Twort's Water Supply is a comprehensive guide to the design, construction and operation of water supply systems. It is aimed at both professionals and students and provides a good introduction and/or reference for those working in or studying the water industry.
The book is divided into 18 chapters, covering the following topics: demand for public water supply; regulation, protection, organisation and financing; hydrology and surface supplies; groundwater supplies; dams, reservoirs and river intakes; chemistry, microbiology and biology of water; storage, clarification and chemical treatment; water filtration; waterworks waste and sludge disposal; specialised and advanced water treatment processes; disinfection of water; hydraulics; system design and analysis; distribution practice; pipeline design and construction; valves and meters; pumping; control and instrumentation; and treated water storage. Throughout the book, useful and interesting comparisons are made between the UK, Europe and worldwide, in both developed and developing countries.
I was pleased to see that throughout the text the reader is encouraged to consider the constraints when measuring parameters and to be cautious when comparing values of a specific parameter obtained from different sources. Where more than one method exists for calculating a physical parameter, such as streamflow, the different methods are discussed and the advantages and disadvantages of each are given. The authors encourage the reader to be aware of the potential errors that may arise when measuring physical parameters and give an indication of likely achievable accuracy. Emphasis is placed on consideration of the uncertainties inherent in attempting to describe and quantify physical systems.
Some of the tables can be a little confusing and may need to be considered carefully to fully determine their meaning. Not all of the terms in some equations are defined in the related text, which I found frustrating.
The contents section is comprehensive and well laid out. However, the index seems rather short and is not comprehensive. When looking for a particular topic, I had to abandon the index and return to the contents section, which I feel should not have been necessary.
Overall, I found this book interesting, easy to read and informative. A good balance is achieved between overview and detail and the list of references at the end of each chapter guides the reader to further sources of information. I feel this book should meet the needs of professionals and students as both an introductory text and a reference book. I would recommend this book as a good basis from which further detailed reading can be pursued if required.
