Theme 4-11-New perspective of urban water systems - meeting the sustainability challenge

Abstract

Nineteenth century urban water technology is no longer suitable for 21 St century cities. Increasingly large amounts of water to be imported from catchments located further and further away. Management of water and wastewater in the urban environment has become increasingly complex, and storm water and sewage prove difficult to keep separate and out of the local waterways. The infrastructure investment required to develop and maintain these systems is also high The refurbishment of ageing assets is a multi-billion rupee problem for water industry and the environmental impacts of the operation of these systems are already significant in many cases. A very basic problem of open material flows resulting in accumulation of pollution is not adequately addressed in present practices of water and wastewater resource management. These and other issues such as growing awareness of the environmental implications of current systems clearly demonstrate the need for a fundamental rethink of the way in which urban water services are provided. This paper deals with some of the strategic issues arising from the consideration of the sustainable development of urban water systems. Principles and best practices are discussed, both in general terms and challenges to professionals involved with the co-ordinated planning and management of urban water systems at river catchment levels.