Smart Monitoring for Smart Management  

Team AQUA-Hub takes immense pleasure in introducing our vision, a Smart Monitoring System, to measure the wastewater flows in Coimbatore, both in quantity and quality. The pilot system is an integration of sensor-based and laboratory-based analysis mechanisms. The parameters to be measured range from the basic ones like pH and EC to complex ones like heavy metals. The sensor-based systems are exclusively designed and developed by the German industry partners for the present site conditions. We believe that the use of state-of-the-art technologies will help collect accurate data, in high temporal resolution, that can be used for further decision-making.

As a step towards enhancing the cooperation between stakeholders from Germany and their counterparts in Coimbatore, the Smart Monitoring System will also involve local laboratory-based studies. This is to be done by local academic institutions, who will join AQUA-Hub project as Local Research Partners. The analysis will be supplementary to the sensor-based measurements and will be done on a regular, scheduled basis. The laboratory measurements will focus on both nutrient and pollutant concentrations in the water samples. We hope to actively engage with the local academic community and elicit their support in our collective goal of making Coimbatore a leader in sustainable water management.

The measurements, both from the sensor network and the laboratories, will be remotely transferred to a cloud and integrated to a Water Data Management System (WDMS). The WDMS provides interfaces for communicating, visualizing and analysing the data. Automized data input from the sensor network, coupled with the results from the periodic laboratory analysis will help in the creation of a comprehensive set of data points. The data points can be analysed by means of graphics like time series, contours, bar graphs etc. Visualization can also be done over maps that can be integrated into the system. The WDMS can also function as a platform for several user-defined statistical calculations. 

Real-time information will be available on the state of the water bodies, via the internet. Over time, it will help us identify hotspots of pollution in the system, and will also help in introducing new interventions for rehabilitation. The effectiveness of these interventions can be assessed by regular monitoring of water quality parameters. We also aim to make the data available to all stakeholders for both research and urban planning purposes. Beginning with the lakes, we hope to create a network of monitoring stations spread across Coimbatore. We believe that the availability of enough data and a comprehensive analysis system will assist us in planning the Hub’s future activities.

The team was fortunate to present the activities of the Water Innovation Hub in Coimbatore at the Indo-German Strategic Networking Meet hosted at the Indo-German Centre for Sustainability, IIT-Madras on 21st September 2022. The concept and action plans were widely accepted and we wholeheartedly thank the industry partners who have expressed interest in the project.