Chapter 3 - Urban water-supply management: indirect issues of climate change leading to water scarcity scenarios in developing and underdeveloped nations

Abstract

Urban water-supply systems are increasingly burdened because of increase in population, economic growth, lifestyle changes and urbanization. Climate change puts additional pressure on the already stressed “urban water systems” by aggravating the challenges of water scarcity and water quality deterioration. Developing and underdeveloped nations are further disadvantaged because of lack of resources, rapid population growth, low GDP, polluting industries, insufficient response from institutions, and imperfect planning and management practices. This chapter introduces the area of “urban water supply,” its management, and the influence of climate change on it. It further goes on to explore the impacts of climate change on the urban water-supply systems in the context of developing and underdeveloped countries. Several mitigation, adaptation, and management approaches are discussed to deal with the challenges of climate change on urban water-supply systems. The methods of adaptation and mitigation to the impacts of climate change on urban water utilities in case of developing and underdeveloped nations is geared toward the use of affordable technologies, community participation, use of available resources, and adaptable management structure.