and conferences..
Study region: The Iguidi watershed is located in southeastern Morocco and represents semi-arid region where limited water resources constrain agricultural productivity and sustainability. Study focus: This study assesses the water footprint (WF) of four major crops: walnuts, wheat, olives, and almonds cultivated in the Iguidi watershed between 1992 and 2021. The Soil and Water Assessment Tool Plus (SWAT+) was used to simulate hydrological processes and estimate crop WF, including green and blue water components. The model was calibrated and validated using observed streamflow, with satisfactory performance (calibration: r = 0.80, R2 = 0.55, NSE = 0.55; validation: r = 0.84, R2 = 0.55, NSE = 0.55). Plant growth parameters were manually adjusted to improve crop model performance. New hydrological insights for the region: Results indicate significant differences in crop water use, with olives showing the highest total WF (2704.8 m3/t) and wheat the lowest (1482.86 m3/t). Blue Water Scarcity (BWS) increased sharply after 2017, with the index increasing from an average of 0.5 (1995-2021) to 2.4 in 2019. Green Water Scarcity (GWS) also increased after 2017, following a relatively stable period between 2009 and 2017 (average = 0.42). These findings indicate intensifying water stress in the watershed and underscore the need for adaptive and integrated water management strategies to enhance agricultural resilience in semi-arid regions.
Study region: Country of Morocco, north-western part of Africa. Study focus: In numerous regions worldwide, groundwater serves as the primary source of drinking water supply. However, the increase of industrial and agricultural activities, as well as the succession of drought periods in regions such as Morocco have led to water scarcity and the introduction of pollutants into ground and surface water. Nitrate (NO3-), due to its high solubility, has become a pervasive contaminant, presenting an increasingly detrimental issue over time, particularly in arid environments such as Morocco. Hence, the goal of this work is to give an overview of groundwater and surface water quality across Morocco. Specifically, the research aims to identify aquifers suffering from nitrate contamination, determine the origin of this contamination, and assess the suitability of this groundwater for both drinking and irrigation purposes. In general, Moroccan rivers exhibit good to moderate water quality, except for localized areas downstream of domestic and industrial discharge points. Dams generally maintain excellent to moderate water quality, with only 5 % showing bad quality attributed to wastewater discharge. On the other hand, groundwater witnesses a deterioration in their quality, primarily due to elevated nitrate levels and high salinity. Nitrate contamination is prevalent in many aquifers in Morocco with the highest concentrations exceeding 100 mg/l, indicating very bad quality. This degradation stems from domestic and industrial wastewater discharge and excessive fertilizer use in irrigated areas. Additionally, nitrate contamination worsened by seawater intrusion, observed in Atlantic aquifers like Chaouia, Doukkala and Akermoud, especially within 2000 m of the sea. Furthermore, isotopic analyses of delta 1 5N-NO3 and delta 1 8O-NO3 in both the Mediterranean aquifers "BouAreg" and Atlantic aquifers "Massa" indicate that the main sources of nitrate are likely manure, sewage, and agricultural fertilizers used in irrigated areas. The denitrification phenomenon was detected in some wells of the Massa aquifer characterized by an enrichment of 1 5N and low NO3- content, however this process only affects one well in the BouAreg aquifer. This comprehensive overview might serve as a reference for decision-makers to build efficient water management strategies.
This study reconstructs Middle to Late Holocene environmental changes and human impacts in the Moroccan Middle Atlas, using palynological data from Lake (Dayet) Iffer. The sedimentary sequence spans the last 8000 calendar years before present (cal yr BP), revealing a dynamic interaction between natural and anthropogenic factors shaping the vegetation in the region. Tree taxa, primarily Pinus, Pistacia, and Quercus (ilex-type and faginea-type), dominated the landscape until ca. 5500 cal yr BP. The onset of the expansion of drought-tolerant species and herbaceous plants aligns with increasing human activities, as inferred from a significant rise in Olea europaea pollen and forest degradation after ca. 3500 cal yr BP. This period recorded the retreat of pine forests and the emergence of Cistus species, reflecting intensified anthropogenic pressures and changing land use. The study also identifies a major shift around 2500 cal yr BP, characterized by extensive deforestation, soil erosion, and the decline of Cedrus atlantica, likely due to combined effects of aridification and sustained human exploitation.
The contamination of endocrine disrupting compounds (EDCs) stands as an emerging environmental concern, leading to subsequent environmental and human exposure. A comprehensive analysis identified a total of 18 EDCs, including pharmaceuticals, hormones, and plasticizers, in Malaysian rivers classified into distinct pollution classes: “Clean”, “Moderately Polluted”, and “Polluted”. The highest concentration of EDCs was observed in the “Moderately Polluted” Kim Kim River, notably containing 16.25 µg/L of caffeine. Caffeine exhibited ubiquitous presence across all pollution classes, with the Klang River (“Polluted”) showing the peak concentration at 13.62 µg/L. In contrast, the “Clean” Kuantan River displayed the highest EDC concentration at 1.28 µg/L of bisphenol A. All individual EDCs posed negligible ecological risks, with RQ values below 0.01 (RQm < 8.70 × 10⁻3). Similarly, negligible risks were observed for most EDCs under the worst-case scenario (RQex < 2.36 × 10⁻3). Noteworthy findings included the detection of previously undetected pharmaceuticals such as diphenhydramine on a global scale. Variability in the distribution of EDCs among river pollution classes exhibited statistically significant differences in their concentrations. The socioeconomic impact was evident, with gross domestic product (GDP) and population size positively influencing EDC concentrations, emphasizing the interconnected dynamics of urbanization, healthcare development, and pharmaceutical consumption. Additionally, the study identified negligible to low ecological risks associated with both individual and combined exposures to EDCs under general and worst-case scenarios. However, higher EDC risks were observed even in rivers classified as “Clean” or “Moderately Polluted”, highlighting the need for more comprehensive monitoring strategies that account for emerging contaminants.
Amidst a global freshwater shortage, reusing treated greywater is a viable option for supplementing non-potable demands. To ensure effective and sustainable treatment, understanding the kinetics of pollutant removal is essential for optimizing horizontal free surface flow constructed wetlands (HFSF). This study evaluates these kinetics for greywater in a continuous HFSF wetland planted with water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) under hydraulic loading rates (HLRs). A pilot-scale HFSF wetland (12 m × 1 m × 1 m) constructed at the National Water Resources Institute, Kaduna was operated continuously at HLRs of 0.20, 0.25, and 0.30 m day-1. Greywater samples were collected biweekly and analysed for biochemical oxygen demand (BOD5), total phosphorus (TP), total suspended solids (TSS), and ammonium nitrogen (NH4–N). First-order kinetic models (k–C), a modified first-order model with background concentration (k–C*), and a Continuous Stirred Tank Reactor (CSTR) were applied to derive rate constants and assess the model’s performance. First-order rate constants increased with HLR, indicating faster reaction kinetics; however, the overall efficiency of the pollutant removal slightly declined at higher HLRs due to the reduced retention time. TSS removal declined due to resuspension and NH4–N removal was limited by oxygen deficiency at 0.30 m day-1. The models demonstrated relatively better predictive agreement for TP and NH4–N than for BOD5 and TSS, reflecting non-linear processes. The 0.20 m day-1 HLR provided the most sustainable performance through longer retention, effective biodegradation, sedimentation, and nitrification. The derived k values fall within global ranges, validating their use in wetland design.
