Urban Water Security through Integrated Problem Diagnosis and Solution Design

Abstract:

The hurdles faced in the path of achieving urban water security are created by a complex interplay of social, economic, and environmental factors driven by forces such as climate change, population growth and urbanization. Advancement in technology has provided us with the fanciest solutions such as electronic sensors and digital platforms to track the quality and quantity water as it flows though the urban water cycle. However, it is still a challenge to ensure urban water security, especially in the developing and under-developed world as each city has its unique set of problems. Solutions implemented by city planners, water managers or governing agencies are mostly borrowed without analyzing the suitability of the solutions for the problems at hand. This disconnect between the problems and the solutions in the context of urban water management has inspired the present work which proposes a framework that connects the diagnosis of urban water challenges and design of a solution or a combination of solutions that not only addresses the symptoms for short term relief but also the root cause of the problems to achieve long term solution. The conceptual framework is demonstrated using the real-life example of the Bengaluru city in India. The urban water problems are first identified using the Driver Pressure State Impact Response framework and the interconnectedness is analyzed using System Dynamics Modelling. Various technical, social, managerial, institutional, and environmental solutions are analyzed using multi-criteria analysis to find the suitability of a solution and compare multiple solutions to understand the comparative effectiveness of each. The proposed framework is generalized enough, suited for its application across various cities and will be an effective bridge between the urban water problems and solutions to ensure urban water security. The overarching concept of the paper resonates with the core philosophy of Water Solutions Lab initiative of the Sustainable Water Future Programme of Future Earth. The present work is one of the first research contributions of the Water Solutions Lab Bengaluru and demonstrates the idea in the form of a framework along with a real-life example.