Asset management : integrating GIS as a decision support tool in meter management in national water and sewerage corporation

Water meters provide the basis for generation of monthly water consumption invoices by the utility for all its customers. This makes the water meters an integral part of the utility’s asset base. However, like any asset, these meters sometimes fail to function as expected and may under register or not register any water consumption by the customers. When this happens, the revenues of the utility are at risk. The effective management of water meters by utilities needs to consider the individual risks that each meter poses to the utility in the undesirable event that such a meter fails to register consumption by the customer. A number of studies have been made by other scholars on the performance of meters, but with little or no integration of GIS as a decision support tool for their management. The different locations where these meters are installed needs to be considered in inform effective management. Materials and Methods This study integrates GIS as a decision support tool in managing the risks associated to meter failure. The risk associated to each water meter is determined as a product of the probability of meter failure and the criticality of such a meter. The probability of meter failure is estimated by a meter failure index that is computed from the age of the meter and the criticality of each meter is estimated by the average monthly volume of water dispensed by the water meter. The risk maps generated help to inform staff deployment for effective meter monitoring as well as planning for their replacement by the water utilityMany water utilities use water meters to determine the volume of water consumed by each customer. In this case, meters become the basis for generating monthly invoices for water consumed and by default, the revenues due to the water utility. However, like any asset, these meters sometimes fail to function due to a number of reasons. When this happens, they may under register or not register any water consumption by the customers. This puts the revenues of the utility at risk. Utilities therefore need to understand the risk associated to each water meter in order to effectively manage that risk. In managing such risk, it is important to consider the various locations where these meters are installed. Several studies have been understand to understand why meters fail. However, there has been little effort to integrate GIS in managing the risks associated to meter performance. Materials and Methods This study integrates GIS as a decision support tool in managing the risks associated to meter failure. Risk is defined as the product of the probability of meter failure and the criticality associated to each meter, in the event of failure. The probability of meter failure is represented by a meter failure index which is computed from the age of a water meter. Meter criticality is estimated by the average monthly amount of water registered by each meter. The older the water meter, the more likely it is to fail and the more water that is registered on a monthly basis by the water meter, the more such a meter is critical to the utility compared to others. The risk maps generated help to inform staff deployment for effective meter monitoring as well as planning for their replacement by the water utility

First detection of Paenibacillus larvae the causative agent of American Foulbrood in a Ugandan honeybee colony

Paenibacillus larvae is a highly contagious and often lethal widely distributed pathogen of honeybees, Apis mellifera but has not been reported in eastern Africa to date. We investigated the presence of P. larvae in the eastern and western highland agro-ecological zones of Uganda by collecting brood and honey samples from 67 honeybee colonies in two sampling occasions and cultivated them for P. larvae. Also, 8 honeys imported and locally retailed in Uganda were sampled and cultivated for P. larvae. Our aim was to establish the presence and distribution of P. larvae in honeybee populations in the two highland agro-ecological zones of Uganda and to determine if honeys that were locally retailed contained this lethal pathogen. One honeybee colony without clinical symptoms for P. larvae in an apiary located in a protected area of the western highlands of Uganda was found positive for P. larvae. The strain of this P. larvae was genotyped and found to be ERIC I. In order to compare its virulence with P. larvae reference strains, in vitro infection experiments were conducted with carniolan honeybee larvae from the research laboratory at Ghent University, Belgium. The results show that the virulence of the P. larvae strain found in Uganda was at least equally high. The epidemiological implication of the presence of P. larvae in a protected area is discussed

Demographic Data for Development Decisionmaking: Case Studies From Ethiopia and Uganda

Analyzes the lack of demographic and socioeconomic data, limited access to and use of existing data, and insufficient demand for their application in policy making and resource allocation. Makes recommendations for greater access, demand, and use of data

Picturing Adoption of Below-Ground Biodiversity Technologies among Smallholder Farmers around Mabira Forest, Uganda

Faced with a multitude of soil and water amendment technologies, farmers have the task of choosing the technologies to adopt for ensuring subsistence and income sustainability. In 2008, a study to characterize the farmers was conducted around Mabira Forest, to assess the adoption of soil technologies fostering Belowground Biodiversity (BGBD). Eighty-four households (38 participating and 46 non-participants) from four villages were randomly selected and interviewed. Results showed that the adoption pattern was significantly driven by farm size, labor, household size, age and wealth status of the house. Also important were farm location, gender of household head, primary occupation, soil and water conservation technologies training, land tenure, and social capital. For the few current adopters, there was a perceived increase in labor demand but overall productivity was higher, partly resulting from increased crop productivity due to soil fertility enhancement and soil structure modification. It is therefore concluded that, around Mabira forest, BGBD technologies will be adopted by farming households with sufficient land, labor and social capital

Widows' experiences of spousal mourning among AmaXhosa: an interpretative phenomenological study

This study was conducted on the mourning rituals of the AmaXhosa widows of the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. The study focused on the descriptive presentation of the experiences of the AmaXhosa widows in the Buffalo City municipality of the Province. The study sought to establish the widows’ perceptions regarding the mourning rituals and to interpret their experiences within the context of contemporary cultural, religious, gender and socio-political influences. The experiences among the widows interviewed were found to have a similar context but their perceptions about the mourning rituals were different between the widows younger than 40 years and those older than 50 years. Widows from urban and rural areas of East London, Mdantsane Township and from within a 60 kilometre radius of East London were interviewed. Purposive random sampling was used to identify an equal number of either urban or rural voluntary participants for the study. Structured interviews were held with widows ranging in age from 29 to 91 years. An interpretative phenomenological analysis of the recorded discussions was conducted. The experiences of the AmaXhosa widows during the conduct of the mourning rituals are described. The key findings of the study indicated that most of the widows felt they had to go through the mourning rituals mainly to show respect for their departed husbands and so that the dignity of the family and clan was maintained. The mourning rituals seemed mostly to have negative implications for the widows such as a lack of family and financial support and being treated as social outcasts; however the rituals also seemed to help the women adjust to their new status as widows. Although the mourning rituals were embedded in the socio-cultural tradition generally followed by the AmaXhosa, religious beliefs also influenced some of the traditions by introducing changes in the way some widows conducted the mourning rituals. For example, some religions advocated for shorter periods of mourning than usual as well as wearing different types of mourning clothes from the usual black or purple dress. Overall the perceptions of the older widows aged above 50 years revealed that they had no reservations about performing the mourning rituals and quite readily and unquestioningly accepted the customs. The younger widows aged below 40 years on the other hand felt that the mourning rituals were biased against women and did not serve a useful purpose and even proposed changes to the manner in which the mourning rituals are conducted particularly the shortening of the mourning period from 12 to 6 months or less. However, they seemed to recognize the role played by the mourning ritual in lessening and possibly healing the pain and sorrow caused by their bereavement

Prevalence and genotyping of African swine fever virus in apparently healthy pigs in Masaka, Mukono and Kamuli Districts in Uganda

African swine fever (ASF) is a viral hemorrhagic disease associated with death in infected pigs. African swine fever virus (ASFV) is a DNA virus that circulates in blood and lymphoid system of the pigs causing disease. There are various reports on ASF outbreaks in the country with a few confirmed in apparently healthy pigs which pigs show no signs of infection. Therefore a survey of apparently healthy pigs was undertaken to show the extent they habour the antibodies and antigen of ASFV and later determine the genetic diversity of the virus ASF in Kamuli, Mukono and Masaka districts of Uganda using serological, molecular and genotyping techniques. In total 1,192 blood and sera samples were collected and analyzed. All the pigs tested except one (1/1192) were negative for (ASFV) and none for antibodies indicating that ASFV causes a paracute / acute infection in Ugandan pigs with rare detection of virus or antibodies in apparently healthy pigs. Therefore chronically infected pigs are unlikely to be important in the epidemiology of ASF. The positive pig in Kamuli district was infected with genotype IX, the most common circulating ASFV genotype in Uganda. With one positive pig for ASFV, it was not possible to authoritatively associate predictors of infection with disease in tested pig farms. It is thus recommended that these predictors of infection with ASFV are studied in future ASF outbreak areas where the virus or antibodies in pigs may occur in high prevalence

Stabilization of peat soil using lime as a stabilizer

Peat geotechnical properties such as low shear strength, high organic matter, low bearing capacity and high compressibility make it been regarded as difficult soil. Peat soil is considered by geotechnical engineers as an unfavourable soil for construction. It has covered approximately twenty-three (23) million hectares in South-East Asia with about three (3) million hectares or 8% of the total area in Malaysia. Peat soil has been regarded as problematic soil that poses significant threat to roads and building foundations stability due to its unique characteristics of high compressibility, low shear strength and consolidation settlements even when subjected to a moderate load. Because of these geotechnical problems of peat soil, improvement mechanism is needed if peat soil is to be used as a soil foundation of a civil structure. Several methods of soil stabilization such as preloading with surcharge, sand column and corduroy among others have been tried by geotechnical engineers to improve peat behaviour. However, such methods were found uneconomical in term of time constraint. Therefore, lime has been taken as a choice for stabilization of peat soil in this paper. Lime material chosen for this research project was provided in Universiti Teknologi Petronas (UTP) laboratory. Eades and Grim test was conducted to determine the optimum percentage of lime that can be mixed with peat soil to provide optimum strength. Lime was mixed with peat soil in different eight (8) percentages: 10%, 12%, 14%, 16%, 18%, 20%, 22% and 24% respectively. The extruded samples were cured for a period of 7 and 14 days. After those respective curing periods, Unconfined compression test (UCT) was conducted on all samples to determine lime impact on peat properties in term of strength increase. Having analyzed the laboratory test results, it was noticed that 16% lime provided the optimum lime percentage for stabilization of peat samples. An increment in the strength of peat specimens was noticed though the highest strength of 149.3kPa was realized with sample mixed with 14% lime and cured for 14 days. Therefore, lime can stabilize and improve the engineering properties of peat soil mainly strength and pH. Generally, unconfined compression test (UCT) indicates that, peat soil gained strength due to different lime percentages added

Effect of irrigation methods and tillage system, seed level on water use efficiency and wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) growth

Afield trial was conducted at Al- Hashimya area, Babylon district, Iraq during the growing seasons 2016-2017 and 2017-2018 to investigate the effect of some agronomic practices viz. irrigation system ( sprinkler irrigation (I1) and surface irrigation (I2) which occupied the main plots; tillage system (Zero tillage (T0), minimum tillage (T1) and deep tillage (T2) which occupied the subplot ); and seeding rates (120 Kg ha-1( S1), 180 Kg ha-1(S2),240 Kg ha-1 (S3)and 300 Kg ha-1 (S4) which occupied the sub _ subplots on biological yield, harvest index, water _use efficiency, water consumptive use, crop coefficient of bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). Results indicated that biological yield was increased in both seasons by 9 and 10%, respectively, following the application of sprinkler irrigation. This may be due to the increased water _use efficiency by 29 and 32% in both seasons, respectively, as influenced by sprinkler irrigation. However, sprinkler irrigation did not affect the harvest index in both seasons. Similarly, minimum tillage increased the biological yield by 10.6,10.2,11.8 and 3.4 % over zero _ tillage and deep tillage in both seasons, respectively. However, the tillage system had no significant effect on the harvest index in both seasons. The seeding rate (240 Kg ha-1) increased the biological yield by 15.1 and 16.0 % over the lowest seeding rate (S1 120 Kg ha-1) with no significant effect on the harvest index in both seasons, respectively. The exciting result that the application of sprinkler irrigation (I1) decreased the consumptive use mm. Season in both seasons and consequently the crop coefficient(Kc) was decreased at tillering, elongation, flowering and maturity stages in both seasons. It can be concluded that the application of sprinkler irrigation under the minimum tillage and using the seeding rate 240 Kg ha-1 has increased the biological yield via increased water – use efficiency and decreased both consumptive use and crop coefficient