13 April 2015: The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) published a report on urban water management challenges facing cities across OECD countries, and national and local policy responses regarding water-risk exposure, urban infrastructures and dynamics, and institutional and governance architectures.

Titled ‘Water and Cities: Ensuring Sustainable Futures,’ the report explores the mutually dependent issues of finance, innovation, urban-rural cooperation and governance. It proposes a solutions-oriented typology based on urban characteristics, and emphasizes that sustainable urban water management requires collaboration across various government levels and with local initiatives and stakeholders.

OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurría launched the report on 13 April 2015, during the Seventh World Water Forum (WWF 7) in the Republic of Korea, stating that OECD cities are entering “a new era of uncertainty” regarding water services and security, and that planning ahead, in terms of financing and managing water, will be more cost-effective.

The report states that cities must retrofit existing assets into more adaptable infrastructure, and discusses emerging water management challenges, including: increased uncertainty regarding future water availability, as cities compete with other water users, such as farmers, energy suppliers and the environment, and the fact that climate change will lead to more extreme weather events and increased hydrological variability; financing infrastructures that channel, store, treat or move water; and water governance gaps, such as fragmented institutions, weak local-level capacity, and tensions between water, energy and land policies.

With 86% of the OECD population expected to be living in cities by 2050, the report finds that: city water systems in OECD countries will struggle with deteriorating plants and pipelines, pollution, and changing weather patterns; rapid urbanization means that urban users, farmers and energy firms will be draining the same water basins at a rapid pace; and fitting new hardware into old infrastructure to address future demands could significantly increase expenses and capital spending. The report also provides examples of water management innovation in cities. For example, Paris, France, and San Francisco, US, use non-potable water for cleaning streets and flushing toilets, which is less expensive.

Recommendations include: redesigning tariffs and taxes to discourage wasteful or costly practices; exploring new sources of funding from those who generate the highest costs; improving management of existing assets; encouraging cooperation and coordination between cities and surrounding areas; harnessing more private investment from financiers, property developers and entrepreneurs to finance new infrastructure, such as desalination or wastewater plants; driving innovation by changing regulations that favor old technologies and introducing performance-based contracts that reward conserving water, for example; empowering water regulators to protect the public interest and increase transparency in urban water supply and sanitation. [OECD Press Release] [Statement of OECD Secretary-General] [Publication: Water and Cities: Ensuring Sustainable Futures] [IISD RS Story on WWF 7]