scholarly journals Aligning Climate Governance with Urban Water Management: Insights from Transnational City Networks

Water ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 701 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jale Tosun ◽  
Lucas Leopold
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Water Management ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Urban Water ◽  
Urban Water Management ◽  
Adaptation To Climate Change ◽  
Climate Governance ◽  
Depth Analysis ◽  
Climate Action ◽  
Transnational City

A growing number of cities in different world regions are forming transnational networks in order to mitigate and adapt to climate change. In this study, we are interested in the nexus between climate change and urban water management. How do transnational city networks for climate action perceive urban water management? What kind of activities do they adopt for improving urban water management? How effective are these in practice? This study maps 17 transnational city networks that primarily work on climate governance, assesses whether they formally embrace urban water management as a field of activity, and analyzes the extent to which they influence local climate action regarding water-related issues. Our descriptive analysis reveals that the great majority of transnational city networks has embraced goals related to urban water management, mostly framed from the perspective of adaptation to climate change. However, our in-depth analysis of two frontrunner cities in Germany shows that membership in ICLEI (Local Governments for Sustainability) has only limited influence on the initiation and implementation of water-related policy measures.

Integrated urban water management applied to adaptation to climate change

Urban Climate ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 24 ◽  
pp. 247-263 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Kirshen ◽  
Semra Aytur ◽  
Jory Hecht ◽  
Andrew Walker ◽  
David Burdick ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Water Management ◽  
Urban Water ◽  
Urban Water Management ◽  
Adaptation To Climate Change ◽  
Integrated Urban Water Management

A conceptual framework for addressing complexity and unfolding transition dynamics when developing sustainable adaption strategies in urban water management

2012 ◽  
Vol 66 (11) ◽  
pp. 2393-2401 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. F. Fratini ◽  
M. Elle ◽  
M. B. Jensen ◽  
P. S. Mikkelsen
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Water Management ◽  
Conceptual Framework ◽  
Green Infrastructure ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
System Optimization ◽  
Urban Water ◽  
Urban Water Management ◽  
Adaptation To Climate Change ◽  
Sustainable Transition

To achieve a successful and sustainable adaptation to climate change we need to transform the way we think about change. Much water management research has focused on technical innovation with a range of new solutions developed to achieve a ‘more sustainable and integrated urban water management cycle’. But Danish municipalities and utility companies are struggling to bring such solutions into practice. ‘Green infrastructure’, for example, requires the consideration of a larger range of aspects related to the urban context than the traditional urban water system optimization. There is the need for standardized methods and guidelines to organize transdisciplinary processes where different types of knowledge and perspectives are taken into account. On the basis of the macro–meso–micro pattern inspired by complexity science and transition theory, we developed a conceptual framework to organize processes addressing the complexity characterizing urban water management in the context of climate change. In this paper the framework is used to organize a research process aiming at understanding and unfolding urban dynamics for sustainable transition. The final goal is to enable local authorities and utilities to create the basis for managing and catalysing the technical and organizational innovation necessary for a sustainable transition towards climate change adaptation in urban areas.

Adapting Cities to Climate Change: Institutional Change around Sustainable Urban Water Concepts in the City of Hamburg, Germany

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tom Hawxwell ◽  
Joerg Knieling
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Water Management ◽  
Research Policy ◽  
Water Systems ◽  
Institutional Arrangements ◽  
Sustainable Urban Development ◽  
Urban Water ◽  
Urban Water Management ◽  
Management Concepts ◽  
Urban Water Systems

<p>Diverse concepts have emerged in recent decades which (at least in their rhetoric) aim to instigate processes that make cities more resilient to climate change and support more sustainable urban development (Coaffee and Lee 2016; Hodson and Marvin 2017). With regards to urban water management, the Water-Sensitive City (WSC) is one such concept that promotes urban water planning to “protect, maintain and enhance the multiple benefits and services of the total urban water cycle that are highly valued by society” (Wong and Brown 2009, 674). The WSC, along with related integrated urban water management concepts have seen growing scholarly attention in recent years (see e.g. Fletcher et al. 2015). The emergence of such concepts reflects the growing demand for more sophisticated and integrated understanding and management of urban water systems. Such an ambitious model represents a broadening of the competencies and responsibilities of practitioners involved in water management and improved coordination with other urban sectors. Thus, such changes (must) typically coincide with changes amongst actors engaged directly or indirectly in water management, along with the prevailing institutional arrangements that govern their activities.</p> <p>Yet very little is known about processes of institutionalisation of such concepts within socio-technical regimes such as those that characterise urban water systems (Fuenfschilling and Truffer 2014). This paper aims to map processes of institutionalisation of concepts associated with the Water-Sensitive City amongst practitioners working in urban water management related fields in the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg. The research explores changes in the institutional arrangements between 1990 and 2020.</p> <p><strong>References</strong></p> <p>Coaffee, J., and P. Lee. 2016. <em>Urban Resilience:</em> <em>Planning for Risk, Crisis and Uncertainty</em>. Macmillan International Higher Education.</p> <p>Fletcher, T. D., W. Shuster, W. F. Hunt, R. Ashley, D. Butler, S. Arthur, S. Trowsdale, et al. 2015. ‘SUDS, LID, BMPs, WSUD and More – The Evolution and Application of Terminology Surrounding Urban Drainage’. <em>Urban Water Journal</em> 12 (7): 525–42. https://doi.org/10.1080/1573062X.2014.916314.</p> <p>Fuenfschilling, L., and B. Truffer. 2014. ‘The Structuration of Socio-Technical Regimes - Conceptual Foundations from Institutional Theory’. <em>Research Policy</em> 43 (4): 772–91. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.respol.2013.10.010.</p> <p>Hodson, M., and S. Marvin. 2017. ‘Intensifying or Transforming Sustainable Cities? Fragmented Logics of Urban Environmentalism’. <em>Local Environment</em> 22 (sup1): 8–22. https://doi.org/10.1080/13549839.2017.1306498.</p> <p>Wong, T. H. F., and R. R. Brown. 2009. ‘The Water Sensitive City: Principles for Practice’. <em>Water Science and Technology</em> 60 (3): 673–82. https://doi.org/10.2166/wst.2009.436.</p> <p> </p>

scholarly journals How Does Digitization Succeed in the Municipal Water Sector? The WaterExe4.0 Meta-Study Identifies Barriers as well as Success Factors, and Reveals Expectations for the Future

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (22) ◽  
pp. 7709
Author(s):  
Günter Müller-Czygan ◽  
Viktoriya Tarasyuk ◽  
Christian Wagner ◽  
Manuela Wimmer
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Water Management ◽  
Water Resources ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Digital Systems ◽  
Urban Water ◽  
Water Industry ◽  
Urban Water Management ◽  
The Future ◽  
German Speaking

Water is increasingly taking center stage when it comes to coping with climate change. Especially in urban areas, negative consequences from heavy rainfall events and prolonged dry periods are rising worldwide. In the past, the various tasks of urban water management were performed by different departments that often did not cooperate with each other (water supply, wastewater disposal, green space irrigation, etc.), as the required water supply was not a question of available water volumes. This is already changing with climate change, in some cases even dramatically. More and more, it is necessary to consider how to distribute available water resources in urban areas, especially during dry periods, since wastewater treatment is also becoming more complex and costly. In the future, urban water management will examine water use in terms of its various objectives, and will need to provide alternative water resources for these different purposes (groundwater, river water, storm water, treated wastewater, etc.). The necessary technological interconnection requires intelligent digital systems. Furthermore, the water industry must also play its role in global CO2 reduction and make its procedural treatment processes more efficient; this will also only succeed with adequate digital systems. Although digitization has experienced an enormous surge in development over the last five years and numerous solutions are available to address the challenges described previously, there is still a large gap between the scope of offerings and their implementation. Researchers at Hof University of Applied Sciences have investigated the reasons for this imbalance as part of WaterExe4.0, the first meta-study on digitization in the German-speaking water industry, funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research. Only 11% of roughly 700 identified products, projects and studies relate to real applications. For example, the surveyed experts of the water sector stated that everyday problems are considered too little or hardly at all in new solutions, which greatly overburdens users. Furthermore, they see no adequate possibility for a systematic analysis of new ideas to identify significant obstacles and to find the best way to start and implement a digitization project. The results from four methodologically different sub-surveys (literature and market research, survey, expert interviews and workshops) provide a reliable overview of the current situation in the German-speaking water industry and its expectations for the future. The results are also transferable to other countries.

scholarly journals Innovative Urban Water Management as a Climate Change Adaptation Strategy: Results from the Implementation of the Project “Water Against Climate Change (WATACLIC)”

Water ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
pp. 1025-1038 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giulio Conte ◽  
Andrea Bolognesi ◽  
Cristiana Bragalli ◽  
Sara Branchini ◽  
Alessandro Carli ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Water Management ◽  
Climate Change Adaptation ◽  
Adaptation Strategy ◽  
Urban Water ◽  
Urban Water Management

Receptivity to transformative change in the Dutch urban water management sector

2009 ◽  
Vol 60 (2) ◽  
pp. 311-320 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. E. de Graaf ◽  
R. J. Dahm ◽  
J. Icke ◽  
R. W. Goetgeluk ◽  
S. J. T. Jansen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Water Management ◽  
Water System ◽  
Water Systems ◽  
Management Policy ◽  
Urban Water ◽  
Transformative Change ◽  
Urban Water Management ◽  
Urban Water System ◽  
Urban Water Systems

Worldwide, the need for transformative change in urban water management is acknowledged by scientists and policy makers. The effects of climate change and developments such as urbanization, the European Water Framework Directive, and societal concerns about the sustainability of urban water system force the sector to adapt. In The Netherlands, a shift towards integration of spatial planning and water management can be observed. Despite major changes in water management policy and approach, changes in the physical urban water management infrastructure remain limited to incremental solutions and demonstration projects. Policy studies show that institutional factors and professional perceptions are important factors for application of innovations in urban water management. An online survey among Dutch urban water management professionals demonstrates that according to most respondents, optimization of the current system is sufficient to achieve both European and national objectives for sustainable urban water management. The respondents are most concerned with the effects of climate change on urban water systems. In contrast to current policy of the national government, priority factors that should be addressed to achieve a more sustainable urban water system are improving knowledge of local urban water systems, capacity building, developing trust between stakeholders, and improving involvement of elected officials and citizens.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document