Using Genetic Algorithms in the UK Water Industry

The England and Wales Water industry has changed dramatically in the past ten years since privatisation in 1989. The once fully government operated water authorities are now operated by private companies that are publicly listed. The operation of these companies is regulated by the government appointed Office of Water Services (Ofwat), who have ultimate responsibility in setting the limits for the prices charged the consumers for their water supply. Ofwat has implemented a rigorous auditing regime that involves extensive reporting of the valuation, performance, extent and conditions of the water distribution system assets. Serviceability is increasingly being used to describe the performance of the assets and it is used as a guide on the level of expenditure required to maintain the system. The measures used in Ofwat's auditing regime are those that are being suggested to assess an asset's serviceability. The concern from the water companies was that these regulatory-based performance measures are backward looking, and cannot be directly translated into a pro-active planning strategy. The optimisation technique genetic algorithm is used to address the suitability of these measures in a decision making framework. The genetic algorithm has increasingly been used in the development of rehabilitation strategies, providing information on the trade-offs that need to be made throughout the process. The other major constraint on the work is the data available. Therefore the investigation will utilise the data recorded on the GIS packages used by a typical water company in England.