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]]>Amman, Cape Town, Mexico City, Greater Miami and the Beaches, and Hull were selected because they represent the range of water challenges facing cities around the world. With the exception of Hull, each city is a member of 100 Resilient Cities–pioneered by The Rockefeller Foundation.
“More than 60 percent of the applicants to 100 Resilient Cities identified water as a chief risk–either having too much or too little of it,” Andrew Salkin, Senior Vice President of City Solutions at 100 Resilient Cities, told The Source. “We’ve seen the extreme disruption that can accompany a city’s operations. Adding a resilience lens to water management is therefore an essential component of addressing chronic stresses and/or quickly responding to acute shocks. Resilience thinking keeps large threats like hurricanes or sea level rise in mind when planning, zoning, and investing on an ongoing basis.”
The cities were selected because of their diversity in terms of population size, geographic location and economic status, as well as their commitment to taking a strategic approach to resilience.
As part of this partnership, the project will explore each city’s specific water concerns through field research and stakeholder interviews. Data and findings will be used to establish qualitative and quantitative indicators to measure city water resilience, for use in any city anywhere. The resulting City Water Resilience Framework will be a global standard for water resilience, which enables cities to diagnose challenges related to water and utilise that information to inform planning and investment decisions.
“A changing climate coupled with rapid urbanisation is increasing the frequency of water related crises facing cities,” said Mark Fletcher, Arup Global Water Leader. “Increasingly, unpredictable rainfall, flooding and droughts are impacting cities across their water cycle. By understanding a wide range of issues, being played out in different contexts, we will be able to help all cities to understand how to assess the risks they are facing, and how to prioritise action and investments to become more resilient.”
A steering group is overseeing the development framework with representatives from The Rockefeller Foundation, 100 Resilient Cities, the World Bank, University of Massachusetts-Amherst, Alliance for Global Water Adaptation and The Resilience Shift.
“Having a global framework for water resilience means that any city facing similar challenges can tap into lessons learned and best practices proven effective around the world,” added Salkin. “A framework will allow cities to begin understanding their challenges and systems using a similar language and approach. It allows for common conversations, enabling cities to speak the same language, share ideas, and implement ideas more quickly.”
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]]>The post Five cities to test new water resilience framework appeared first on The Source.
]]>The application and testing of the framework will be done in cooperation with an advisory group composed of members of the World Bank, the University of Massachusetts, the 100 Resilient Cities network and Arup.
“[Water] hasn’t been previously addressed as an underpinning element of a broader concept of urban growth, sustainability and resilience,” Dr Fred Boltz, CWRF Steering Group Chair, University of Massachusetts Amherst, told The Source. “I think this project is really groundbreaking in taking that comprehensive holistic approach to understanding water and informing smart development, related to the changing availability of that vital resource.”
Boltz noticed that traditional water challenges, such as unplanned and unstructured urbanisation, ageing infrastructure and inadequate governance of water systems are being compounded by environmental degradation of fresh water ecosystems and climate change.
In order to prepare cities for the water management challenges, the project will consider all elements of the water cycle, and account for changeability and periodic extremes in water related events to approach urban resilience.
The core elements of the framework are universal but can be adapted to particular characteristics of individual cities, and include:
“The project is now in its research and development phase,” said Boltz. “We will be partnering with five cities through 2018 to test the framework in distinct and diverse settings, thereby ensuring its general applicability and our ability to tailor it to specific quality and demands.”
The five cities are expected to be announced early this year. Once the diagnostic and plans to support the cities are developed, the project will move to implementation phase.
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]]>The post Arup and IWA to accelerate transition towards water-wise cities appeared first on The Source.
]]>Arup will work with IWA on the Water-Wise Cities Initiative, which draws together urban and water professionals to integrate water management in city planning and design through its 17 principles that include liveability, sustainability and efficiency.
“This is the first key strategic partnership that supports the IWA Water-Wise Cities Initiative,” said Corinne Trommsdorff, IWA Cities of the Future Programme Manager.
Speaking at the Embrace the Water: a Cities of the Future Conference in Gothenburg, in June, Trommsdorff said the partnership will enable IWA to reach and engage more city leaders towards impact-oriented actions to improve urban water as part of urban development.
“IWA is about using the power of the network to inspire and catalyse change,” she added. “Arup is a champion of water-wise cities, supporting the IWA network instigating champions among urban leaders and professionals.”
Key areas of collaboration include increasing the knowledge available to city leaders to help them become ‘water-wise cities’ and empowering young water professionals to play a role.
“We need to think and act wisely to find ways to do more with less, while ensuring that cities are resilient to floods, droughts and the challenges of growing water scarcity,” said Mark Fletcher, Global Water Leader, Arup. “Through our partnership with IWA we can help civic leaders ensure that cities continue to have access to safe water and sanitation, putting water at the forefront of all future design and development.”
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Dozens of cities, urban organisations and individual urban professionals have endorsed the IWA Principles for Water-Wise Cities, recognising the importance of water for cities of the future.
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]]>The post Irish government announces Cork flood protection plan appeared first on The Source.
]]>Cork City and County are benefitting from major investment in flood relief projects with the proposed Cork City Scheme part of an overall programme of flood relief works in Cork which will involve a total investment of €300 million when major schemes already completed is taken account of.
“I am also delighted to say that we have 12 major schemes currently at construction stage in different parts of the country and a further 23 at design development and planning stage,” said Seán Canney, Minister of State at the Office of Public Works.
At the announcement, Ken Leahy from the design team, Arup, presented the scheme’s proposals. He outlined the proposed measures, which include a new Fluvial Flood Forecasting System; revised dam operational procedures to maximise available reservoir storage to reduce peak flows during major events; and direct defences through the city through the use of walls and embankments.
Minister Canney stated that this was the largest flood relief scheme ever to be undertaken in Ireland at an estimated total project cost of €140 million. This capital investment in Cork City will provide significant job opportunities during construction and shows commitment to seriously address flooding problems in the most at risk areas of the country. The government has allocated €430 million for flood risk management in its Capital Investment Plan for the period 2016-2021.
“This is the culmination of many years of dedicated, committed and collaborative effort on the part of the Office of Public Works, Cork City and County Councils, key stakeholders such as the ESB and the scheme’s main design consultants Arup along with hydrology consultants JBA and environmental consultants Ryan Hanley/McCarthy, Keville and O’Sullivan Ltd. to bring forward proposals for feasible flood defences for the city,” added Canney.
The Minister also emphasised the important contribution that local knowledge can play in the development of the design of the scheme and encouraged as many people and business owners as possible to submit any comments they may have.
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