Big Data is today’s reality, not tomorrow’s. So much so, in fact, Big Data is still on track to saving the world, literally. Last week we learned about a project to map water sources and record test results using mobile phones to improve the supply of water to over half a million people of Mwanza, Tanzania.

The project is sponsored by United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and implemented by Mwanza Urban Water and Sewerage Authority. From a statement by mWater:

“In 2012, mWater and UN HABITAT collaborated with MWAUWASA and Mwanza City Council to conduct a study to demonstrate the scientific validity of low cost tests of the mWater applications for mobile smartphones, which maps out water sources and records their water test results. Water will provide free smartphones, airtime and an initial supply of test kits to incentivize participation.”

Big Data and the Internet of Things give the opportunity to increase the likelihood that everyone in the world can have at least the ability to have clean drinking water.

Trends are not able to be forecasted without stored data. Comparisons are not able to be made without stored data. Efficiencies are not able to be improved without stored data. The historical importance of data storage directly affects the end results of collecting and analyzing Big Data. The collection, analyzing and acting on Big Data can help improve the worlds water quality. Here’s a few ways:

3 ways Big Data + Analytics improve water quality

• Real-time monitoring

Water quality can be monitored in real-time with the help of Big Data and analytics, reducing the effort, resources, and time it takes to establish if a certain water source is of an acceptable quality, depending on its purpose. Identifying regional or community-based water quality issues can help better understand and prevent diseases and epidemics.

• Water quality forecasting

While monitoring the day-to-day water quality levels is an important issue, being able to forecast how it would be affected by environmental factors helps ensure long-term health and the maintenance of quality standards. A good example is being able to predict when bacterial concentration will be exceeded in tidal waters or in case of flooding.

• Curbing down consumption

A big part of ensuring a certain water quality involves curbing down consumption and reducing wastage. With smart meters monitoring water consumption in both households and businesses, and their accumulated data being properly analyzed, water companies and administrative bodies can better understand usage patterns and take the needed measures to reduce consumption and improve efficiency of water systems.

The more data available, the more opportunity for improvements. The conglomerates built over the next 30 years, are going to be data-driven research and production companies that solve the worlds problems and improve life with Big Data.