Water Sustainability Index Research Articles

Assessment and enhancement of community water supply system sustainability: A dual framework approach

Population growth, pollution, and urbanization strain water sustainability, leading to the premature failure of community-managed water systems globally. This underscores the formidable task of precisely defining and quantifying sustainability within these community contexts. Based on the “You can't manage what you can't measure” adage, this study developed dual frameworks at community scale to assess and enhance the water supply system's sustainability. The assessment framework includes dimensions, indicators, and variables that convene into a Water Sustainability Index (WSI). WSI ranges from 1 to 4 where a score below 1.5 indicates poor water sustainability, while a score exceeding 3.5 signifies excellent sustainability. Likewise, the enhancement framework consists of dimensions, goals, and strategies. These frameworks relied on three specific dimensions, efficiency, resiliency, and community support. The identification of indicators, variables, and goals was based on SMART criteria. While the dimensions, indicators and goals are to remain consistent regardless of study areas, variables and strategies are site-specific and their selection needs to be based on each community's situations and data availability. The assessment framework suggested that the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) community has achieved fair water sustainability status with a score of 2.25. The strategic framework yielded several recommendations aimed at enhancing the sustainability of the water supply system at the AIT. The study's outcomes offer tools to evaluate the current situation of sustainability and assists local community authorities in devising solutions to enhance sustainability in community supply systems. Looking ahead, these frameworks lay the groundwork for future investigations, to explore localized, community-centric strategies for sustainable water management.

Modeling urban growth effects on carrying capacity in arid and semi-arid regions using system dynamics

Urban carrying capacity (UCC) is essential to attaining sustainable development objectives. This study demonstrates the significance of strategies such as limiting built-up areas, preserving and expanding green and open spaces, and protecting water resources on health and urban carrying capacity in arid and semi-arid regions. This research is founded on the system dynamics model and aims to demonstrate, quantitatively and qualitatively, the interactions that affect urban carrying capacity between 2021 and 2040 in Tehran. The mean absolute percent error (MAPE), the coefficient of determination (R2), and the relative error (RE) all play a role in determining simulation accuracy. RE is less than 15 %, MAPE is less than 5 %, and R2 is more than 0.5, indicating that the system dynamics model adequately describes the actual behaviors. The results of the status quo scenario show that the current management policies will cause substantial damage to the environment, urban carrying capacity, and landscape subsystems and drive the system to an unsustainable level of water resources. In this scenario, between 2021 and 2040, water demand and built-up area increased by 26.26 % and 70.29 %, respectively, and in 2026, the Water Sustainability Index (WSI) will decline below 0.1, indicating that the water reserve cannot support the water demand after 2025. This study demonstrates that cities in arid and semi-arid regions cannot sustain continuous growth and physical development without considering the health of the primary carriers, such as spatial and water resources. In terms of health and urban carrying capacity, implementing a combination of policies aimed at enhancing urban green and open spaces and regulating water demand was the most effective. Also, considering that only ecological factors are considered in the present study, it is suggested that future research investigate economic and social aspects.

Water-Energy-Environment Nexus Analysis Tools: Case Study for Canary Islands

Despite that previous research exists, there is a need for further research on the quantitative aspects of this Nexus. Existing Water-Energy-Environment Nexus management tools and frameworks are based on indicators aiming to model the whole system, analyze the involved resources, and test potential management strategies. The environmental, social, and economic consequences of actions already taken and ongoing projects require important focus because of the strong relationship between water and energy supply, and that both are key issues for society’s development and sustainability. The present research focuses on the indicators that the Water-Energy-Environment Nexus tools and frameworks use to analyze the whole problem. Existing tools often require large amounts of data, becoming a time-consuming process that lowers the capacity to evaluate the political problems of high pollutants. With the aim of accelerating time evaluation, this research builds an indicator to rapidly evaluate the Water-Energy-Environment Nexus implications of replacing fossil-based power generation systems with wind and photovoltaic renewable energy systems in the water-scarce region of the Canary Islands. This indicator allowed the rapid evaluation of storylines in a small system with well-defined boundaries. Results show that the water sustainability index improved by 6.2% in comparison to fossil-based plants, while reducing 2750 tons of CO2. Although this methodology can be easily applied in different scenarios and locations, it further development to evaluate system boundaries and to provide extensive results.

Application of Sustainability Index of Tidal River Management (SITRM) in the Lower Ganges–Brahmaputra–Meghna Delta

The sustainability index (SI) is a relatively new concept for measuring the performance of water resource systems over long time periods. The purpose of its definition is to provide an indication of the integral behavior of the system with regard to possible undesired consequences if a misbalance in available and required waters occurs. Therefore, the tidal river management (TRM) approach has been implemented for the past three decades (from 1990 to 2020) within the polder system in Southwest Bangladesh to achieve water sustainability. TRM plan and watershed management plan (WMP) have commonalities as both are aimed at ensuring the sustainable use of watershed resources with the management of land, water, and the wider ecosystem of the watershed in an integrated way. The TRM plan focuses mostly on coastal regions, whereas the WMP focuses on both coastal and non-coastal regions. According to this, the aim of this study was to explore the application of the sustainability index of tidal river management (SITRM) in measuring the sustainability of tidal river management in the coastal area of the Lower Ganges–Brahmaputra–Meghna (GBM) delta. In order to quantify the sustainability of tidal river management, this research first provided the components and indicators of SITRM for the coastal region. The study follows a 5-point Likert scale for opinion survey of key informants and comprises households’ survey of farmers. In addition, it includes Landsat satellite images from Earth Explorer of the United States Geological Survey (USGS) and direct field observation to collect information regarding the indicators of SITRM. The study measures the index value of SITRM for identifying the water sustainability of Beel East Khukshia-TRM. The index value was 71.8 out of 100, showing good tidal river management for the Hari–Teka–Bhadra catchment. To achieve water sustainability and aid stakeholders and water managers in decision making, it may be possible to include the SITRM framework in tidal river management projects. In addition, the SITRM is more capable of facing drainage congestion, waterlogging, and climate change issues than watershed sustainability index (WSI), Canadian water sustainability index (CWSI), West Java water sustainability index (WJWSI), and water poverty index (WPI). Therefore, water professionals and policymakers can apply SITRM to assess the resilience of specific TRM schemes for greater sustainability in different coastal regions of the world.

A fuzzy-DEA water sustainability index: an application in European Union water risk hotspots

AbstractThe current global freshwater crisis threatens the present and future supply of water as a resource for humans. The scarcity of drinking water and the dependence of the food industry on water-intensive supply chains require the urgent development of strategies to analyze and guarantee the water sustainability of countries. This study proposes a fuzzy-data envelopment analysis composite index that measures, from a benchmarking approach, water sustainability by simultaneously considering capacity and resilience, and captures the uncertainty associated with time series variations in three scenarios: pessimistic, indifferent and optimistic. We present and apply an index based on five indicators of capacity and five indicators of resilience in ten European Union countries water risk hotspots. The results in terms of capacity presented a higher variability due to the strong growth in the exploitation of water resources in Greece, Spain, France, Italy and Portugal. The most sustainable countries in terms of capacity were Bulgaria and Estonia in a pessimistic and an indifferent scenario and France and Bulgaria in an optimistic scenario. In terms of resilience, Belgium and Portugal were the most sustainable countries. When considering capacity and resilience together, some countries such as Bulgaria and Estonia lost positions in the ranking, with Belgium occupying the first position. Some countries, such as Bulgaria, could see the sustainability of their water resources compromised in a scenario of economic development if they do not improve their governance and water productivity constraints.

A Sustainability Planning Framework and Methods for Rural Drinking Water in Satara District, Maharashtra, India

Districts across India are progressing toward the national Jal Jeevan Mission goal of piped water supply and 100% Functional Household Tap Connections (FHTC) for all by 2024. While state and national data monitor progress toward tap water connection coverage, the functionality and sustainability of those piped water supplies are less clear. This study presents a Sustainability Planning Framework to assess rural drinking water conditions and needs at the village, block, and district scales. It employs a mobile app to survey five key aspects of sustainability: source water sustainability, water service sustainability, operations and maintenance financial sustainability, village institutional capacity, and asset management. Ordinal scores for these sustainability variables are analyzed and interpreted though GIS mapping to identify locations and types of village support needed. Scores are aggregated to create an overall village drinking water sustainability index. Important hydroclimatic, geomorphological, and socio-economic correlates of the drinking water sustainability index are also examined. This framework and methods can help districts in Maharashtra and other states analyze drinking water services, plan future investments, and make policy adjustments to ensure sustainability.

Application of the Rural Water Sustainability Index (RWSI) in Amazon rural communities, Pará, Brazil

Abstract This paper proposes an adaptation of the Rural Water Sustainability Index (RWSI) to the Brazilian Amazon region. Policymakers can use this tool to identify areas of water stress and develop actions to guarantee water access to rural communities. Multi-criteria analysis and a geographical information system were integrated to incorporate various indicators and produce maps displaying spatial water sustainability levels in rural communities. The RWSI was employed on a case study at 16 rural communities in Santa Luzia do Pará, Pará, Brazil. In total, 380 closed and structured interviews were conducted with people living in the area to collect local information for the model application. The results showed a varied spatial behavior between rural communities of Santa Luzia do Pará, with similarities and differences based on the overall condition of water resources (final index values). Half of the locations had ‘Poor’ or ‘Poor-Medium’ water quality. The remaining sample obtained scores ranging from ‘Medium-Good’ to ‘Good’ water sustainability. RWSI scores varied widely (from 5.7 to 6.5) among the communities. It was also found that localities more distant from surface water presented more water stress.

Formulation of Water Sustainability Index for India as a performance gauge for realizing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 6.

Anthropogenic activities targeting economic progress have triggered changes in the Earth system processes causing depletion of resources and degradation of ecosystems. Water isa critical natural resource whichhas been severely impacted through groundwater depletion, surface water contamination and ocean acidification resulting in repercussions on human health and biodiversity losses. Likewise, India, a mega biodiversity nation has been critically affected by degradation and drawdown of water resources with far-reaching consequences on environmental vitality and socio-economic development. In order to prevent extreme water scarcity in the near future, the country needs to promote sustainable utilisation of water resources by adhering to the targets of Goal 6 of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN-SDGs). The present work, therefore, has focussed on the development of a Water Sustainability Index (WSI) for India that would help attaining the targets of SDG 6. A total of 12 indicators categorized under biophysical and social development dimensions and synonymous with the targets of SDG 6 have been used for the formulation of WSI and thereby understanding how much water resources are used annually in a sustainable manner. The study also highlights the interrelationship between the diverse social development and health indicators (SDG 3) of Indian community. The research has the potential to provide guidance for efficient use of water resources in India. Acting as a yardstick and guiding star, the sustainability metric will help the nation to monitor whether it is on the right track and navigate its journey towards achieving water sustainability. It also calls for cautious course correction and restructuring of current Indian policy and operational instruments for effective green governance and sustainable water management.

Water resources sustainability under climate variability and population growth in Iran: A system dynamics approach

The change in availability of water resources has a dynamic behavior and is influenced by many factors such as population growth and climate variability over time. Understanding the impacts of such factors on water resources vulnerability is essential for ensuring the sustainability of future water resources. In this study, a water resources sustainable index is built using a system dynamics model to assess the effects of different scenarios at the Kowsar dam basin in southwestern Iran where managing water resources is serious challenging due to periodic drought. Based on the baseline scenario, the total population, as well as total water demand, will increase and water supply will decrease throughout the simulated period. Therefore, the imbalanced supply-demand of water can cause the water system vulnerable. In this regard, water management policies should concentrate on the demand side of water to address the problem of water resource shortage in a good manner. Although pessimistic climatic conditions along with population growth put the water system in the worse situation of water availability, where the demand control policies likely help meet the increasing water demand. Compared to the pessimistic conditions, the water sustainability index improves in normal and optimistic conditions. The highest sustainability index was obtained after controlling water demand in optimistic weather condition. Consequently, the government should provide a context in which people learn to control their daily water consumption. Also, it suggests that we can conserve water resources in the agricultural sector with conservation policies.

Rural water sustainability index (RWSI): an innovative multicriteria and participative approach for rural communities

ABSTRACT This paper proposes a Rural Water Sustainability Index (RWSI). Using this tool, decision-makers can identify and prioritize locations that require state intervention to develop strategies and guarantee water to rural communities. Multi-criteria analysis (MCA) and Geographical Information System (GIS) were combined to integrate different indicators into the assessment and generate maps showing spatial levels of water sustainability in rural communities. RWSI was applied on a case study in 26 rural communities in the municipality of Pombal, Paraíba, Brazil. We realized 165 interviews with those living in rural communities. Consultation with experts was conducted using the Delphi method to assign weights and scores to the components, subcomponents, and indicators. The results illustrated a heterogeneous spatial behavior between rural communities of the municipality of Pombal, even though the index values for the majority (57.7%) of communities ranged from 5.8 to 6.0. For application in other countries and regions, researchers need to conduct public and expert consultation to adjust weight of components and subcomponents, and then the RWSI method can estimate water sustainability and produce maps anywhere in the world.

Indicator-based rural water service sustainability assessment: a review

Abstract The aim of this paper is to present the state of the art on the sustainability indices of rural water services in order to identify gaps in knowledge. The methodological approach used was to conduct online searches using the databases of Google Scholar, Web of Science, Pub Med, the International Water Association, and ResearchGate. Several indices have been identified in the literature including the Canadian Water Sustainability Index, Index of Drinking Water Adequacy, the Sustainable Water Governance Index, equity index in water and sanitation, WASH performance Index, Sustainable Water Management Index, and Index of water service quality. However, these indices do not provide an integrative, contextualized and prospective analysis of the sustainability of water services. In addition, these indices select only a few evaluation criteria deemed relevant. In other words, these indices choose to make visible certain phenomena and therefore make others invisible, according to the logic of action of each and to certain social compromises. These difficulties therefore encourage the development of a new index to provide an integrative, contextualized and prospective analysis of the sustainability of rural water services.

Reconciling irrigation demands for agricultural expansion with environmental sustainability - A preliminary assessment for the Ica Valley, Peru

Irrigation expansion driven by a growing global food demand is threatening the sustainability of scarce water resources. An exemplar is the Ica Valley in Peru which has experienced significant agricultural transformation over the last three decades with uncontrolled abstractions leading to over-exploitation of the Ica-Villacuri aquifer. This paper critically assesses the impacts of agricultural expansion on the long-term sustainability of groundwater resources in the Ica Valley. We apply a combination of spatial analysis and irrigation modelling by farming type (large and small-scale), followed by a multi-criteria assessment on irrigation water use. Historical trends in cropped area were analysed using Landsat satellite imagery to identify agricultural expansion and the changing composition between large and small-scale farms. The blue water footprint (WFblue) for croplands was calculated distinguishing between surface and groundwater abstractions for eight disaggregated geographical zones within the Ica Valley. The economic benefits of water consumption were assessed using the water productivity indicator, and the environmental sustainability of water resources spatially evaluated using a monthly blue water sustainability index and adapted version of the groundwater debt. The analyses showed that the groundwater footprint accounts for 87% of the total WFblue (483 Mm3) with 286 Mm3 groundwater consumed under unsustainable conditions (exceeding groundwater recharge). The highest water productivity (2.4–5.4 sol/ton) occurs in zones with intensive groundwater abstractions and where most large-farms are located, but it is also where the sustainability issue is most acute. Modelling showed that based on existing climate conditions and cropping patterns, irrigated agriculture is locally unsustainable throughout the valley, with the exception of small-scale farming in the peri-urban and middle valley areas. Around 10% of total aquifer recharge results from small-scale irrigated farming, whereas recharge from large scale farming is negligible. The greatest impacts occur in zones dominated by large-scale farms, where a period of 3.7–5.9 years is estimated to be needed to replenish water resources consumed by agricultural production. There is thus an urgent need to manage water resources more effectively and promote more sustainable use of water to protect both traditional and agro-export agricultural practices as well as allocations for urban water supply and the environment.

Análise do desempenho de reservatório de uso múltiplo: estudo de caso na sub-bacia Billings

O presente estudo analisou o desempenho do Reservatório Billings, inserido na bacia do Alto Tietê - São Paulo, quanto à sua capacidade de atender as demandas de abastecimento urbano e de geração de energia elétrica concomitantemente. Para isso, foram considerados três cenários de operação para o Reservatório: no primeiro, adotou-se diferentes valores de transferência de água para o Reservatório, além de demanda consuntiva fixa; no segundo, a transferência de águas foi suprimida e considerou-se diferentes demandas consuntivas; no terceiro, empregou-se o reúso potável indireto da água como auxílio para recarga do Reservatório, e considerou-se diferentes demandas consuntivas. Os indicadores de desempenho estatísticos confiabilidade, resiliência e vulnerabilidade e o Índice de Sustentabilidade Hídrica foram calculados. Os resultados obtidos para o Cenário 1, pelo cruzamento entre os fatores critérios de desempenho versus bombeamento do reservatório, indicaram que a confiabilidade, a resiliência e o Índice de Sustentabilidade Hídrica aumentaram, ao passo que a vulnerabilidade do sistema diminuiu significativamente. No Cenário 2, observou-se que o aumento da demanda hídrica implica em reduções significativas da confiabilidade, da resiliência e da sustentabilidade hídrica e um aumento da vulnerabilidade do sistema. Por último, o Cenário 3 demonstrou que a recarga do Reservatório por meio da água de reúso proporciona melhorias no seu desempenho se comparado ao Cenário 2, e beneficia a redução dos impactos ambientais provindos do lançamento dos esgotos na Billings. Concluiu-se que o planejamento de um sistema de Reservatório é um fator essencial para que ele possa satisfazer as múltiplas demandas e que, como uma solução parcial a fim de aumentar o aporte de água na Billings, a inserção da prática do reúso da água é uma ideia importante a ser considerada, pois poderá auxiliar na alimentação hídrica do Reservatório até que a transferência de águas dos rios Tietê e Pinheiros volte a ser viável, como foi projetado inicialmente.

Identification of urban drinking water supply patterns across 627 cities in China based on supervised and unsupervised statistical learning

Urbanization, one of the predominant trends of the 21st century, places great stress on urban water supply networks. This paper aimed to identify the most important variables driving urban water supply patterns in China, a region which has seen rapid urban growth in the last few decades. In addition, a principal component analysis-informed urban water sustainability index was developed in order to benchmark cities. The research involved applying statistical learning and other analytical methods to 12 years of urban water supply data for 627 cities across China. The findings were as follows: (1) PCA showed that approximately 46.8% of variability in the data could be explained by two principal components. Component 1 (37.26%) was more closely associated with variables related to water supply and sale, supply pipelines, and water supply finance. C2 (9.51%) was clearly related to urban water prices and average per capita water use. (2) Random forest and XGBoost algorithms were effective in classifying cities according to their region, with model testing accuracies of 87.69% and 88.32% respectively. (3) Chinese cities have consistently suffered water loss/leakage rates above 20% since 2001, and water prices are closely associated with leakage. (4) China's urban water sustainability has increased by just 3.56% between 2001 and 2013; Southwest China saw the highest growth rate in urban water supply sustainability. The implications of our research effort will be useful for decision makers in water-stressed urban areas around the world who are seeking novel insights in how to leverage statistical learning techniques to gain insights into urban drinking water supply patterns.

WSIOC: The Water Sustainability Index for Office Complexes

WSIOC: The Water Sustainability Index for Office Complexes

Application of west java water sustainability index to three water catchments in west java, Indonesia

This study presents a comparative application of the West Java Water Sustainability Index to Citarum, Ciliwung and Citanduy catchments in West Java, Indonesia. A two-fold comparison is presented, firstly, that of the overall condition of water resources using the final index value and secondly, that of specific water sustainability issues using the comparison of the sub-index values of the indicators. The overall comparison ranks the condition of water resources of Citanduy catchment is slightly better, whereas sub-index values of Education, Health Impact, Water Demand, and Poverty show important differences among catchments. Based on the performance of the catchments identified in this study, priority of actions has been recommended to the authorities.

Uncertainty and sensitivity analysis of West Java Water Sustainability Index – A case study on Citarum catchment in Indonesia

Water sustainability indices have been recently used to measure the sustainability of water resources within a catchment. Developing a sustainability index involves various steps, some of which have uncertainties associated with them. For the recently developed West Java Water Sustainability Index (WJWSI), three sources of uncertainties were identified, namely uncertainties in the thresholds of non-categorical indicators and sub-indicators, in the weighting schemes, and in the aggregation methods. This paper presents the uncertainty and sensitivity analysis of WJWSI, based on the application of WJWSI to Citarum catchment in West Java, Indonesia. The results of the uncertainty analysis, measured by the coefficient of variation of the thresholds and the sub-indices, indicates that minimum thresholds of Land Use Changes, Coverage, Education, Poverty, Health Impact and Sanitation, and the maximum threshold of Water Quality have higher variation when compared to variation of the other thresholds. The results of the sensitivity analysis, measured by the correlation coefficients between the final index and the thresholds, indicate that changes in the thresholds of WJWSI indicators have not significantly affected the sub-index values of most indicators and sub-indicators. The sensitivity analysis also concluded that either the equal or non-equal weighting scheme can be used for future use of the aggregation of WJWSI indicators and sub-indicators, as changes from equal to non-equal weighting scheme did not significantly affect the final index. However, it was found that the final index values were most sensitive to the aggregation method used (i.e. arithmetic and geometric methods), shown by the significant changes in the final index value when the aggregation method was changed from arithmetic to geometric. The uncertainty and sensitivity analysis presented in this study will not just assist in the efficient use of the WJWSI, but will also help undertake similar analysis for other indices.

Incorporating Uncertainty and Decision Analysis into a Water-Sustainability Index

AbstractThis paper describes the development and testing of a methodology to assess water vulnerability and stress called “Water Sustainability through Decision Analysis.” This method uses multicriteria decision analysis to measure water sustainability through a multidisciplinary lense and includes measures of water availability, demand, and policy. Assessing water sustainability is ultimately a decision problem that involves multiple stakeholders and perspectives. Uncertainty is an important and often-overlooked aspect of water sustainability. To fill this critical knowledge gap, the water sustainability through decision analysis method accounts for the uncertainty in the input data and unknown decision-maker preferences using stochastic multicriteria decision analysis. Addressing the problem of uncertainty helps to calculate risk and bypasses the problem of unknown decision maker preferences without resorting to equal or arbitrary weights for measures of sustainability. The method is applied to eight st...

Sustainability of global water use: past reconstruction and future projections

Overuse of surface water and an increasing reliance on nonrenewable groundwater resources have been reported over various regions of the world, casting significant doubt on the sustainable water supply and food production met by irrigation. To assess the limitations of global water resources, numerous indicators have been developed, but they rarely consider nonrenewable water use. In addition, surface water over-abstraction is rarely assessed in the context of human and environmental water needs. Here, we perform a transient assessment of global water use over the historical period 1960–2010 as well as the future projections of 2011–2099, using a newly developed indicator: the blue water sustainability index (BlWSI). The BlWSI incorporates both nonrenewable groundwater use and nonsustainable water use that compromises environmental flow requirements. Our results reveal an increasing trend of water consumed from nonsustainable surface water and groundwater resources over the historical period (∼30%), and this increase is projected to continue further towards the end of this century (∼40%). The global amount of nonsustainable water consumption has been increasing especially since the late 1990s, despite a wetter climate and increasing water availability during this period. The BlWSI is the first tool suitable for consistently evaluating the renewability and degradation of surface water and groundwater resources as a result of human water over-abstraction.

Application of West Java water sustainability index to Citarum catchment in West Java, Indonesia

Water authorities in West Java, Indonesia have difficulties in implementing water improvement programs due to lack of tools for prioritisation of water-related issues and their respective programs. To facilitate more efficient management of the water resources, the West Java Water Sustainability Index (WJWSI) was recently developed. This paper outlines the tasks for developing WJWSI and highlights the results of its application in one of West Java catchments, Citarum catchment. The results showed that five out of the thirteen indicators and sub-indicators, namely ‘Water Availability, Water Quality, Education, Water Loss and Poverty’, had low sub-indices and thus had poor performances. Then, the sub-indices were aggregated using the geometric aggregation method to produce the final index. The results of the aggregation indicated that the overall condition of water resources in Citarum catchment was considered poor, with a final index value of 20.04. Based on the WJWSI application, recommendations are suggested to the relevant authorities in the Citarum catchment. It is expected that the implementation of these recommendations will improve the performance of these five indicators and sub-indicators from Poor to at least the next higher level of Poor–Medium, thus improving the value of the final index from 20.04 to 37.19.