Smart Water: What Matters

UN defines water security as the capacity to safeguard sustainable access to adequate quality of water for human well being and socio-economic development while ensuring protection against water borne pollution and water related disaster and preserving the natural ecosystem. Smart Cities should utilise an Integrated Water Resource Management to secure the water availability to its people. It is an approach that requires multidisciplinary knowledge and stakeholders to implements efficient, equitable and sustainable solutions to water issues. A good governance and accountability of water management that is transparent, participatory and with appropriate & effective legal regimes is crucial. In addition, Gourbesville (2019) specify several major areas directly linked to the urban water use, that should be the focus for city leader for better water management, which are, real time monitoring, asset management & field work management, energy efficiency and water efficiency. Implementation of smart solutions in these major areas could contribute to the effort to safeguard water security and ecosystem protection.

Reference:

Gourbesville, P. (2019). Smart water solutions for water security: from concept to operational implementation. K. Lim, AK Makarigakis, O. Sohn, & B. Lee (Editor-in-Chief), Water security and the sustainable development goals, 47-67.

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