Preface

**Section 2 Water Dynamics and Economics 93**

**A Survey 95**

**VI** Contents

Chapter 7 **Economic Instruments to Combat Eutrophication:**

Gurdeep Singh and Mansoor Leh

Jean-Philippe Terreaux and Jean-Marie Lescot

Chapter 8 **Setting Up a Computer Simulation Model in an Arkansas Watershed for the MRBI Program 113**

> Floods, droughts, and famines brought about by the vagaries of nature cause damage to the livelihoods of people. The need to adopt sustainable practices toward water use, reuse, and management is relevant in the current scenario and the scope of this book deals precisely with sustainable practices in water management. The purpose of this book is to provide the reader with abundant and relevant information on all aspects related to water sustainability: water reuse, dynamics of transboundary waterways, economic tools to analyze sustainability, wa‐ ter-energy-food nexus, computer simulation models to study watershed models, and so forth.

> The book is divided into two parts. The first part of the book discusses aspects related to the dynamics and sustainability models adopted along water bodies. The chapters by Josh and Will, for example, touch on an important aspect of water scarcity that is affecting major cit‐ ies in the world. The chapters elaborate the need for sustained choices to combat the risk of droughts and floods in cities. Cape Town is the first major city in the world to encounter water shortage after a three-year drought and many other major cities are not far behind. Therefore, the need for sustained choices in water management is all the more critical. The chapter on the Okavango river basin whose waters are shared by Namibia, Botswana, and Angola discusses the challenges of water sharing and transboundary waterways along the river basin. Livelihoods and dynamics along the stretch of the river basin ecosystem are de‐ scribed beautifully in the chapter by Ketlhatlhogile. Gender aspects of the implications of irrigation are discussed in detail in the chapter by Elena. The chapter briefs on the implica‐ tions sustainable irrigation has on women farmers in Uzbekistan. Management of water re‐ sources is far more critical in rural arid and semiarid areas because it can directly impact the livelihood of the rural community. The last chapter in this section by Li and Miraj compares the water resources community self-management mode based on case studies in rural arid areas of China and Tanzania. The authors in this chapter reveal that the self-management mode was primarily driven by village governments in China, while it was largely driven by nongovernment organizations in Tanzania.

> The second part of the book focuses more on simulation models and survey studies to deter‐ mine economic instruments to counter nutrient enrichment in water bodies. Nutrient enrich‐ ment or eutrophication of water bodies negatively impacts the aquatic ecosystem by disrupting all levels of the food chain. Eutrophication is an enormous issue that ails most of our water bodies and has a potential to impact goods and services in the long run. Eutrophi‐ cation is caused mainly by surface runoff of fertilizer-laden water from agricultural fields and release of untreated water from industries and housing colonies into the water body. The chapter by Lescot provides an interesting survey insight into the economic aspects of eutrophication in the context of France and Europe in general. The aim of the survey chapter is intended to help in public decision-making in reducing eutrophication. Field studies with

regard to studying best management practices to maintain water quality can be laborious and time consuming. Simulation models can go a long way in providing accurate results and be less labor intensive. In the same vein, the chapter by Singh and Leh calibrates and validates a simulation model in an Arkansas watershed. The chapter provides a detailed in‐ sight into various steps for data preparation before calibration and validation of the Soil and Water Assessment Tool model, which is the widely used model to assess the impact of vari‐ ous best management practices.

Although this book may not provide readers with comprehensive information on all aspects related to water sustainability, it will provide constructive data and content on the current trends and advancements in sustainable practices related to water. The book is intended to further motivate readers and scientists alike to look further and make concerted efforts to‐ ward promoting better and effective water management.

#### **Prathna Thanjavur Chandrasekaran**

**Section 1**

**Water Dynamics and its Impact**

Department of Irrigation and Flood Control Govt. of National Capital Territory of Delhi Delhi, India **Water Dynamics and its Impact**

regard to studying best management practices to maintain water quality can be laborious and time consuming. Simulation models can go a long way in providing accurate results and be less labor intensive. In the same vein, the chapter by Singh and Leh calibrates and validates a simulation model in an Arkansas watershed. The chapter provides a detailed in‐ sight into various steps for data preparation before calibration and validation of the Soil and Water Assessment Tool model, which is the widely used model to assess the impact of vari‐

Although this book may not provide readers with comprehensive information on all aspects related to water sustainability, it will provide constructive data and content on the current trends and advancements in sustainable practices related to water. The book is intended to further motivate readers and scientists alike to look further and make concerted efforts to‐

> **Prathna Thanjavur Chandrasekaran** Department of Irrigation and Flood Control Govt. of National Capital Territory of Delhi

> > Delhi, India

ous best management practices.

VIII Preface

ward promoting better and effective water management.

**Chapter 1**

**Provisional chapter**

**Introductory Chapter: Water Sustainability in a**

**Introductory Chapter: Water Sustainability in a** 

DOI: 10.5772/intechopen.85150

Water is the largest limited natural resource which is vital for survival of all living beings. Floods, droughts, and famines brought about by climate changes have been noted to occur with more frequency in the recent years. Therefore, the need for the adoption of sustainable methods toward water use and management is critical in the present-day scenario. In addition, there is also an urgent need to develop policies and make smart investment decisions to

Increase in standard of living around the world has also brought with it an increase in the demand for water-intensive goods further impacting the already limited fresh water resources [1]. Water footprint is the term used to calculate the amount of water pertaining to the production of a commodity. The water footprint can either be classified as green, blue, or grey depending on the source of water used for producing a product. While green refers to the amount of rainwater, blue refers to the amount of groundwater used to produce a product. On the other hand, grey water footprint refers to the amount of fresh water that will be used to dilute an aqueous solution consisting of pollutants to bring it down to the desirable level. It is critical that countries take steps to keep the water footprint at the lowest and promote sustainable management of water resources as the implications of irresponsible water usage

> © 2016 The Author(s). Licensee InTech. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

© 2019 The Author(s). Licensee IntechOpen. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use,

distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

**Dynamic World**

**1. Introduction**

**2. Water footprint**

can be global in nature [2].

**Dynamic World**

Prathna Thanjavur Chandrasekaran

Prathna Thanjavur Chandrasekaran

http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.85150

Additional information is available at the end of the chapter

promote water sustainability in the light of climate change.

Additional information is available at the end of the chapter

#### **Introductory Chapter: Water Sustainability in a Dynamic World Introductory Chapter: Water Sustainability in a Dynamic World**

DOI: 10.5772/intechopen.85150

Prathna Thanjavur Chandrasekaran Prathna Thanjavur Chandrasekaran

Additional information is available at the end of the chapter Additional information is available at the end of the chapter

http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.85150

**1. Introduction**

Water is the largest limited natural resource which is vital for survival of all living beings. Floods, droughts, and famines brought about by climate changes have been noted to occur with more frequency in the recent years. Therefore, the need for the adoption of sustainable methods toward water use and management is critical in the present-day scenario. In addition, there is also an urgent need to develop policies and make smart investment decisions to promote water sustainability in the light of climate change.

### **2. Water footprint**

Increase in standard of living around the world has also brought with it an increase in the demand for water-intensive goods further impacting the already limited fresh water resources [1]. Water footprint is the term used to calculate the amount of water pertaining to the production of a commodity. The water footprint can either be classified as green, blue, or grey depending on the source of water used for producing a product. While green refers to the amount of rainwater, blue refers to the amount of groundwater used to produce a product. On the other hand, grey water footprint refers to the amount of fresh water that will be used to dilute an aqueous solution consisting of pollutants to bring it down to the desirable level. It is critical that countries take steps to keep the water footprint at the lowest and promote sustainable management of water resources as the implications of irresponsible water usage can be global in nature [2].

© 2016 The Author(s). Licensee InTech. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. © 2019 The Author(s). Licensee IntechOpen. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

## **3. Water-stressed cities**

Studies from The Nature Conservancy report indicate that one in four major cities is water stressed, and the demands for water will double in the next three decades. The Water Scarce Cities (WSC) Initiative was initiated by the World Bank to promote water security. This was promoted by increasing awareness among people and nations, facilitating collaborations and dialogs between stakeholders, and by facilitating and providing technical assistance and logistical support in countries [3]. In the present situation of water scarcity, it is critical to rethink related aspects of urban water management in the light of rainwater harvesting, water use, and wastewater treatment since all these sectors need to be handled together [4].

monitoring by both developing and developed countries. SDG 6 and SDG 14 are focused on ensuring availability of safe drinking water to all and sustainable use of marine and ocean resources, respectively. This explains the urgent need to move toward sustainable water management. Many countries have taken initiatives to adopt sustainable water use and reuse techniques, while others have realized the need for such measures. Protecting the ecosystem

Introductory Chapter: Water Sustainability in a Dynamic World

http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.85150

5

for the future generations begins with judicious water management strategies today.

Department of Irrigation and Flood Control, Government of NCT of Delhi, India

† Formerly with Department of Environmental Engineering and Water Technology,

[1] The Importance of Water Sustainability [Internet]. 2015. Available from: https://www. thegef.org/news/importance-water-sustainability [Accessed: February 10, 2019]

[2] Leblanc R. Water Footprint and Its Growing Importance [Internet]. 2017. Available from: https://www.thegef.org/news/importance-water-sustainability [Accessed: February 09,

[3] World Bank. Water Scarce Cities Initiative [Internet]. Available from: http://pubdocs. worldbank.org/en/588881494274482854/Water-Scarce-Cities-Initiative.pdf [Accessed:

[4] Cole LN. Reduce and Reuse: Surprising insights from UC Berkeley Professor Sedlak on What Makes a City More Water Resilient [Internet]. 2017. Available from: http://blogs. worldbank.org/water/reduce-and-reuse-surprising-insights-uc-berkeley-professor-

[5] Al-Jayoussi OR. Greywater reuse: Towards sustainable water management. Desalination.

sedlak-what-makes-city-more-water [Accessed: February 09, 2019]

**Author details**

**References**

2019]

February 09, 2019]

2003;**156**(1-3):181-192

Prathna Thanjavur Chandrasekaran

UNESCO-IHE, The Netherlands

Address all correspondence to: prathna.tc@gmail.com

### **4. Revival and rehabilitation of waterbodies**

Water management for a sustainable future also includes rejuvenation and revival of polluted waterbodies. Revival of the waterbody promotes the conservation of the ecology of the surrounding area. Rehabilitation of waterbodies is first brought about by cleaning/removal of the sludge settled, followed by methodical ways to stem the flow of effluents from industries or raw sewage into the waterbody. Recently, there has been an increased interest in exploring eco-friendly approaches in treatment of waterbodies. In the same vein, the potential of floating wetlands in promoting water purification has been widely studied. Floating wetlands often consist of hormonally treated plants with synergistic bacterial colonies in the rhizosphere region which have the ability to adsorb harmful trace contaminants in the waterbody.

### **5. Promoting clean water and cities**

Proper disposal practices with regard to hazardous chemicals (e.g. fertilizers) can go a long way in reducing the load of nutrients reaching the waterbody. Excessive levels of nitrogen and phosphorus in waterbodies (from surface run-off from agricultural fields) can promote eutrophication of waterbodies leading to the destruction of the fresh water ecosystem. Maintaining a low level of water footprint and judicious water reuse strategies can significantly reduce the water consumption and reduce the water stress. Water reuse strategies such as a grey water pool system can be undertaken at a larger scale in communities to promote sustainable water management. Adoption of techniques like rainwater harvesting to recharge the aquifer as well as use it as a source of water can be promoted extensively thereby minimizing run-off of precious rainwater into open drains [5].

### **6. Conclusion**

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development put forth by the United Nations identified 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) which requires urgent attention, implementation, and monitoring by both developing and developed countries. SDG 6 and SDG 14 are focused on ensuring availability of safe drinking water to all and sustainable use of marine and ocean resources, respectively. This explains the urgent need to move toward sustainable water management. Many countries have taken initiatives to adopt sustainable water use and reuse techniques, while others have realized the need for such measures. Protecting the ecosystem for the future generations begins with judicious water management strategies today.

### **Author details**

**3. Water-stressed cities**

4 Water and Sustainability

Studies from The Nature Conservancy report indicate that one in four major cities is water stressed, and the demands for water will double in the next three decades. The Water Scarce Cities (WSC) Initiative was initiated by the World Bank to promote water security. This was promoted by increasing awareness among people and nations, facilitating collaborations and dialogs between stakeholders, and by facilitating and providing technical assistance and logistical support in countries [3]. In the present situation of water scarcity, it is critical to rethink related aspects of urban water management in the light of rainwater harvesting, water

use, and wastewater treatment since all these sectors need to be handled together [4].

Water management for a sustainable future also includes rejuvenation and revival of polluted waterbodies. Revival of the waterbody promotes the conservation of the ecology of the surrounding area. Rehabilitation of waterbodies is first brought about by cleaning/removal of the sludge settled, followed by methodical ways to stem the flow of effluents from industries or raw sewage into the waterbody. Recently, there has been an increased interest in exploring eco-friendly approaches in treatment of waterbodies. In the same vein, the potential of floating wetlands in promoting water purification has been widely studied. Floating wetlands often consist of hormonally treated plants with synergistic bacterial colonies in the rhizosphere region which have the ability to adsorb harmful trace contaminants in the waterbody.

Proper disposal practices with regard to hazardous chemicals (e.g. fertilizers) can go a long way in reducing the load of nutrients reaching the waterbody. Excessive levels of nitrogen and phosphorus in waterbodies (from surface run-off from agricultural fields) can promote eutrophication of waterbodies leading to the destruction of the fresh water ecosystem. Maintaining a low level of water footprint and judicious water reuse strategies can significantly reduce the water consumption and reduce the water stress. Water reuse strategies such as a grey water pool system can be undertaken at a larger scale in communities to promote sustainable water management. Adoption of techniques like rainwater harvesting to recharge the aquifer as well as use it as a source of water can be promoted extensively thereby minimizing run-off of

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development put forth by the United Nations identified 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) which requires urgent attention, implementation, and

**4. Revival and rehabilitation of waterbodies**

**5. Promoting clean water and cities**

precious rainwater into open drains [5].

**6. Conclusion**

Prathna Thanjavur Chandrasekaran

Address all correspondence to: prathna.tc@gmail.com

Department of Irrigation and Flood Control, Government of NCT of Delhi, India

† Formerly with Department of Environmental Engineering and Water Technology, UNESCO-IHE, The Netherlands

### **References**


**Chapter 2**

**Provisional chapter**

**Sustainable and Resilient Water and Energy Futures:**

**Sustainable and Resilient Water and Energy Futures:** 

A safe, secure and affordable water future—for life, health, economy—are foundational outcomes from a new form of ethics for water stewardship and energy management. Current business as usual in water and energy systems have not led to sustainable, healthy nor resilient pathways for urban and rural communities alike. Today, an estimated 400 million people live in cities with significant water shortages. This is while 25% of water is currently lost before even used in urban areas (up to 60% in some cities) due to aging infrastructure. In addition, on average, only 10% of wastewater is treated before returning to water bodies in developing countries. By 2040, more than 66% of the world's populations could suffer from severe water shortages; and by 2050, an 80% increase in urban water demand (over current levels) may result in one billion city dwellers and 36% (one in three) of cities expected to face water crises. A crisis is often a catalyst for innovation and this chapter is a call to cities to enable strategic responses—moving away from legacy 'siloed' infrastructures, over-allocated water resources and emerging ethical

dilemmas to integrated water- and energy-related urban nexus strategies.

**Keywords:** ethics, choices, infrastructure, nexus strategies, resilient urban systems

The world's aquifers are being depleted at rapid rates due to growing populations and unsustainable urbanization practices, including land use sprawl and ever-increasing water and energy resource demands. According to recent analyses, an estimated 400 million people already live in cities with significant water shortages today, and with an 80% increase in

> © 2016 The Author(s). Licensee InTech. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

© 2019 The Author(s). Licensee IntechOpen. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use,

distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

DOI: 10.5772/intechopen.82825

**From New Ethics and Choices to Urban Nexus**

**From New Ethics and Choices to Urban Nexus** 

**Strategies**

**Abstract**

**1. Introduction**

**Strategies**

Josh Sperling and Will Sarni

Josh Sperling and Will Sarni

http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.82825

Additional information is available at the end of the chapter

Additional information is available at the end of the chapter

#### **Sustainable and Resilient Water and Energy Futures: From New Ethics and Choices to Urban Nexus Strategies Sustainable and Resilient Water and Energy Futures: From New Ethics and Choices to Urban Nexus Strategies**

DOI: 10.5772/intechopen.82825

Josh Sperling and Will Sarni Josh Sperling and Will Sarni

Additional information is available at the end of the chapter Additional information is available at the end of the chapter

http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.82825

#### **Abstract**

A safe, secure and affordable water future—for life, health, economy—are foundational outcomes from a new form of ethics for water stewardship and energy management. Current business as usual in water and energy systems have not led to sustainable, healthy nor resilient pathways for urban and rural communities alike. Today, an estimated 400 million people live in cities with significant water shortages. This is while 25% of water is currently lost before even used in urban areas (up to 60% in some cities) due to aging infrastructure. In addition, on average, only 10% of wastewater is treated before returning to water bodies in developing countries. By 2040, more than 66% of the world's populations could suffer from severe water shortages; and by 2050, an 80% increase in urban water demand (over current levels) may result in one billion city dwellers and 36% (one in three) of cities expected to face water crises. A crisis is often a catalyst for innovation and this chapter is a call to cities to enable strategic responses—moving away from legacy 'siloed' infrastructures, over-allocated water resources and emerging ethical dilemmas to integrated water- and energy-related urban nexus strategies.

**Keywords:** ethics, choices, infrastructure, nexus strategies, resilient urban systems

### **1. Introduction**

The world's aquifers are being depleted at rapid rates due to growing populations and unsustainable urbanization practices, including land use sprawl and ever-increasing water and energy resource demands. According to recent analyses, an estimated 400 million people already live in cities with significant water shortages today, and with an 80% increase in

© 2016 The Author(s). Licensee InTech. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. © 2019 The Author(s). Licensee IntechOpen. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

urban water demand (over today's levels) projected by 2050, 1 billion city dwellers and 36% of (one in three) cities are expected to face water crises by 2050 [1]. Even earlier, by 2040, more than 66% of the world's populations could suffer from sever water shortage—all while 25% of water is lost before even used in urban areas (up to 60% in some cities), due to poor maintenance or infrastructure. In addition, on average, only 10% of wastewater is treated before returning to water bodies in developing countries [2].

In this chapter, we define a spectrum of failures in current 'rear-view mirror' approaches to urban water strategy and their consequences. This is followed by the development of a preliminary urban response maturity model, in the next chapter, that's based upon learnings from recent water crisis events and other sectors (e.g., telecommunications to energy) which are also undergoing transformational change. For example, Bangladesh moving from almost zero mobile cellular subscriptions per 100 people in 2000 to over 78.8 per 100 people in 2015. In addition, solar PV prices declined almost 75% from 2010 to 2017 and onshore wind electric-

Sustainable and Resilient Water and Energy Futures: From New Ethics and Choices to Urban…

http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.82825

9

Transformational changes often come from defining vectors forward toward 'leapfrogs' in technologies decision systems and systems integration processes that move from reactive crisis response-modes, voluntary programs, and inadequate data systems to proactively accepting responsibility for informed market-enabling technologies, that could spur many new shared economy or water and energy development models—especially focused on rapidly urbanizing areas. A focus on integrated, ethics, and performance-based urban nexus strate-

Urban NEXUS strategies (UNS) will refer in this chapter to an emerging approach and process that aims to integrate actors, knowledge, data, and assessment tools to inform the design of best practices that can be leveraged and shared across sectors and domains to deliver sustainable, healthy, and resilient water and energy systems and infrastructure services that improve

While the majority of this chapter explores the complex urban water challenges and responses needed ahead, an aspiration of 'leapfrogs' forward via urban nexus strategies are anticipated to help target more ambitious goals and integrated metrics for risk mitigation, to enhance a city's global competitiveness—in a rapidly evolving market place for innovative solutions to urban water crises. Trends of on-demand, data-driven analytics informing integrated, or nexus (rather than siloed)-based governance of critical resource-based services may also bring forward new ethics-driven decision and behavioral approaches as a key component to sys-

**3. Water stressed cities and urban water-energy nexus responses**

Throughout history, civilizations and cities have primarily located where water is plentiful along coastlines, rivers, lakes, and mountains. Cities without water are a catalyst for many forms of instability—from economic and social to environmental, agricultural and political. This is an increasing challenge for many of the world's megacities, as well as smaller to midsize cities that are urbanizing and industrializing at a rate of change that's been unparalleled in history. Between 2000 and 2025, it is expected that the number of megacities will roughly double, and with urban populations of 1 million reaching 2 million in timeframes as short as 8–12 years. This has significant implications for abilities to keep up with growth and maintain

ity by 25% to \$0.06USD/kWh in 2017.

quality of life while catalyzing urban innovation.

gies is defined as follows:

tems integration for UNS.

sustainable water services (**Figure 1**).

Current lack of reliable infrastructure, high levels of pollution, increasing frequency and intensity of extreme weather events (e.g. droughts, flooding, wildfires), power outages for water and wastewater utility services in and around cities—all these factors will continue to affect reliable water supply, quality of services, and health—from Flint, Michigan; Cape Town, South Africa; to Delhi, India. This does not bode well for cities lacking long term strategies that respond to challenges of rising water demands for urban, agricultural, energy, and industrial production systems; and new global risks.

Ethical dilemmas and painful choices are emerging from 'lock-in' effects and environmental change to outdated governance and institutional regulatory/decision structures that have been driven by siloed systems decisions and unsustainable approaches to consistently delivering basic water, energy, food, and waste management services in an increasingly urban world. Aging infrastructure, increasingly over-allocated water resources and lack of strategies to mitigate risks (associated with urbanization, economic and environmental stress, and cybersecurity) have, in many parts of the world, brought ethical dilemmas to the forefront. In fact, this chapter outlines how many global cities are still relying on nineteenth century water policies and twentieth century infrastructure yet are now confronted with paralyzing twenty-first century challenges. In general, there is a 'rear-view mirror' approach and urban water management—continuing to look to the past to guide infrastructure planning and public policy (e.g. the loss of stationarity in water planning) with limited funds to modernize services.

### **2. From pain points and ethics dilemmas to urban solutions**

Case studies that highlight and quantify critical pain points, narrate emerging ethical dilemmas, and outline breakthrough, interdisciplinary responses will be needed to enable new opportunities for improving quality of life, prosperity, sustainability and resilience of communities and cities. There are many examples of inaction or reaction to stresses and shocks in the urban water sector. They include current crises in water availability and quality issues in cities from Los Angeles, California to Flint, Michigan in the United States; to Sao Paolo, Brazil; Cape Town, South Africa; and Sana'a, Yemen globally; as well as increasing frequency and intensity of weather extremes and natural disasters (e.g. floods experienced in San Juan, Puerto Rico; to extreme heat in Lahore, Pakistan; to population migration in Beirut, Lebanon due to water-driven security risks in Syria; to persistent and water-related food insecurity in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; to limited drinking water in Gaza and significant wastewater effluent discharges into the Mediterranean, increasingly leading to events of shutting down of Ashkelon's desalination plant, that now supplies up to 20% of Israel's drinking water) [6].

In this chapter, we define a spectrum of failures in current 'rear-view mirror' approaches to urban water strategy and their consequences. This is followed by the development of a preliminary urban response maturity model, in the next chapter, that's based upon learnings from recent water crisis events and other sectors (e.g., telecommunications to energy) which are also undergoing transformational change. For example, Bangladesh moving from almost zero mobile cellular subscriptions per 100 people in 2000 to over 78.8 per 100 people in 2015. In addition, solar PV prices declined almost 75% from 2010 to 2017 and onshore wind electricity by 25% to \$0.06USD/kWh in 2017.

urban water demand (over today's levels) projected by 2050, 1 billion city dwellers and 36% of (one in three) cities are expected to face water crises by 2050 [1]. Even earlier, by 2040, more than 66% of the world's populations could suffer from sever water shortage—all while 25% of water is lost before even used in urban areas (up to 60% in some cities), due to poor maintenance or infrastructure. In addition, on average, only 10% of wastewater is treated before

Current lack of reliable infrastructure, high levels of pollution, increasing frequency and intensity of extreme weather events (e.g. droughts, flooding, wildfires), power outages for water and wastewater utility services in and around cities—all these factors will continue to affect reliable water supply, quality of services, and health—from Flint, Michigan; Cape Town, South Africa; to Delhi, India. This does not bode well for cities lacking long term strategies that respond to challenges of rising water demands for urban, agricultural, energy, and

Ethical dilemmas and painful choices are emerging from 'lock-in' effects and environmental change to outdated governance and institutional regulatory/decision structures that have been driven by siloed systems decisions and unsustainable approaches to consistently delivering basic water, energy, food, and waste management services in an increasingly urban world. Aging infrastructure, increasingly over-allocated water resources and lack of strategies to mitigate risks (associated with urbanization, economic and environmental stress, and cybersecurity) have, in many parts of the world, brought ethical dilemmas to the forefront. In fact, this chapter outlines how many global cities are still relying on nineteenth century water policies and twentieth century infrastructure yet are now confronted with paralyzing twenty-first century challenges. In general, there is a 'rear-view mirror' approach and urban water management—continuing to look to the past to guide infrastructure planning and public policy (e.g.

the loss of stationarity in water planning) with limited funds to modernize services.

Case studies that highlight and quantify critical pain points, narrate emerging ethical dilemmas, and outline breakthrough, interdisciplinary responses will be needed to enable new opportunities for improving quality of life, prosperity, sustainability and resilience of communities and cities. There are many examples of inaction or reaction to stresses and shocks in the urban water sector. They include current crises in water availability and quality issues in cities from Los Angeles, California to Flint, Michigan in the United States; to Sao Paolo, Brazil; Cape Town, South Africa; and Sana'a, Yemen globally; as well as increasing frequency and intensity of weather extremes and natural disasters (e.g. floods experienced in San Juan, Puerto Rico; to extreme heat in Lahore, Pakistan; to population migration in Beirut, Lebanon due to water-driven security risks in Syria; to persistent and water-related food insecurity in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; to limited drinking water in Gaza and significant wastewater effluent discharges into the Mediterranean, increasingly leading to events of shutting down of Ashkelon's desalination plant, that now supplies up to 20% of Israel's drinking water) [6].

**2. From pain points and ethics dilemmas to urban solutions**

returning to water bodies in developing countries [2].

8 Water and Sustainability

industrial production systems; and new global risks.

Transformational changes often come from defining vectors forward toward 'leapfrogs' in technologies decision systems and systems integration processes that move from reactive crisis response-modes, voluntary programs, and inadequate data systems to proactively accepting responsibility for informed market-enabling technologies, that could spur many new shared economy or water and energy development models—especially focused on rapidly urbanizing areas. A focus on integrated, ethics, and performance-based urban nexus strategies is defined as follows:

Urban NEXUS strategies (UNS) will refer in this chapter to an emerging approach and process that aims to integrate actors, knowledge, data, and assessment tools to inform the design of best practices that can be leveraged and shared across sectors and domains to deliver sustainable, healthy, and resilient water and energy systems and infrastructure services that improve quality of life while catalyzing urban innovation.

While the majority of this chapter explores the complex urban water challenges and responses needed ahead, an aspiration of 'leapfrogs' forward via urban nexus strategies are anticipated to help target more ambitious goals and integrated metrics for risk mitigation, to enhance a city's global competitiveness—in a rapidly evolving market place for innovative solutions to urban water crises. Trends of on-demand, data-driven analytics informing integrated, or nexus (rather than siloed)-based governance of critical resource-based services may also bring forward new ethics-driven decision and behavioral approaches as a key component to systems integration for UNS.

### **3. Water stressed cities and urban water-energy nexus responses**

Throughout history, civilizations and cities have primarily located where water is plentiful along coastlines, rivers, lakes, and mountains. Cities without water are a catalyst for many forms of instability—from economic and social to environmental, agricultural and political. This is an increasing challenge for many of the world's megacities, as well as smaller to midsize cities that are urbanizing and industrializing at a rate of change that's been unparalleled in history. Between 2000 and 2025, it is expected that the number of megacities will roughly double, and with urban populations of 1 million reaching 2 million in timeframes as short as 8–12 years. This has significant implications for abilities to keep up with growth and maintain sustainable water services (**Figure 1**).

Cities in wet to dry geographies are now facing increasing population and resultant resource demands. They are also in a unique position to transform water, energy and food nexus stress into strategies to vastly improve resilience and create abundance. An integrated strategy to manage nexus stress is needed for cities to thrive, economically and socially, in the twentyfirst century. **Figure 2** illustrates the interactions and interdependencies of these trends and

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The CDP Water program has developed research on the responses of global cities to these risks. The research indicates the cities most concerned about their water supply are in Asia and Oceania (84%), with serious risks also identified in Africa (80%) and Latin America (75%). Sixty-three percent of North American cities consider climate change a risk to water supply, with fewer cities concerned in Europe (34%). One hundred and ninety-six cities reported risks of water stress and scarcity, 132 a risk of declining water quality and 103 a risk

CDP's new infographic report 'Who's Tackling Urban Water Challenges', produced in partnership with AECOM, the global infrastructure firm, and funded by Bloomberg Philanthropies, offers a first dataset of global water action by cities and companies. Using information gathered from 569 cities and 1432 companies, each reporting their water management activity, the database illustrates how global cities and companies are responding to the escalating challenge of resource

Businesses are also reporting to CDP on impacts from water scarcity and flooding. In 2017, 535 companies (70%) have board level oversight of water issues and are reaping the rewards, including market differentiation, shareholder confidence and business resilience. In 2017, companies committed US\$23.4 billion across more than 1000 projects to tackle water risks across 91 countries worldwide, including desalination, reclaiming waste-water and improving irriga-

key urban resilience challenges.

of flooding.

tion to avoid droughts [4].

**4. Urban water data: understanding risks**

**Figure 2.** Interdependencies of the energy water food nexus.

constraints, rising demands, and changing conditions.

**Figure 1.** Mega-cities in 2000 vs. 2025 (note: today megacities represent 10% of world urban population, with smaller to mid-size cities often having more limited resources to adapt to change) [3].

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**Figure 2.** Interdependencies of the energy water food nexus.

Cities in wet to dry geographies are now facing increasing population and resultant resource demands. They are also in a unique position to transform water, energy and food nexus stress into strategies to vastly improve resilience and create abundance. An integrated strategy to manage nexus stress is needed for cities to thrive, economically and socially, in the twentyfirst century. **Figure 2** illustrates the interactions and interdependencies of these trends and key urban resilience challenges.

### **4. Urban water data: understanding risks**

**Figure 1.** Mega-cities in 2000 vs. 2025 (note: today megacities represent 10% of world urban population, with smaller to

mid-size cities often having more limited resources to adapt to change) [3].

10 Water and Sustainability

The CDP Water program has developed research on the responses of global cities to these risks. The research indicates the cities most concerned about their water supply are in Asia and Oceania (84%), with serious risks also identified in Africa (80%) and Latin America (75%). Sixty-three percent of North American cities consider climate change a risk to water supply, with fewer cities concerned in Europe (34%). One hundred and ninety-six cities reported risks of water stress and scarcity, 132 a risk of declining water quality and 103 a risk of flooding.

CDP's new infographic report 'Who's Tackling Urban Water Challenges', produced in partnership with AECOM, the global infrastructure firm, and funded by Bloomberg Philanthropies, offers a first dataset of global water action by cities and companies. Using information gathered from 569 cities and 1432 companies, each reporting their water management activity, the database illustrates how global cities and companies are responding to the escalating challenge of resource constraints, rising demands, and changing conditions.

Businesses are also reporting to CDP on impacts from water scarcity and flooding. In 2017, 535 companies (70%) have board level oversight of water issues and are reaping the rewards, including market differentiation, shareholder confidence and business resilience. In 2017, companies committed US\$23.4 billion across more than 1000 projects to tackle water risks across 91 countries worldwide, including desalination, reclaiming waste-water and improving irrigation to avoid droughts [4].

**Figure 3.** Urban risk timescales, magnitude, CDP cities water security database [5] (n = 312 cities; self-reported).

in next section on solutions, decision systems, and maturity levels—to operationalize the framework—on urban water strategy maturity, focusing on systems integration and service

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An overview of impacts in the cities with some of the highest risk of water insecurity are

• Scarcity of clean water, especially in areas near the coast of North Jakarta and West Jakarta

• Increased frequency of rain affecting the area, with increased inundation/flood areas

• Water riots expected as 1 Billion gallon per day requirement is only met with 600 Mgd

• Currently, the output of all the water sources for the city is 570,000 cubic meters against a demand of 740,000 cubic meters. This means we only meet 77% of current water

• The current reticulation infrastructure is very old and, as a result, contributes to huge water

• With the flooding associated with the heavy downpours that the city experiences, there

have been instances where water pipes have been swept away.

innovation across sectors and 'siloes' (**Figures 4** and **5**).

provided below.

**Jakarta**

**Karachi**

**Nairobi**

demand.

losses due to leakages.

**5. Exploring risk descriptions from 'hotspot' cities**

**Figure 5.** Proportional assessment of types of risks shaping water insecurity [5].

• Pollution caused by industrial and household activities

**Figure 4.** One hundred and ten global cities that are categorized into lower, medium and higher water risk categories. Re-analysis of September 2017 data from CDP [5].

Data re-analyses of the CDP Cities and Water Security self-reported database are shown in **Figure 3**. This includes exploring data from 312 cities in terms of water insecurity risk type, level of severity and the temporal nature of these risks (keeping in mind a need to balance the biases that may be associated with self-reported data). This is followed by a greater emphasis

**Figure 5.** Proportional assessment of types of risks shaping water insecurity [5].

in next section on solutions, decision systems, and maturity levels—to operationalize the framework—on urban water strategy maturity, focusing on systems integration and service innovation across sectors and 'siloes' (**Figures 4** and **5**).
