Showing papers on "Water flow published in 2010"

Ecological responses to altered flow regimes: a literature review to inform the science and management of environmental flows

Abstract: Summary 1. In an effort to develop quantitative relationships between various kinds of flow alteration and ecological responses, we reviewed 165 papers published over the last four decades, with a focus on more recent papers. Our aim was to determine if general relationships could be drawn from disparate case studies in the literature that might inform environmental flows science and management. 2. For all 165 papers we characterised flow alteration in terms of magnitude, frequency, duration, timing and rate of change as reported by the individual studies. Ecological responses were characterised according to taxonomic identity (macroinvertebrates, fish, riparian vegetation) and type of response (abundance, diversity, demographic parameters). A ‘qualitative’ or narrative summary of the reported results strongly corroborated previous, less comprehensive, reviews by documenting strong and variable ecological responses to all types of flow alteration. Of the 165 papers, 152 (92%) reported decreased values for recorded ecological metrics in response to a variety of types of flow alteration, whereas 21 papers (13%) reported increased values. 3. Fifty-five papers had information suitable for quantitative analysis of ecological response to flow alteration. Seventy per cent of these papers reported on alteration in flow magnitude, yielding a total of 65 data points suitable for analysis. The quantitative analysis provided some insight into the relative sensitivities of different ecological groups to alteration in flow magnitudes, but robust statistical relationships were not supported. Macroinvertebrates showed mixed responses to changes in flow magnitude, with abundance and diversity both increasing and decreasing in response to elevated flows and to reduced flows. Fish abundance, diversity and demographic rates consistently declined in response to both elevated and reduced flow magnitude. Riparian vegetation metrics both increased and decreased in response to reduced peak flows, with increases reflecting mostly enhanced non-woody vegetative cover or encroachment into the stream channel. 4. Our analyses do not support the use of the existing global literature to develop general, transferable quantitative relationships between flow alteration and ecological response; however, they do support the inference that flow alteration is associated with ecological change and that the risk of ecological change increases with increasing magnitude of flow alteration. 5. New sampling programs and analyses that target sites across well-defined gradients of flow alteration are needed to quantify ecological response and develop robust and general flow alteration–ecological response relationships. Similarly, the collection of pre- and post-alteration data for new water development programs would significantly add to our basic understanding of ecological responses to flow alteration.

Spatial patterns of plastic debris along Estuarine shorelines.

Abstract: The human population generates vast quantities of waste material. Macro (>1 mm) and microscopic (<1 mm) fragments of plastic debris represent a substantial contamination problem. Here, we test hypotheses about the influence of wind and depositional regime on spatial patterns of micro- and macro-plastic debris within the Tamar Estuary, UK. Debris was identified to the type of polymer using Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and categorized according to density. In terms of abundance, microplastic accounted for 65% of debris recorded and mainly comprised polyvinylchloride, polyester, and polyamide. Generally, there were greater quantities of plastic at downwind sites. For macroplastic, there were clear patterns of distribution for less dense items, while for microplastic debris, clear patterns were for denser material. Small particles of sediment and plastic are both likely to settle slowly from the water-column and are likely to be transported by the flow of water and be deposited in areas whe...

Constructed wetlands for wastewater treatment

Abstract: The first experiments using wetland macrophytes for wastewater treatment were carried out in Germany in the early 1950s. Since then, the constructed wetlands have evolved into a reliable wastewater treatment technology for various types of wastewater. The classification of constructed wetlands is based on: the vegetation type (emergent, submerged, floating leaved, free-floating); hydrology (free water surface and subsurface flow); and subsurface flow wetlands can be further classified according to the flow direction (vertical or horizontal). In order to achieve better treatment performance, namely for nitrogen, various types of constructed wetlands could be combined into hybrid systems.

Ice-sheet acceleration driven by melt supply variability

Abstract: Recent observations in Greenland have led to the notion that surface meltwater supply to the ice-sheet bed lubricates ice flow, suggesting that climate warming could lead to runaway glacial acceleration. Christian Schoof uses a physically based model that captures drainage channelization under the ice to challenge this view. The model shows that increased melt supply leads to channelization and a drop in water pressure. This causes ice flow to slow down rather than speed up. However, this effect can be overcome if melt supply is variable over short timescales, when temporary pressure spikes can lead to accelerated flow. The positive melt/dynamic thinning feedback is therefore still viable, but is heavily dependent on daily temperature variations and rain events that are largely ignored in current ice sheet models. Increased melting is often assumed to cause acceleration of ice sheets and glaciers through basal lubrication, possibly leading to increased rates of sea level rise. Now a physically-based model challenges this view, illustrating that above a critical threshold, increased melt will suppress the dynamic thinning process. Short-term spikes in water delivery, as from lake drainage or precipitation, still have the potential to generate spikes in velocity, but overall increases in melt do not appear likely to cause velocity increases. Increased ice velocities in Greenland1 are contributing significantly to eustatic sea level rise. Faster ice flow has been associated with ice–ocean interactions in water-terminating outlet glaciers2 and with increased surface meltwater supply to the ice-sheet bed inland. Observed correlations between surface melt and ice acceleration2,3,4,5,6 have raised the possibility of a positive feedback in which surface melting and accelerated dynamic thinning reinforce one another7, suggesting that overall warming could lead to accelerated mass loss. Here I show that it is not simply mean surface melt4 but an increase in water input variability8 that drives faster ice flow. Glacier sliding responds to melt indirectly through changes in basal water pressure9,10,11, with observations showing that water under glaciers drains through channels at low pressure or through interconnected cavities at high pressure12,13,14,15. Using a model that captures the dynamic switching12 between channel and cavity drainage modes, I show that channelization and glacier deceleration rather than acceleration occur above a critical rate of water flow. Higher rates of steady water supply can therefore suppress rather than enhance dynamic thinning16, indicating that the melt/dynamic thinning feedback is not universally operational. Short-term increases in water input are, however, accommodated by the drainage system through temporary spikes in water pressure. It is these spikes that lead to ice acceleration, which is therefore driven by strong diurnal melt cycles4,14 and an increase in rain and surface lake drainage events8,17,18 rather than an increase in mean melt supply3,4.

Preserving the biodiversity and ecological services of rivers: new challenges and research opportunities

Abstract: SUMMARY 1. Natural biogeochemical processes and diverse communities of aquatic biota regulate freshwater quantity and quality in ways that are not sufficiently acknowledged nor appreciated by the water resources management community. The establishment and enforcement of environmental flow requirements offer promising means to improve and care for these critical environmental services. This Special Issue provides new insights and novel techniques to determine, protect and restore ecologically and socially sustainable flow regimes, and thereby help achieve the water-related goals of the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment. 2. Whilst alteration of flow, sediment, organic matter and thermal regimes interact to reduce biological diversity and the ecological integrity of freshwater ecosystems – and thereby degrade the properties and ecological services most valued by humans – ‘environmental flows’ left in rivers, or restored to developed rivers, will sustain many ecological and societal values. The success of river protection and rehabilitation ⁄ restoration depends upon understanding and accurately modelling relationships between hydrological patterns, fluvial disturbance and ecological responses in rivers and floodplains. 3. This Special Issue presents new analytical and modelling approaches to support the development of hydro-ecological models and environmental flow standards at multiple spatial scales – applicable to all rivers in any economic and societal setting. Examples include the new framework Ecological Limits of Hydrologic Alteration (ELOHA) founded on hydrological classification and gradient analysis; ecological trait analysis; Bayesian hierarchical modelling; Bayesian Decision Networks; and Integrated Basin Flow Assessment (IBFA). 4. Advances in the allocation of flood flows along the River Murray in Australia, an Ecosystems Function Model (HEC-EFM) for the Bill Williams River restoration programme in Arizona (U.S.A), the European Water Framework Directive, and improved management of hydroelectric dams demonstrate the potential for significant ecological recovery following partial restoration of natural river flow regimes. 5. Based on contributions to this Special Issue, the action agenda of the 2007 Brisbane Declaration on environmental flows and the wider literature, we propose an invigorated global research programme to construct and calibrate hydro-ecological

Classification of natural flow regimes in Australia to support environmental flow management

Abstract: Keywords: * Bayesian mixture modelling; * catchment characteristics; * climate; * hydrologic metrics; * prediction; * uncertainty Summary 1. The importance of hydrologic variability for shaping the biophysical attributes and functioning of riverine ecosystems is well recognised by ecologists and water resource managers. In addition to the ecological dependences of flow for aquatic organisms, human societies modify natural flow regimes to provide dependable ecological services, including water supply, hydropower generation, flood control, recreation and navigation. Management of scarce water resources needs to be based on sound science that supports the development of environmental flow standards at the regional scale. 2. Hydrological classification has long played an essential role in the ecological sciences for understanding geographic patterns of riverine flow variability and exploring its influence on biological communities, and more recently, has been identified as a critical process in environmental flow assessments. 3. We present the first continental-scale classification of hydrologic regimes for Australia based on 120 metrics describing ecologically relevant characteristics of the natural hydrologic regime derived from discharge data for 830 stream gauges. Metrics were calculated from continuous time series (15-30 years of record constrained within a 36-year period) of mean daily discharge data, and classification was undertaken using a fuzzy partitional method - Bayesian mixture modelling. 4. The analysis resulted in the most likely classification having 12 classes of distinctive flow-regime types differing in the seasonal pattern of discharge, degree of flow permanence (i.e. perennial versus varying degrees of intermittency), variations in flood magnitude and frequency and other aspects of flow predictability and variability. Geographic, climatic and some catchment topographic factors were generally strong discriminators of flow-regime classes. The geographical distribution of flow-regime classes showed varying degrees of spatial cohesion, with stream gauges from certain flow-regime classes often being non-contiguously distributed across the continent. These results support the view that spatial variation in hydrology is determined by interactions among climate, geology, topography and vegetation at multiple spatial and temporal scales. Decision trees were also developed to provide the ability to determine the natural flow-regime class membership of new stream gauges based on their key environmental and/or hydrological characteristics. 5. The need to recognise hydrologic variation at multiple spatial scales is an important first step to setting regional-scale environmental flow management strategies. We expect that the classification produced here can underpin the development of a greater understanding of flow-ecology relationships in Australia, and management efforts aimed at prescribing environmental flows for riverine restoration and conservation.

Development and testing of the HYPE (Hydrological Predictions for the Environment) water quality model for different spatial scales

Abstract: The HYPE model is a hydrological model for small-scale and large-scale assessments of water resources and water quality, developed at the Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute during 2005-2007. In the model, the landscape is divided into classes according to soil type, land use and altitude. In agricultural lands the soil is divided into three layers, each with individual computations of soil wetness and nutrient processes. The model simulates water flow and transport and turnover of nitrogen and phosphorus. Nutrients follow the same pathways as water in the model: surface runoff, macropore flow, tile drainage and outflow from individual soil layers. Rivers and lakes are described separately with routines for turnover of nutrients in each environment. Model parameters are global, or coupled to soil type or land use. The model was evaluated both by local calibrations to internal variables from different test basins and to data on discharge and nutrients from a large number of small basins. In addition, the estimated parameters were transferred to two larger basins in southern Sweden: River Ronnea and River Vindan. The resulting simulations were generally in good agreement with observations.

Theory, methods and tools for determining environmental flows for riparian vegetation: riparian vegetation‐flow response guilds

Abstract: SUMMARY 1. Riparian vegetation composition, structure and abundance are governed to a large degree by river flow regime and flow-mediated fluvial processes. Streamflow regime exerts selective pressures on riparian vegetation, resulting in adaptations (trait syndromes) to specific flow attributes. Widespread modification of flow regimes by humans has resulted in extensive alteration of riparian vegetation communities. Some of the negative effects of altered flow regimes on vegetation may be reversed by restoring components of the natural flow regime. 2. Models have been developed that quantitatively relate components of the flow regime to attributes of riparian vegetation at the individual, population and community levels. Predictive models range from simple statistical relationships, to more complex stochastic matrix population models and dynamic simulation models. Of the dozens of predictive models reviewed here, most treat one or a few species, have many simplifying assumptions such as stable channel form, and do not specify the time-scale of response. In many cases, these models are very effective in developing alternative streamflow management plans for specific river reaches or segments but are not directly transferable to other rivers or other regions. 3. A primary goal in riparian ecology is to develop general frameworks for prediction of vegetation response to changing environmental conditions. The development of riparian vegetation-flow response guilds offers a framework for transferring information from rivers where flow standards have been developed to maintain desirable vegetation attributes, to rivers with little or no existing information. 4. We propose to organise riparian plants into non-phylogenetic groupings of species with shared traits that are related to components of hydrologic regime: life history, reproductive strategy, morphology, adaptations to fluvial disturbance and adaptations to water availability. Plants from any river or region may be grouped into these guilds and related to hydrologic attributes of a specific class of river using probabilistic response curves. 5. Probabilistic models based on riparian response guilds enable prediction of the likelihood of change in each of the response guilds given projected changes in flow, and

SWAT Ungauged: Hydrological Budget and Crop Yield Predictions in the Upper Mississippi River Basin

Abstract: Physically based, distributed hydrologic models are increasingly used in assessments of water resources, best management practices, and climate and land use changes. Model performance evaluation in ungauged basins is an important research topic. In this study, we propose a framework for developing Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) input data, including hydrography, terrain, land use, soil, tile, weather, and management practices, for the Upper Mississippi River basin (UMRB). We also present a performance evaluation of SWAT hydrologic budget and crop yield simulations in the UMRB without calibration. The uncalibrated SWAT model ably predicts annual streamflow at 11 USGS gauges and crop yield at a four-digit hydrologic unit code (HUC) scale. For monthly streamflow simulation, the performance of SWAT is marginally poor compared with that of annual flow, which may be due to incomplete information about reservoirs and dams within the UMRB. Further validation shows that SWAT can predict base flow contribution ratio reasonably well. Compared with three calibrated SWAT models developed in previous studies of the entire UMRB, the uncalibrated SWAT model presented here can provide similar results. Overall, the SWAT model can provide satisfactory predictions on hydrologic budget and crop yield in the UMRB without calibration. The results emphasize the importance and prospects of using accurate spatial input data for the physically based SWAT model. This study also examines biofuel-biomass production by simulating all agricultural lands with switchgrass, producing satisfactory results in estimating biomass availability for biofuel production.

How old is streamwater? Open questions in catchment transit time conceptualization, modelling and analysis

Abstract: The time water spends travelling subsurface through a catchment to the stream network (i.e. the catchment water transit time) fundamentally describes the storage, flow pathway heterogeneity and sou ...

A global and high-resolution assessment of the green, blue and grey water footprint of wheat.

Abstract: The aim of this study is to estimate the green, blue and grey water footprint of wheat in a spatially-explicit way, both from a production and consumption perspective. The assessment is global and improves upon earlier research by taking a high-resolution approach, estimating the water footprint of the crop at a 5 by 5 arc minute grid. We have used a grid-based dynamic water balance model to calculate crop water use over time, with a time step of one day. The model takes into account the daily soil water balance and climatic conditions for each grid cell. In addition, the water pollution associated with the use of nitrogen fertilizer in wheat production is estimated for each grid cell. We have used the water footprint and virtual water flow assessment framework as in the guideline of the Water Footprint Network. The global wheat production in the period 1996–2005 required about 108 billion cubic meters of water per year. The major portion of this water (70%) comes from green water, about 19% comes from blue water, and the remaining 11% is grey water. The global average water footprint of wheat per ton of crop was 1830 m3/ton. About 18% of the water footprint related to the production of wheat is meant not for domestic consumption but for export. About 55% of the virtual water export comes from the USA, Canada and Australia alone. For the period 1996–2005, the global average water saving from international trade in wheat products was 65 Gm3/yr. A relatively large total blue water footprint as a result of wheat production is observed in the Ganges and Indus river basins, which are known for their water stress problems. The two basins alone account for about 47% of the blue water footprint related to global wheat production. About 93% of the water footprint of wheat consumption in Japan lies in other countries, particularly the USA, Australia and Canada. In Italy, with an average wheat consumption of 150 kg/yr per person, more than two times the word average, about 44% of the total water footprint related to this wheat consumption lies outside Italy. The major part of this external water footprint of Italy lies in France and the USA.

Dynamics of soil water content in the rhizosphere

Abstract: Water flow from soil to plants depends on the properties of the soil next to roots, the rhizosphere. Although several studies showed that the rhizosphere has different properties than the bulk soil, effects of the rhizosphere on root water uptake are commonly neglected. To investigate the rhizosphere’s properties we used neutron radiography to image water content distributions in soil samples planted with lupins during drying and subsequent rewetting. During drying, the water content in the rhizosphere was 0.05 larger than in the bulk soil. Immediately after rewetting, the picture reversed and the rhizosphere remained markedly dry. During the following days the water content of the rhizosphere increased and after 60 h it exceeded that of the bulk soil. The rhizosphere’s thickness was approximately 1.5 mm. Based on the observed dynamics, we derived the distinct, hysteretic and time-dependent water retention curve of the rhizosphere. Our hypothesis is that the rhizosphere’s water retention curve was determined by mucilage exuded by roots. The rhizosphere properties reduce water depletion around roots and weaken the drop of water potential towards roots, therefore favoring water uptake under dry conditions, as demonstrated by means of analytical calculation of water flow to a single root.

Simulating Residential Water Demand with a Stochastic End-Use Model

Abstract: A water demand end-use model was developed to predict water demand patterns with a small time scale (1 s) and small spatial scale (residence level). The end-use model is based on statistical inform...

Biomimetic structures for fluid drag reduction in laminar and turbulent flows

Abstract: Biomimetics allows one to mimic nature to develop materials and devices of commercial interest for engineers. Drag reduction in fluid flow is one of the examples found in nature. In this study, nano, micro, and hierarchical structures found in lotus plant surfaces, as well as shark skin replica and a rib patterned surface to simulate shark skin structure were fabricated. Drag reduction efficiency studies on the surfaces were systematically carried out using water flow. An experimental flow channel was used to measure the pressure drop in laminar and turbulent flows, and the trends were explained in terms of the measured and predicted values by using fluid dynamics models. The slip length for various surfaces in laminar flow was also investigated based on the measured pressure drop. For comparison, the pressure drop for various surfaces was also measured using air flow.

Impacts of uncertain river flow data on rainfall‐runoff model calibration and discharge predictions

Abstract: In order to quantify total error affecting hydrological models and predictions, we must explicitly recognize errors in input data, model structure, model parameters and validation data. This paper tackles the last of these: errors in discharge measurements used to calibrate a rainfall-runoff model, caused by stage-discharge rating-curve uncertainty. This uncertainty may be due to several combined sources, including errors in stage and velocity measurements during individual gaugings, assumptions regarding a particular form of stage-discharge relationship, extrapolation of the stage-discharge relationship beyond the maximum gauging, and cross-section change due to vegetation growth and/or bed movement. A methodology is presented to systematically assess and quantify the uncertainty in discharge measurements due to all of these sources. For a given stage measurement, a complete PDF of true discharge is estimated. Consequently, new model calibration techniques can be introduced to explicitly account for the discharge error distribution. The method is demonstrated for a gravel-bed river in New Zealand, where all the above uncertainty sources can be identified, including significant uncertainty in cross-section form due to scour and re-deposition of sediment. Results show that rigorous consideration of uncertainty in flow data results in significant improvement of the model's ability to predict the observed flow.

A Phase-Partitioning Model for CO2-Brine Mixtures at Elevated Temperatures and Pressures: Application to CO2-Enhanced Geothermal Systems

Abstract: Correlations are presented to compute the mutual solubilities of CO2 and chloride brines at temperatures 12-300 ◦ C, pressures 1-600bar (0.1-60MPa), and salini- ties 0-6m NaCl. The formulation is computationally efficient and primarily intended for numerical simulations of CO2-water flow in carbon sequestration and geothermal studies. The phase-partitioning model relies on experimental data from literature for phase parti- tioning between CO2 and NaCl brines, and extends the previously published correlations to higher temperatures. The model relies on activity coefficients for the H2O-rich (aqueous) phase and fugacity coefficients for the CO2-rich phase. Activity coefficients are treated using a Margules expression for CO2 in pure water, and a Pitzer expression for salting-out effects. Fugacity coefficients are computed using a modified Redlich-Kwong equation of state and mixing rules that incorporate asymmetric binary interaction parameters. Parameters for the calculation of activity and fugacity coefficients were fitted to published solubility data over the P-T range of interest. In doing so, mutual solubilities and gas-phase volumetric data are typically reproduced within the scatter of the available data. An example of multiphase flow simulation implementing the mutual solubility model is presented for the case of a hypothetical, enhanced geothermal system where CO2 is used as the heat extraction fluid. In this simulation, dry supercritical CO2 at 20 ◦ C is injected into a 200 ◦ C hot-water reservoir. Results show that the injected CO2 displaces the formation water relatively quickly, but that the produced CO2 contains significant water for long periods of time. The amount of water in the CO2 could have implications for reactivity with reservoir rocks and engineered materials.

Estimating turbidity and total suspended matter in the Adour River plume (South Bay of Biscay) using MODIS 250-m imagery

Abstract: The Basque coastal waters (South Bay of Biscay) are directly influenced by the Adour River freshwater plume. The Adour outflow leads to important variations of suspended matter concentrations and turbidity, which in turn may affect biological productivity and water quality. This study aims at both developing specific algorithms and testing the efficiency of atmospherically corrected MODIS-Aqua 250-m surface reflectance product (MYD09) to map total suspended matter concentrations and turbidity within the Adour coastal region. First, regional empirical algorithms based on in-situ data were tested to retrieve the concentration of total suspended matter and turbidity from the remote sensing reflectance. Then, the respective sensitivity of MODIS surface reflectance bands 1 and 2 for water quality application was investigated as well as the quality of atmospheric corrections. Finally, selected algorithms were applied to the MYD09 product. The resulting 250-m resolution maps were then compared to 1000-m maps produced by IFREMER and comparisons between satellite measurements and in-situ sampling points were performed. Results show that MODIS-Aqua band 1 (620–670 nm) is appropriate for predicting turbidity and total suspended matter concentrations using polynomial regression models, whilst band 2 is unadapted. Comparison between total suspended matter concentration 250-m resolution maps and mineral suspended matter 1000-m maps (generated by IFREMER) produced consistent results. A high correlation was obtained between turbidity measured in-situ and turbidity retrieved from MODIS-Aqua satellite data.

Dissolved Organic Matter Characteristics Across a Subtropical Wetland's Landscape: Application of Optical Properties in the Assessment of Environmental Dynamics

Abstract: Wetlands are known to be important sources of dissolved organic matter (DOM) to rivers and coastal environments. However, the environmental dynamics of DOM within wetlands have not been well documented on large spatial scales. To better assess DOM dynamics within large wetlands, we determined high resolution spatial distributions of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentrations and DOM quality by excitation–emission matrix spectroscopy combined with parallel factor analysis (EEM–PARAFAC) in a subtropical freshwater wetland, the Everglades, Florida, USA. DOC concentrations decreased from north to south along the general water flow path and were linearly correlated with chloride concentration, a tracer of water derived from the Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA), suggesting that agricultural activities are directly or indirectly a major source of DOM in the Everglades. The optical properties of DOM, however, also changed successively along the water flow path from high molecular weight, peat-soil and highly oxidized agricultural soil-derived DOM to the north, to lower molecular weight, biologically produced DOM to the south. These results suggest that even though DOC concentration seems to be distributed conservatively, DOM sources and diagenetic processing can be dynamic throughout wetland landscapes. As such, EEM–PARAFAC clearly revealed that humic-enriched DOM from the EAA is gradually replaced by microbial- and plant-derived DOM along the general water flow path, while additional humic-like contributions are added from marsh soils. Results presented here indicate that both hydrology and primary productivity are important drivers controlling DOM dynamics in large wetlands. The biogeochemical processes controlling the DOM composition are complex and merit further investigation.

Alarming visual display monitors affecting shower end use water and energy conservation in Australian residential households.

Abstract: Sustainable urban water consumption has become a critical issue in Australian built environments due to the country's dry climate and increasingly variable rainfall. Residential households have the potential to conserve water, especially across discretionary end uses such as showering. The advent of high resolution smart meters and data loggers allows for the disaggregation of water flow recordings into a registry of water end use events (e.g. showers, washing machine and taps). This study firstly reports on a water consumption end use study sample of 151 households conducted in the Gold Coast, Australia, with a focus on daily per capita shower end use distributions. A sub-sample of 44 households within the greater sample was recruited for the installation of an alarming visual display monitor locked at 40 L consumption for bathroom showers. All sub-sample shower end use event durations, volumes and flow rates were then analysed and compared utilising independent sample t-tests pre- and post-intervention. The installation of the shower monitor instigated a statistically significant mean reduction of 15.40 L (27%) in shower event volumes. Monetary savings resulting from modelled water and energy conservation resulted in a 1.65-year payback period for the device. Furthermore, conservative modelling indicated that the citywide implementation of the device could yield 3% and 2.4% savings in total water and energy consumption, respectively. Moreover, a range of non-monetary benefits were identified, including the deferment of water and energy supply infrastructure, reduced resource inflationary pressures, and climate change mitigation, to name a few. Resource consumption awareness devices like the one evaluated in this study assist resource consumers to take ownership of their usage and individually tackle individualistic and/or society driven conservation goals, ultimately helping to reduce the ecological footprint of built environments.