Risks and Opportunities for Sustainable Management of Water Resources and Services in Santiago de Chile

Abstract

This chapter analyses the sustainability performance of water resource and water service management in the Metropolitan Region of Santiago de Chile, adopting water resource and water service perspectives. By comparing the targets with the current situation, we address sustainability deficits and identify potential risks to and opportunities for sustainable development. On the basis of this assessment, we summarize some of the most pressing issues that pose risks to sustainability and suggest mitigation alternatives. On the basis of population projections and historical fresh water data, we find that per capita availability could decrease from 767 to 1,100 today to 575–825 m3 per capita and year by 2030 for a normal water year, shifting Santiago de Chile from a position of water stress to one of water scarcity. This could become critical for semi-rural localities surrounding the urban core, which are currently outside the concession area of the major drinking water utilities. Although sewage treatment has improved considerably in the last 10 years, several reaches of natural streams remain at risk as a result of unregulated liquid emissions and solid waste disposal. Storm water management is still mostly confined to the development of a vast collection and disposal infrastructure, without significant investment in distributed management systems. Hence the risk of flooding in the lower areas of the city remains high, compounding other social problems in the city.