BOOK REVIEW by www.watermagazine.com

Water Services Management
By David Stephenson - Published by IWA

"...The subjects covered in this book include potable water supply, sewerage and stormwater drainage. Basic design methods are reviewed followed by ways of improving designs and management of those facilities. The book forms a comprehensive guide for design and operation of water services and managing the associated infrastructure...." Quote from Preface. Editor's emphasis. The book was written by David Stephenson who is Professor of Water Engineering at the University of Botswana. He is also Professor Emeritus at the University of Witwatersrand and a Visiting Professor at the University of Stuttgart. He consults internationally. The book was published by IWA Publishing.

The book is a condensation of graduate lectures given over the years. It serves as a reference book for planners, designers and operators of water services. It notes that the broader field of engineering is likely to expand over the coming years. I note for example - with some satisfaction - the books's inclusion of chapters on asset management, probability and risk, privatisation and demand management.

It is interesting to note that this book is the product of one author. There is, therefore, a consistency throughout, untypical of a text about so many aspects of water services management. The text reveals considerable insight, and an underlying curiousity, which teases out the assumptions that often lie hidden in the texts of more traditional engineers.

The book is structured a bit like the watercycle. It starts with water sources and the availability of fresh water, covers water supply, sewerage and stormwater management, before then traversing softer topics such as asset management, economics, energy and suchlike. What especially drew me to the book was the fact the author was aware of the trend setting asset management provisions of local government law in New Zealand, and that there was more about sewer rehabilitation and leakage, than about building them in the first place! Chapter headings of the book include: Each chapter contains useful, simple graphics - obviously tried and tested in the lecture theatre. There are helpful tables too, and, from time to time there are equations. After all this is a book that can be useful to engineers. However the text stands alone for the most part and provides an especially "user-friendly" education about the major topic areas the book covers.

I found the book a useful basic exploration of many of the issues encountered in urban water management in a city or urban environment. It also introduces alternative methods and designs in many areas. I would say this book is especially useful for city planners and policy makers needing an appreciation of the dark art of the water engineer. It would be an excellent supplement to the equation filled texts that are the main diet of would-be civil engineers working their way through degree courses in tertiary educational institutions.

Other things. There is a list of references at the end of each chapter. The hard cover book runs to over 400 pages and has a useful index.

I have become a "layman expert" in water thanks to almost a decade on Council in the North Shore city of Auckland, New Zealand, and have become familiar with many of the issues and ideas raised in this book. It resonated with me as an intelligently written book about urban water systems, full of experience and simply presented wisdom. I recommend it.

Water Services Management was published in 2005 by IWA Publishing.
The isbn is 1843390809 (hard cover).
Email: publications@iwap.co.uk
Website: www.iwapublishing.com

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