Integrated Water Resources Management in Cities in the World: Global Challenges

Water scarcity and accessibility remain persistently amongst the most prominent global challenges. Although there is a wide agreement among international organizations that Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) and water governance are key to overcome water-related challenges, global assessments of the progress made by cities is lacking. This paper for the first time analyses the challenges of water, wastewater, municipal solid waste and climate change in cities. We used empirical studies (125 cities) based on the City Blueprint Approach and developed a statistical estimation model to estimate IWRM performances of another 75 cities. These 200 cities in total represent more than 95% of the global urban population. This comprehensive global picture enables us to evaluate the existing gaps in achieving water-related Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), in particular SDG 6 (clean water and sanitation) and SDG 11 (sustainable cities and communities). The best performing cities were Amsterdam and Singapore. Unfortunately, most cities do not yet manage their water resources wisely and are far from achieving the SDGs. For instance, targets regarding drinking water supply are still a challenge for many cities in Africa and Asia and challenges regarding sanitation are high in cities in Africa, Asia and Latin America. The same holds for solid waste management, climate adaptation, and people living in informal settlements. In another paper we will address the solution pathways to these global challenges

Towards water-wise cities: Global assessment of water management and governance capacities

The magnitude of challenges related to water, waste and climate change is intensifying and calls for improved water management and water governance in cities. The pressure exerted on cities is projected to increase in the 21st century, thus emphasizing the intensifying urban challenges of water, waste and climate change, which in turn make strategic efforts towards sustainability ever more important. This message is emphasized by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Despite these challenges, there is still little empirically-based understanding of how well cities perform with respect to integrated water management, which concrete steps can be observed on the path towards water-wise management, and which governance capacities account for water management improvements. In order to obtain such an empirical understanding, it is necessary to overcome a lack of coherence in the theoretical definitions and their operationalization by developing a unifying, comprehensive frameworks. Accordingly, the objective of this dissertation is: Increasing our understanding of what water-wisdom is and which governance conditions cities require to achieve it, by consistently analysing the water management performance and governance capacity of cities across the globe. Three integrated assessment frameworks are developed; one to measure the main social, environmental and financial challenges that a city may have, that impact their ability to address water-related challenges (i.e., the Trends and Pressures Framework). Based on 12 descriptive indicators, these key challenges are quantified and expressed as a score of concern in 45 municipalities and regions across the world. The second framework – the improved City Blueprint performance Framework - measures the performance of urban water management practice. As such, a cohesive set of 25 indicators has been developed that covers key aspects of the urban water cycle such as drinking water, infrastructure, wastewater treatment and climate adaptation. The framework has been applied in 45 municipalities and regions in 27 countries. The third framework analyses the governance conditions that account for increased water management performance. Based on the improved City Blueprint indicator assessment, the integrated water management performance of 45 municipalities and regions across 27 countries is analysed and used as a basis to identify tangible steps towards water-wise management. Next, a governance capacity analysis is developed, comprising nine conditions and 27 indicators that together are considered as a precondition for improvements in water management performances. The analysis has been applied in 15 cities with respect to the five most prevailing water-related challenges experienced in cities worldwide: flood risk, water scarcity, wastewater treatment, solid waste treatment and urban heat islands. The information for each city assessment has been gathered through 1) the study of literature, policies, reports and grey literature, 2) interviews with representatives of all relevant stakeholders, and 3) including constructive feedback from the interviewees. In total, 220 interviews have been conducted in 15 cities. An overall correlation between water management performance and governance capacity is found. More specifically, the capacity to implement policy and continuously monitor, evaluate and learn may be the key determinants for water-wise management due to their high observed correlations with water-wise management

Towards water-wise cities: Global assessment of water management and governance capacities

The magnitude of challenges related to water, waste and climate change is intensifying and calls for improved water management and water governance in cities. The pressure exerted on cities is projected to increase in the 21st century, thus emphasizing the intensifying urban challenges of water, waste and climate change, which in turn make strategic efforts towards sustainability ever more important. This message is emphasized by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Despite these challenges, there is still little empirically-based understanding of how well cities perform with respect to integrated water management, which concrete steps can be observed on the path towards water-wise management, and which governance capacities account for water management improvements. In order to obtain such an empirical understanding, it is necessary to overcome a lack of coherence in the theoretical definitions and their operationalization by developing a unifying, comprehensive frameworks. Accordingly, the objective of this dissertation is: Increasing our understanding of what water-wisdom is and which governance conditions cities require to achieve it, by consistently analysing the water management performance and governance capacity of cities across the globe. Three integrated assessment frameworks are developed; one to measure the main social, environmental and financial challenges that a city may have, that impact their ability to address water-related challenges (i.e., the Trends and Pressures Framework). Based on 12 descriptive indicators, these key challenges are quantified and expressed as a score of concern in 45 municipalities and regions across the world. The second framework – the improved City Blueprint performance Framework - measures the performance of urban water management practice. As such, a cohesive set of 25 indicators has been developed that covers key aspects of the urban water cycle such as drinking water, infrastructure, wastewater treatment and climate adaptation. The framework has been applied in 45 municipalities and regions in 27 countries. The third framework analyses the governance conditions that account for increased water management performance. Based on the improved City Blueprint indicator assessment, the integrated water management performance of 45 municipalities and regions across 27 countries is analysed and used as a basis to identify tangible steps towards water-wise management. Next, a governance capacity analysis is developed, comprising nine conditions and 27 indicators that together are considered as a precondition for improvements in water management performances. The analysis has been applied in 15 cities with respect to the five most prevailing water-related challenges experienced in cities worldwide: flood risk, water scarcity, wastewater treatment, solid waste treatment and urban heat islands. The information for each city assessment has been gathered through 1) the study of literature, policies, reports and grey literature, 2) interviews with representatives of all relevant stakeholders, and 3) including constructive feedback from the interviewees. In total, 220 interviews have been conducted in 15 cities. An overall correlation between water management performance and governance capacity is found. More specifically, the capacity to implement policy and continuously monitor, evaluate and learn may be the key determinants for water-wise management due to their high observed correlations with water-wise management

Enhancing Governance Capacity to Ensure a Long-Term Water Supply: The Case of Windhoek, Namibia

Windhoek, Namibia, faces water stress, urbanisation, climate change and governance challenges; these issues are constraining water provision and underpinning the urgency to implement an integrated water resource management plan. Windhoek has provided access to water during droughts by relying on multiple water resources including treated wastewater. However, significant infrastructure investments are required to ensure continued water security. Through applying the City Blueprint Approach—an indicator assessment aiming to provide a holistic understanding of water management and governance—we substantiate how Namibia can enhance the capacity to implement legislation, with long-term focus and collaboration with experts and stakeholders

Enhancing Governance Capacity to Ensure a Long-Term Water Supply: The Case of Windhoek, Namibia

Windhoek, Namibia, faces water stress, urbanisation, climate change and governance challenges; these issues are constraining water provision and underpinning the urgency to implement an integrated water resource management plan. Windhoek has provided access to water during droughts by relying on multiple water resources including treated wastewater. However, significant infrastructure investments are required to ensure continued water security. Through applying the City Blueprint Approach—an indicator assessment aiming to provide a holistic understanding of water management and governance—we substantiate how Namibia can enhance the capacity to implement legislation, with long-term focus and collaboration with experts and stakeholders

Enhancing Governance Capacity to Ensure a Long-Term Water Supply: The Case of Windhoek, Namibia

Windhoek, Namibia, faces water stress, urbanisation, climate change and governance challenges; these issues are constraining water provision and underpinning the urgency to implement an integrated water resource management plan. Windhoek has provided access to water during droughts by relying on multiple water resources including treated wastewater. However, significant infrastructure investments are required to ensure continued water security. Through applying the City Blueprint Approach—an indicator assessment aiming to provide a holistic understanding of water management and governance—we substantiate how Namibia can enhance the capacity to implement legislation, with long-term focus and collaboration with experts and stakeholders

Public Attitudes towards Digital Water Meters for Households

In response to droughts, various media campaigns and water-saving instructions are released. However, these often only have temporary water conservation effects. A promising development in this regard is Digital Water Meters (DWM), which can provide near real-time water-use feedback. Despite extensive DWM experience in some water-stressed regions, a profound understanding of the initial attitude towards DWM and message-tailoring opportunities are rarely empirically explored. This study aims to obtain insights into the attitude towards the introduction of DWM and explore opportunities for message tailoring, a topic of extra relevance as we may be on the threshold of a large-scale DWM implementation in many world regions. Messages tailored to (i) normative beliefs and attitudes on drinking water, (ii) water-use activity and (iii) phase of decision-making, seem particularly compatible with DWM. Through a survey (n = 1037) in the Netherlands, we observe that 93% of respondents have no objections if their utility invests in DWM and that 78% would accept a (free) DWM because of improved leakage detection, lower costs and environmental considerations. Finally, instead of sociodemographic factors, we observe that an attitude-based customer segmentation approach is an especially useful predictor of respondent’s motivation to endorse DWM and forms a promising basis for water conservation message-tailoring strategies