scholarly journals Analyzing Evidence of Sustainable Urban Water Management Systems: A Review through the Lenses of Sociotechnical Transitions

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (11) ◽  
pp. 4481 ◽  
Author(s):  
Blal Adem Esmail ◽  
Lina Suleiman
Keyword(s):  
Water Management ◽  
Green Roofs ◽  
Management Systems ◽  
Urban Water ◽  
Methodological Framework ◽  
Urban Water Management ◽  
Environmental Pressures ◽  
Sustainable Urban Water Management ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Transition Research

Sustainability concerns and multiple socio-environmental pressures have necessitated a shift towards Sustainable Urban Water Management (SUWM) systems. Viewing SUWM systems as sociotechnical, this paper departs from eight factors previously identified by transition research: Pressures, Context, Purposes, Actors, Instruments, Processes, Outputs, and Outcomes as a methodological framework for a structured review of 100 articles. The study seeks to analyze empirical cases of planning and implementing SUWM systems worldwide. A wide range of public actors—driven by social and environmental factors rather than by economic pressures—have initiated SUWM projects so as to locally fulfill defined social and environmental purposes. We provide evidence on the emergence of new actors, such as experts, users, and private developers, as well as on the diverse and innovative technical and societal instruments used to promote and implement SUWM systems. We also explore their contexts and institutional capacity to deal with pressures and to mobilize significant financial and human resources, which is in itself vital for the transition to SUWM. Planned or implemented SUWM outputs are divided into green (wet ponds, raingardens, and green roofs) and gray (rain barrels and porous pavements) measures. The outcomes of SUWM projects—in terms of societal and technical learning, and their institutional uptakes—are often implicit or lacking, which seemingly reduces the rate of desirable change.

A cost-sustainability analysis of urban water management

1999 ◽  
Vol 39 (5) ◽  
pp. 211-218 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Icke ◽  
R. M. van den Boomen ◽  
R. H. Aalderink
Keyword(s):  
Water Management ◽  
Water Cycle ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Town Planning ◽  
Urban Water ◽  
Urban Water Management ◽  
Management Options ◽  
Sustainable Urban Water Management ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Urban Water Cycle

A simple model for the urban water cycle is presented, based on mass balances for water and phosphorus. This model is used for the evaluation of the sustainability rate of the urban water cycle. This type of model is to be used in an early stage of town planning, to compare several possible measures. In general, contributing to achieving a more sustainable urban water management. A sensitivity analysis was performed to rank the management options and additional measures to their contribution to the sustainability rate of the urban water cycle. A module for the calculation of cost was linked to the model, revealing the relation between cost and the sustainability rate for a wide range of scenarios. The results show that an improved separated sewer system and the use of a local ground water source have the biggest impact on the sustainability rate. A slightly positive correlation between investment cost and the sustainability rate was found as well.

Transitioning to sustainable urban water management systems: how to define expected service functions?

2015 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 316-334 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ali Belmeziti ◽  
Frédéric Cherqui ◽  
Amélie Tourne ◽  
Damien Granger ◽  
Caty Werey ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Management ◽  
Management Systems ◽  
Urban Water ◽  
Urban Water Management ◽  
Sustainable Urban Water Management

Working towards sustainable urban water management: the vulnerability blind spot

2011 ◽  
Vol 64 (12) ◽  
pp. 2362-2369 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Werbeloff ◽  
R. Brown
Keyword(s):  
Water Management ◽  
Water Scarcity ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Holistic Approach ◽  
Blind Spot ◽  
Response Strategy ◽  
Urban Water ◽  
Urban Water Management ◽  
Sustainable Urban Water Management ◽  
Diversity Strategy

The unprecedented water scarcity in Australia coincides with the adoption of a new urban water rhetoric. The ‘Security through Diversity’ strategy has been adopted in a number of Australian cities as a new and innovative approach to urban water management. Although this strategy offers a more holistic approach to urban water management, in practice, the Security through Diversity strategy is largely being interpreted and implemented in a way that maintains the historical dependence on large scale, centralised water infrastructure and therefore perpetuates existing urban water vulnerabilities. This research explores the implementation of Security through Diversity as the new water scarcity response strategy in the cities of Perth and Melbourne. Through a qualitative study with over sixty-five urban water practitioners, the results reveal that the practitioners have absorbed the new Security through Diversity language whilst maintaining the existing problem and solution framework for urban water management. This can be explained in terms of an entrenched technological path dependency and cognitive lock-in that is preventing practitioners from more comprehensively engaging with the complexities of the Security through Diversity strategy, which is ultimately perpetuating the existing vulnerability of our cities. This paper suggests that greater engagement with the underlying purpose of the security though diversity strategy is a necessary first step to overcome the constraints of the traditional technological paradigm and more effectively reduce the continued vulnerability of Australian cities.

Realising sustainable urban water management: Can social theory help?

2013 ◽  
Vol 67 (1) ◽  
pp. 109-116 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. J. Bos ◽  
R. R. Brown
Keyword(s):  
Water Management ◽  
Decision Making ◽  
Social Theory ◽  
System Change ◽  
Water Systems ◽  
Urban Water ◽  
Urban Water Management ◽  
Sustainable Urban Water Management ◽  
Social Theories ◽  
Technical Systems

It has been acknowledged, in Australia and beyond, that existing urban water systems and management lead to unsustainable outcomes. Therefore, our current socio-technical systems, consisting of institutions, structures and rules, which guide traditional urban water practices, need to change. If a change towards sustainable urban water management (SUWM) practices is to occur, a transformation of our established social-technical configuration that shapes the behaviour and decision making of actors is needed. While some constructive innovations that support this transformation have occurred, most innovations remain of a technical nature. These innovative projects do not manage to achieve the widespread social and institutional change needed for further diffusion and uptake of SUWM practices. Social theory, and its research, is increasingly being recognised as important in responding to the challenges associated with evolving to a more sustainable form of urban water management. This paper integrates three areas of social theories around change in order to provide a conceptual framework that can assist with socio-technical system change. This framework can be utilised by urban water practitioners in the design of interventions to stimulate transitions towards SUWM.

The role of membrane technology in sustainable decentralized wastewater systems

2005 ◽  
Vol 51 (10) ◽  
pp. 317-325 ◽  
Author(s):  
A.G. Fane ◽  
S.A. Fane
Keyword(s):  
Water Management ◽  
Wastewater Treatment ◽  
Water Reuse ◽  
Wastewater Reuse ◽  
Membrane Technology ◽  
Urban Water ◽  
Urban Water Management ◽  
Decentralized Wastewater Treatment ◽  
Sustainable Urban Water Management

Decentralized wastewater treatment has the potential to provide sanitation that meets criteria for sustainable urban water management in a manner that is less resource intensive and more cost effective than centralized approaches. It can facilitate water reuse and nutrient recovery and can potentially reduce the ecological risks of wastewater system failure and the community health risk in a wastewater reuse scheme. This paper examines the potential role of membrane technology in sustainable decentralized sanitation. It is argued that the combination of membrane technology within decentralized systems can satisfy many of the criteria for sustainable urban water management. In particular, the role of membranes as a dependable barrier in the wastewater treatment process can increase system reliability as well as lowering the latent risks due to wastewater reuse. The modular nature of membranes will allow plant size to range from single dwellings, through clusters to suburb size. It is concluded that realization of the potential for membrane-based technologies in decentralized wastewater treatment will require some progress both technically and institutionally. The areas where advances are necessary are outlined.

Implementation impediments to institutionalising the practice of sustainable urban water management

2006 ◽  
Vol 54 (6-7) ◽  
pp. 415-422 ◽  
Author(s):  
R.R. Brown ◽  
L. Sharp ◽  
R.M. Ashley
Keyword(s):  
Water Management ◽  
Water Cycle ◽  
Technical Solution ◽  
Urban Water ◽  
Urban Water Management ◽  
Narrow Scope ◽  
Sustainable Urban Water Management ◽  
Different Dimensions ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Management Issues

It is now well accepted that there are significant challenges to realising the widespread and self-sustaining implementation of sustainable urban water management. It is argued that these challenges are entrenched within the broader socio-political framework, yet often unsuccessfully addressed within the more narrow scope of improving technical knowledge and design capacity. This hypothesis is investigated through a comparative analysis of three independent research projects investigating different dimensions of the water cycle, including stormwater management in Australia and sanitary waste management and implementation of innovative technologies in the UK. The analysis reveals significant and common socio-political impediments to improved practice. It was evident that the administrative regime, including implementing professionals and institutions, appears to be largely driven by an implicit expectation that there is a technical solution to solve water management issues. This is in contrast to addressing the issues through broader strategies such as political leadership, institutional reform and social change. It is recognised that this technocratic culture is inadvertently underpinned by the need to demonstrate implementation success within short-term political cycles that conflict with both urban renewal and ecological cycles. Addressing this dilemma demands dedicated socio-technical research programs to enable the much needed shift towards a more sustainable regime.

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