Future of Water - Q1 2021

Future of Water

Q1 / 2021

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What does water mean to you?

Water has enormous and complex value for our households, culture, health, education, economics and the integrity of our natural environment. ~ UN Water

The more our climate changes, the harder it will get for the most vulnerable people to access clean water. ~ Tim Wainwright, Chief Executive, WaterAid

Considering its importance, it is shocking that nearly 900 million people still lack access to a basic water service. ~Neil Jeffery, Chief Executive, Water & Sanitation for the Urban Poor (WSUP)

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© N ATE E LE E D I SYA KO R N

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IN THIS ISSUE

06 By 2035, it is predicted that up to 40% of the world’s population will live in seriously water stressed areas.

Scott McCready, Director of Outreach & Engagement, Alliance for Water Stewardship (AWS)

08 Increasing the capacity of utilities is one of the most effective ways in which we can move towards achieving universal water coverage.

Neil Jeffery, Chief Executive, Water & Sanitation for the Urban Poor (WSUP)

10 Irrigated agriculture, as it is practiced today, is responsible for 70% of all freshwater withdrawals in the world.

Mr. Jippe Hoogeveen, Senior Land and Water Officer, Land and Water Division, UN Food & Agriculture Association (FAO)

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World Water Day: Understanding the value of water Without a comprehensive understanding of water’s true, multidimensional value, we will be unable to safeguard this critical resource for the benefit of everyone.

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conomic development and a growing global population mean agriculture and industry are getting thirstier and the water-intensive energy generation is rising to meet demand.

How we value water determines how water is managed and shared. The value of water is about much more than its price – water has enormous and complex value for our households, culture, health, education, economics and the integrity of our natural environment.

If we overlook any of these values, we risk mismanaging this finite, irreplaceable resource.

1. Valuing water sources – natural water resources and ecosystems All water is generated by ecosystems. All the water we abstract for human use eventually returns to the environment, along with any contaminants we have added.

The water cycle is our most important ‘ecosystem service’. Higher value must be given to protecting the environment to ensure a good quality water supply and build resilience to shocks, such as flood and drought.

2. Valuing water infrastructure – storage, treatment and supply Water infrastructure stores and moves water to where it is most needed, as well as helps clean and return it to nature after human use. Where this infrastructure is inadequate, socio-economic development is undermined and ecosystems endangered.

Typical valuations of water infrastructure tend to underestimate or not include costs, particularly social and environmental costs. It is difficult to recover all costs from tariffs (known as full cost recovery).

3. Valuing water services – drinking water, sanitation and health services The role of water in households, schools, workplaces and health care facilities is critical.

Furthermore, WASH – water, sanitation and hygiene services – also adds value in the form of greater health, particularly in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

4. Valuing water as an input to production and socio-economic activity Agriculture places the biggest demand on global freshwater resources and is a major contributor to environmental degradation.

Despite being fundamental to food security, water in food production is generally given a low value when assessed purely through the economic lens of value produced in relation to water used.

Many of the wider benefits – improving nutrition, generating income, adapting to climate change and reducing migration – are often not reflected in the cost of water.

5. Valuing socio-cultural aspects of water – recreational, cultural and spiritual attributes Water can connect us with notions of creation, religion and community. Water in natural spaces can help us feel at peace and is an intrinsic part of every culture. However, the values we attribute to these functions are difficult to quantify or articulate.

There is a need to fully understand cultural values around water by involving a more diverse group of stakeholders in water resources management.

This content was compiled by Mediaplanet with material from www.worldwaterday.org

World Water Day is on 22nd March and is an annual United Nations Observance focusing on the importance of freshwater, coordinated

by UN-Water.

World Water Day celebrates water and raises awareness of the 2.2 billion people living without access to safe water. It is about taking action to tackle the global water crisis.

For more information, please visit worldwaterday.org/learn

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Paid for by Water UK

©IMAGE PROVIDED BY WATER UK

Water companies unite on the road to net zero As demand for water continues to grow, the need to implement new approaches to water management that support both climate change mitigation and adaptation has never been more urgent.

A WRITTEN BY

Christine McGourty CEO, Water UK

WRITTEN BY

Nigel Topping High-Level Climate Champion, COP26

s momentum builds ahead of the UN Climate Change Conference, COP26, in Glasgow this November, water companies around the world are being called on to join forces and transform their approach to tackling the emissions associated with supplying water to billions of homes every year.

Spearheaded by the UK water industry trade body, the aim is to encourage providers of water and wastewater services to make a commitment to achieving net zero on their operational emissions by 2030.

A tipping point for change Led by the High-Level Climate Champions for Climate Action – Nigel Topping and Gonzalo Muñoz - Race to Zero is a global campaign to rally leadership and support from businesses, cities, regions, and investors for a healthy, resilient, zero-carbon recovery. All members of the Race to Zero are committed to the same overarching goal: to achieve net zero emissions as soon as possible, and by 2050 at the very latest.

While significant change is already underway, progress must now accelerate in all areas of the economy and society in order to deliver a resilient zero carbon world in time. It is with this in mind that the High-Level Climate Champions have launched the Race to Zero Breakthroughs, setting

out the near-term targets that must be reached in the next decade by the nearly 30 sectors that make up the global economy.

Nigel Topping, High-Level Climate Champion for COP26, says: “We cannot win the Race to Zero emissions by racing alone. Private sector leaders will need to work in partnership and commit their skills, ingenuity and resources to achieving these crucial Breakthroughs - and I’m delighted to see the water industry leading the way.”

Launched at the World Economic Forum’s Davos Agenda with Al Gore, COP President Designate Alok Sharma and UNFCCC Executive Secretary Patricia Espinosa, the water Breakthrough aims to mobilise major water companies responsible for 20% of global water supply, with the aim to deliver full decarbonisation of water and wastewater services in 20 countries by 2030.

Christine McGourty, CEO of Water UK, says: “We’re incredibly proud to be playing our part in the Race to Zero and to be in a position to share our journey towards a decarbonised water supply for customers.

“We don’t have all the answers, but I’m confident that by working together as a sector and across the community of policy-makers, regulators and environmental experts, we can go further and faster on net zero.”

Case study: a sector-wide approach to net zero Water companies in the UK have almost halved operational emissions since 2011 through a combination of energy efficiency measures, renewable energy and the production of biomethane from sewage treatment processes.

In November 2020, the industry published its Net Zero 2030 Routemap. Using over a decade’s worth of sector-level emissions data, the Routemap provides a view of what the sector’s journey to net zero may look like. It highlights a number of potential pathway scenarios designed to guide the development of detailed net zero action plans at an individual company level.

The Routemap identifies a variety of technologies and initiatives that may be needed including the production of biomethane from sewage waste; the deployment of new renewables capacity to meet 80% of the sector’s electricity demand; the restoration of 20,000 hectares of owned peatland and grassland; the planting of 11 million trees; the electrification of 100% of passenger vehicles; and transition of 80% of commercial vehicles (LGVs and HGVs) to alternative fuels.

Water UK was the first industry trade body to be made an official partner to the UNFCCC’s Race to Zero in January this year, having published the world’s first comprehensive Routemap to achieve net zero by 2030 on an industry-wide basis.

To find out more and register your interest in joining the Race to Zero, visit: water.org.uk/racetozero

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Can water innovation help save the world?

Imagine a world where streets are warmed by heat from wastewater treatment plants, raw sewage is turned into biodegradable plastics and natural gases produced during the water treatment process power our cars and homes.

R SPREAD WRITTEN BY

Piers Clark Founder and Chairman, Isle Utilities

apid technological advances mean an energy-guzzling sewage treatment plant can now be transformed into a resource factory that produces energy to heat homes, slow-release agricultural fertilizers and even clean water.

There are already hundreds of projects happening around the world where wastewater is no longer seen as a pollutant. Instead, it is converted into valuable products, transforming the way water and sewerage services will be delivered in the future.

Transforming water The innovation I see in response to these huge environmental and social challenges astounds me. Included here are just a few examples from across the globe highlighting how innovation is transforming the way we use - and reuse - water and wastewater.

Water is essential, invaluable and life cannot exist without it, yet the infrastructure that supports it is largely invisible. Few customers know what

happens behind the scenes to treat and deliver safe drinking water or how wastewater is cleaned so it can be safely reused or returned to the environment.

Water falls from the sky or is sourced from an aquifer, but then it must travel through thousands of miles of pipes and multiple treatment sites and undergo hundreds of thousands of tests before it is pumped into homes and businesses. These are complex and critical operations.

Leading the way The sector is rising to these challenges and in some cases, is at the forefront.

In England, the water industry has pledged to be carbon-neutral by 2030 - two decades ahead of the UK Government’s 2050 deadline across all sectors.

At the global level, the World Water Innovation Fund is a collaborative initiative started in 2019 by Severn Trent Water to encourage the rapid adoption of water technologies through sharing of trials and research across international boundaries.

The crucial link Yet climate volatility from global warming, including changing rainfall patterns and extremes of temperature, all directly impact water and sanitation.

Floods and droughts result in water scarcity, pollution, environmental degradation and the spread of disease. If water is the crucial link between the health of society and the environment, then the way it is managed must be critical in our response to the climate emergency.

Water is essential, invaluable and life cannot exist without it, yet the infrastructure that supports it is largely invisible.

Beyond taps and toilets Water utilities face profound challenges, but this is especially true during a global pandemic, where clean water and reliable sanitation are even more critical.

To support this, Isle launched the Water Action Platform in March 2020, to share experience and expertise about COVID-19 from industry experts.

A year on, it has a growing network of more than 1,200 members from over 680 organisations across 90 countries.

As highlighted by the response to the pandemic, the sector understands its role in providing a public service goes far beyond taps and toilets, there is a drive to learn from each other and grow through shared experience and invention.

So, can the water sector help save the world? The simple answer is yes. It is an epic task, but the drive and expertise are there and with collaboration, innovation and investment, it can lead the way.

©Images provided by Isle Utilities

Here are just a few examples from across the globe highlighting how innovation is transforming the way we use - and reuse - water and wastewater.

(Singapore case study below)

Isle is an independent technology and innovation business consultancy.

It is made up of a global team of scientists, engineers, business and regulatory experts, with a common drive to make a positive social, economic, and environmental impact through the advancement of innovative technologies and related practices.

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City West Water is leading the way in innovative stormwater harvesting projects to capture, store and treat stormwater run-off. (City West Water in Melbourne)

©Images provided by Isle Utilities

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How industry is meeting water challenges Utilities are working to secure enough water for future generations against a backdrop of climate change and population growth. Here are some examples of how the water sector is meeting these challenges through innovation and collaboration.

Leakage reduction Across the world, utilities are targeting leakage to ensure resilient water supplies. In the UK alone, around 20% of water is lost through leaks.

Severn Trent is exploring fibre optic technology to help meet ambitious leakage reduction targets. Over the last 12 months, it has been carrying out a pioneering trial to install 750 metres of fibre optic cable inside its network. The cable’s continuous line of virtual microphones allows engineers to hear what’s going on in greater detail and spot any changes in vibration and sound. This means they’re able to pinpoint leaks and fix them, before they worsen and cause a burst.

Meanwhile United Utilities in the north-west has been working alongside FIDO TECH Ltd, to develop artificial intelligence to detect and assess the size of underground leaks by the noise they make. Its AI software has been accessing acoustic data from thousands of its underground pipe sensors. FIDO AI differentiates leaks from any other noise and can even prioritise the biggest ones first, helping improve the efficiency of leakage repair work, saving more water quicker.

Spread paid for by Isle Utilities

Wastewater reuse and desalination As demand for water increases with population and economic growth, desalination and water reuse are increasingly used by utilities to secure water for future generations.

Singapore, one of the most water-stressed countries in the world, is internationally recognised as a model city for integrated water management. In June 2020 it opened its fourth desalination plant, the Keppel Marina East Desalination Plant to treat both seawater and freshwater. The plant is the country’s first large-scale, dual-mode desalination plant. During dry weather, it can produce desalinated water and when there is abundant rainfall, it switches to treating water from a nearby reservoir, saving energy.

In Egypt, the world’s largest water recycling and reuse plant, known as Al Mahsamma, uses the latest processing technologies and advanced digital technology to treat runoff from agricultural land along with sewage and industrial wastewater. Clean water is returned to the land as irrigation

In the UK alone, around 20% of water is lost through leaks. water, securing some 28,000 hectares for production.

Located by the Suez Canal in the strategically important Sinai region, the plant also helps preserve the natural ecology of the Al Temsah Lake, which had been impacted by wastewater disposal.

Energy generation and stormwater harvesting Australian water utilities face the challenge of servicing increasing populations with lower rainfall while reducing carbon emissions. Two quite different initiatives in Melbourne demonstrate how the sector is responding to these challenges.

Yarra Valley Water is experimenting with electrolysis at its wastewater treatment plants, producing sustainable hydrogen from renewable energy. Recycled water and the oxygen by-product are used to increase the efficiency of wastewater treatment and lower costs. In the race to reduce emissions, producing low-cost sustainable hydrogen can provide a viable alternative to fossil fuels and help water utilities take more greenhouse gases out of the atmosphere than they put in.

Meanwhile City West Water is leading the way in innovative stormwater harvesting projects to capture, store and treat stormwater run-off. This reduces flood incidents, creates healthy green spaces and lessens demand on the city’s precious drinking water.

They also partner with stakeholders to co-fund and deliver irrigation to public open spaces. Not only does stormwater harvesting help save hundreds of millions of litres of drinking water each year by providing an alternative water supply for irrigation, but it also promotes water sustainability and helps develop thriving green open spaces for the community.

Read more at isleutilities.com

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A blueprint for water stewardship Agriculture accounts for 70% of freshwater use worldwide. By 2035, it is predicted that up to 40% of the world’s population will live in seriously water stressed areas. Many of these are significant agriculture sourcing hotspots, feeding global markets.

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ood land management practices, championed by corporate sustainability strategies, NGO initiatives and agricultural standards have stimulated progress. But good practices by one water user, such as a farm, can be easily eclipsed by poor practices of another within the same catchment.

Water-related challenges, from access to safe water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) in communities to protecting wetlands and vulnerable ecosystems, need multi-stakeholder solutions.

Water users must therefore work together for the benefit for all: this is called ‘water stewardship’.

Understanding water stewardship Stewardship involves looking beyond the fence-line, into the wider landscape, talking to others who share your water source and who face similar challenges and working with them to find solutions, locally and globally.

This takes bold leadership and willingness to collaborate.

Water users must therefore work together for the benefit for all: this is called ‘water stewardship.

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Without water, no life is possible Our climate is changing at an alarming rate, and it’s making it even harder for the world’s poorest people to get clean water.

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ithout reliable and easy access to clean water, people’s lives are blighted by ill-health, poverty and the endless drudgery of fetching water. Climate change makes the situation harder.

But a simple tap that provides safe water to drink day-after-day no matter the weather, can bring protection against climate change and knowledge that tomorrow’s water will be as easily obtained as yesterdays.

Risks to communities of unsafe water Without a reliable source of drinking water, day-to-day life is more challenging. Communities are forced to depend on dirty water sources. This brings illness not only through waterborne illnesses but contributes to communities’ inability to protect themselves from infectious diseases.

Time spent fetching clean water, recovering from illness or caring for those who are sick is time that can be spent learning or making a living.

For the girls and young women tasked with fetching water before school, walking further for water takes time away their education. Those who become sick from drinking dirty water lose time to earn a living and build a better future.

The impact of climate change The more our climate changes, the harder it will get for the most vulnerable people to access clean water. Combined with poor water management of water supplies, the

In agriculture, for example, the German food retailer EDEKA is taking an innovative approach to assessing and responding to water risk in their fresh produce supply chains. When they find suppliers in high water risk locations, they work with them to implement water stewardship through the Alliance for Water Stewardship (AWS) Standard.

By 2050, we will require an estimated 50% increase in agricultural production and a 15% increase in water withdrawals to meet our basic needs. We have reached the tipping point for water sustainability. The agricultural sector must now step up and join together to tackle the global water challenge.

Find out more at a4ws.org/agriculture

WRITTEN BY Scott McCready Director of Outreach & Engagement, Alliance for Water Stewardship ©GREENAPERTURE

climate crisis is taking away people’s access to clean water. More frequent and extreme flooding is polluting fragile water sources, longer droughts are drying up springs and wells, rising sea levels can pollute underground water supplies turning them salty.

The 2.2 billion people who do not have a reliable and safe supply of water, are without the most fundamental protection against climate change, which increases the unpredictability of weather patterns, resulting in extreme natural disasters. And it is through water that the immediate impact of the climate crisis is felt.

Urgent changes are needed now Unless urgent action is taken to both reduce the emissions that cause climate change and to protect vulnerable people against its growing impact, communities will lose their livelihoods as water scarcity takes hold.

It is a great injustice that the people who will suffer the most from the climate crisis, have done the least to cause it.

Governments in low-middle income countries must prioritise water, sanitation and hygiene services as key adaptation strategies in their national climate plans. WaterAid is calling for high-income nations and donors to ensure that the world’s poorest counties have sufficient climate finance to help them bring a reliable source of clean water to everyone, as a vital protection against the destructive effects of climate change.

WRITTEN BY Tim Wainwright Chief Executive, WaterAid

Find out more at washmatters. wateraid.org/

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More with less: improving water efficiency with existing resources

Paid for by Miya Water

I

In Manila, Philippines, one of the most densely populated metropolitan areas in the world, more than two-thirds of the water supply was being lost up until 2009, depriving 2.7 million people of access to clean water.

A five-year project run by Miya Water, to improve the efficiency of the existing resources saw these water losses reduced by almost half. It provides residents with permanent water access, saving 1.3 billion litres of drinking water and creating more than 450 local jobs to maintain the newly established network.

situation requires something different.

We want to avoid this, naturally, by taking an output-based approach focused on results.”

As a net job creator on all projects, the company focuses on performancebased contracts to encourage employees to work efficiently and productively.

“All our activity is performancebased,” Komy explains. “There is an element of performance payment to everything we do. People are economical creatures, and we believe that to have an alignment of interests, you have to have financial motivation to do things right. We have to motivate people to save their budgets to keep resources managed in a smart way, because if we don’t do that, the unfortunate result is that these things do not fix themselves but deteriorate.”

After implementing change on a project, focus will shift to training local staff to maintain efficient ways of working. As a result, 95% of the company’s workforce is local.

Komy says, “We do not believe that making businesses dependent on us is a sustainable business model. We want our clients to know that the engagement finishes at a final stage. It is not healthy for them to be fully dependent on expats. We bring in knowledge from outside and make sure it stays.”

This alignment of interests across all stakeholders is vital for ensuring all parties are committed to efficiencies.

©DREAMLAND MEDIA

With around 30% of water supply lost by utilities across the world, integrated solutions are vital to ensure better water efficiency on a global scale.

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Providing access to water changes people’s lives. It also has an environmental impact, and, when people do not have to wait in queues for hours, a role which traditionally falls to girls and women, there is a secondary, social impact.

Amit Horman, CEO of Miya Water, explains, “Providing access to water changes people’s lives. It also has an environmental impact, and, when people do not have to wait in queues for hours, a role which traditionally falls to girls and women, there is a secondary, social impact. This economic and social ripple effect is often ignored, but we think it is critical.”

Looking holistically at water conservation The largest private operator of water utilities in Portugal, everyday Miya also saves 150,000 million litres of fresh water which would otherwise be lost.

“We think about the water system as a living organism, where things are changing all the time,” says Noam Komy, Chief Growth Officer. “We are result- rather than process-driven, and to achieve that we approach projects holistically, zooming out to see how we impact the entire system. In an inputbased approach, you might promise to replace a certain amount of pipe, but then you don’t have any flexibility if the

INTERVIEW WITH

Amit Horman CEO, Miya Water

INTERVIEW WITH

Noam Komy Chief Growth Officer, Miya Water

WRITTEN BY

Meredith Jones Russell

We want to see a world that respects the value of water.

Komy adds, “We strongly believe that if we give everyone the chance and the motivation and keep everyone’s interests aligned, things will work.

There’s no magic. We are very technologically orientated and use high-end processes and products, but there is no magic pill or single solution.

It is just basic process management.”

The value of water Overwhelmingly, the Miya ethos holds that with a shared understanding of the value of water, all parties can align by caring for the resource respectfully.

“We want to see a world that respects the value of water,” says Horman.

“With that gained respect, people will understand that to care for it, they have to manage it in an efficient way.

It all starts from the perception than water is a valuable resource. Without appreciating its economic value, which involves charging people the right tariffs, there can be no respect for it.

If it is free, unfortunately people will treat it accordingly. If the cost is not representative, people will waste it.”

Miya is a water operator driven by efficiency with proven success. With a presence on five continents, providing water services to over 9 million people around the globe, the Company has created the largest, most complex projects in this space. miya-water.com/en

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The forgotten communities struggling to access safe water Many low-income residents in cities across the world do not have access to a basic water service. Supporting utilities to improve water coverage is vital in ensuring that no one is left behind.

WRITTEN BY

Neil Jeffery Chief Executive, Water & Sanitation for the Urban Poor (WSUP)

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eople need water to live, work and prosper; it is fundamental to our very existence.

Access to clean water improves health and reduces illness from disease. It helps children attend school regularly, giving them a better chance of a good education. It eases the burden on women and girls to collect water, giving them time to engage in other socio-economic activities.

Considering its importance, it is shocking that nearly 900 million people still lack access to a basic water service.

With 68% of the world’s population projected to live in cities by 2050, how do we ensure equitable service provision for all residents?

Eunice Njeri lives in Kihoto, one of the biggest low-income areas in Naivasha, Kenya.

“Clean and safe drinking water in Kihoto has been a scarce commodity.

My husband and I managed to dig-up

a shallow well years ago that helped cater for our water needs. However, this is not water we can easily consume.”

Helping utilities reach those most in need Publicly owned service providers or utilities are responsible for the vast majority of water service provision in cities globally. However, they struggle to reach the poorest.

This may be due to lack of sources of investment, high water losses in their network and insufficient experience in providing services that are suitable for residents living in informal settlements.

In every city where WSUP works, we place a high priority on working alongside utilities, helping them build their capacity to improve operations, so they are better able to serve the needs of low-income residents.

Thanks to an improved connection through the utility’s network, Eunice is now able to access clean water.

“The new connection was very

Considering its importance, it is shocking that nearly 900 million people still lack access to a basic water service. affordable and the fact that I have water running in the tap every day is more than a relief to me!”

Increasing the capacity of utilities is one of the most effective ways in which we can move towards achieving universal water coverage.

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Do we already have the answers to ensuring clean water for all?

Roughly 1 billion people across the world lack access to clean water, but we might already hold the key to unlocking water solutions for everyone.

T INTERVIEW WITH Kimberly Kupiecki, Global Leader, Sustainability, Advocacy and Communications, DuPont Water Solutions

WRITTEN BY Meredith Jones Russell

he COVID-19 pandemic has brought water inequality into sharp focus as 3 billion people lack basic handwashing facilities at home.

“The pandemic has shone a light on the dire need for sanitisation and good hygiene through handwashing and highlighted that those without access to safe clean water are even more vulnerable,” explains Kimberly Kupiecki, Global Leader of Sustainability, Advocacy and Communications for DuPont Water Solutions.

“Sanitisation and making sure our water systems are resilient have become even more critical.”

Water optimisation Access to water and ensuring its quality are the keys to achieving a “water-optimised” world, according to Kupiecki.

“We interact with water every day, but we are seeing a terrible underoptimisation, or mismanagement, of water in some places,” Kupiecki says.

This might include overtreating water to the quality of drinking water when it is only required for flushing toilets, or undertreating waste water, with 80% going untreated worldwide, according to the UN. “In a water-optimised world, we would be able to solve the key challenges of quality and accessibility,” Kupiecki says. “If you don’t have access, you can’t function as a society, while the water quality needs to be right for its use, particularly if it is used for human consumption or in healthcare.”

Paid for by DuPont

Investing in new innovations DuPont Water Solutions works with partners to optimise water solutions and meet the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal 6 of ensuring the availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all, through its portfolio of innovations.

These innovations include sustainable technologies which treat waste water, turn sea water into drinking water through reverse osmosis and ensure water quality for anything from irrigation to making computer chips.

©tuachanwatthana

Technology is vital to a smarter, more modern way of working with water, Kupiecki says.

“When we think about a wateroptimised world you have to have automation and a digital water or smart water focus to make sure everything is working optimally.”

As well as water, the company provides innovations in the life sciences sphere, with projects ranging from separating protein products from milk to removing the bitterness from orange juice.

Think global, act local A global outlook combined with local context is also important to addressing water issues, by providing international-standard training and technology to individual communities.

“There is no single solution which will solve our issues,” Kupiecki says.

“There are as many solutions as there are communities. You need global science to address local problems.

“We aim to provide a toolkit, a broad portfolio of solutions, and people all over the world with the knowledge to apply it, to create a blueprint to figure it all out.”

DuPont’s international projects range from collecting and storing rainwater in Tanzania to providing

a containerised, mobile system for water treatment in Egypt.

“Those projects make a huge difference to communities,” explains Kupiecki.

Increasingly sporadic rainfall also presents a problem to many communities across the world, from Africa to North America.

“Because of climate change, we are experiencing higher peaks and lower valleys,” Kupiecki says. “We need to make sure we catch that rainfall and manage it because we might need to go for longer in between.”

Fully sustainable solutions to the water crisis are therefore key to ensuring a brighter future for all communities.

Source of hope Fortunately, with growing access to innovations, it seems we can afford to be positive about what our water future holds.

“We can and should be optimistic,” says Kupiecki. “Especially at a local level, low-cost innovations can really help make a huge change. You can see results and it is very inspiring.

We can solve this. We feel optimistic that the solutions exist, we just need to get innovations out there.”

Find out more at dupont.com

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Monitoring water use in agriculture through satellite remote sensing Achieving food security in the future while using water resources in a sustainable manner is a major challenge for us and future generations.

Mr. Jippe Hoogeveen Senior Land and Water Officer, Land and Water Division, UN Food & Agriculture Association (FAO)

How to monitor the performance of water A careful monitoring of water productivity in agriculture, that is the amount of crop which can be produced by using a certain amount of water, is required to increase water productivity. But how can we monitor the performance of water use in agriculture?

How can we increase water productivity in the future to make sure we grow more crop per drop?

New developments in earth observation technology indicates that nowadays it is feasible to monitor key data for sustainable agricultural production and natural resources management using satellite remote sensing.

Evapotranspiration is the process that includes both evaporation of water from the soil, canopy interception and water bodies, as well as transpiration

from plants. This can be quantified by using satellites. Likewise, plant growth can be assessed by using satellite remote sensing.

If we manage to increase the amount of biomass produced by a crop or decrease the amount of water used, then we increase water productivity. As such, we contribute to both more sustainable water use in agriculture as well as food security for a growing population.

Bringing this into practice.

Several satellites, from both NASA and the ESA provide free global data on spatial resolutions varying from tens to hundreds of meters being updated in time steps of 1 to 10 days. FAO brings this data together in its open access WaPOR data base to help farmers achieve more reliable agricultural yields and allowing for the optimisation of irrigation systems.

When being used on a high resolution, WaPOR can produce detailed maps to monitor the functioning of irrigation schemes to support modernisation plans and provide better water services to irrigators.

Agricultural extension services can use the data to support farmers to prevent crop failure, and as such, improving the livelihoods of smallholder farmers and making them more resilient to climate change.

How we value water determines how water is managed and shared. The value of water is about much more than its price.

©HITESH SINGH

WRITTEN BY

I

n 2050, food needs to be produced for an expected population of between nine and 10 billion people.

A lot of water is needed to produce food.

Irrigated agriculture, as it is practiced today, is responsible for 70% of all freshwater withdrawals in the world. Not all of this water is actually used by the crops. A large part of this water, in traditional systems often more 50% is not evaporated by the plants and flows back to rivers or groundwater. This water can be used again by water users downstream.

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Letting investment flow: private finance vital for water solutions Scalable solutions and access to capital are vital to bridge the service and financial gaps in the water and sanitation economy.

INTERVIEW WITH

Josien Sluijs Managing Director, Aqua for All Written by: Meredith Jones-Russell

T

here is a huge gap between the USD 114 billion funding we need annually and the USD 5 billion donor funds available,” says Josien Sluijs, Managing Director of Aqua for All. “The only way to bridge it is to mobilise private capital.”

Private investments in water and sanitation can provide significant social and financial return. However, most investors do not know the sector well enough to understand its needs and opportunities and see it as risky or unprofitable. The water and sanitation sector has so far been unable to attract significant interest from private investors.

However, there are examples proving the opposite. In Kenya, for example, private water operators provide 70% of the water supply.

Since mid-2020, Aqua for All partners with Sidian Bank to finance Kenyan water and sanitation enterprises with excellent portfolio results.

Every USD 1 invested in water and sanitation can yield up to USD 7 in economic return in low-income countries, for example, due to lower healthcare expenditure.

Unlocking private finance Aqua for All has developed a range of financial models, to support enterprises to become investmentready. It facilitated blended finance solutions by investing its own funds to mobilise private and public capital and de-risking investments through first-loss tranches, guarantees and technical assistance.

The organisation also funds innovative financial instruments, such as resultsbased incentives and carbon credits, to help entice investments into the sector.

The hope is that private capital will create a different mindset among water and sanitation enterprises, utilities and other actors. “Private finance will catalyse change” says Sluijs.

Scaling up From this small start, big changes can be realised. “We need to start showing successes”, Sluijs adds. “It is only at scale that we can solve the challenge of so many people not having access to water and sanitation.”

Investments in this sector create big returns elsewhere. According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, every USD 1 invested in water and sanitation can yield up to USD 7 in economic return in low-income countries, for example, due to lower healthcare expenditure. The negative effect on GDP of not investing in water and sanitation can be up to 7% annually.

Sluijs concludes: “If you simply make the calculations, water is worth investing in. We urgently need to unlock private funding through blended finance solutions to expand access to water and sanitation for all.”

Paid for by Aqua for All

Find out more at aquaforall.org

A brighter future for the River Thames The job of cleaning up the River Thames is vital – and the next step toward a more personal and emotional connection to London’s greatest natural asset.

W WRITTEN BY

Andy Mitchell CEO, Tideway

e know that humans have a very personal and emotional connection to water. For me, working from home for the past year has given me a much deeper appreciation of the water I live by, the River Thames.

My job, actually my life really, is all about building the super sewer. I feel very proud that everyone at Tideway also feels passionate about the importance of cleaning up our city’s greatest natural asset.

Solving the pollution problem Millions of tonnes of sewage spills into London’s iconic waterway each year and stopping that is vital to the continued prosperity of the city and our environment.

But watching it each day from my home, watching its traffic and its tides, the potential of the Thames is clearer to me than ever.

Yes, cleaning it up is important.

But I’m proud that we’re going far beyond that, creating a lasting legacy that will benefit many generations in the future.

Reconnecting Londoners with their river It’s about more than just building a tunnel. We wanted to change the way we treat our waterway, from appreciating its use as a transport link, protecting the safety of those who work on it and opening our doors to a diverse and inclusive workforce.

Beyond improving the quality of the Thames’s tidal waters, we’re on a mission to reconnect London with the River Thames.

Beyond improving the quality of the Thames’s tidal waters, we’re on a mission to reconnect London with the River Thames.

We’ve used its waters to transport our materials to site, so far keeping more than 540,000 HGVs away from London’s roads. In the process, we

have seen a 90% reduction in CO2 compared with the HGV equivalent.

No wonder those on the Thames call it ‘liquid gold’.

But the most visible impact of our work will undoubtably be the new areas of land we’re creating in the Thames.

New public space in central London Seven new areas of public space will cover our underground infrastructure once we’re finished in 2025, giving never-before-seen vantages of the river.

Tideway is building the biggest extension to London’s sewer network since the Victorians. We’re looking forward to handing over these new spaces to Londoners and confident their investment in cleaning up the Thames will be a source of pride for generations to come.

Paid for by Tideway

Find out more at tideway.london

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Paid for by Mondi ©Image provided by Mondi

A shared resource: taking responsibility for water stewardship Significant reliance on water has led the paper and pulp industry to focus on managing its impact on the resource, by reducing water use and increasing water recycling.

F INTERVIEW WITH Gladys Naylor Group Head of Sustainable Development, Mondi WRITTEN BY Meredith Jones Russell

ibre-based products like paper and pulp are dependent on trees and the manufacturing processes used require water.

As a result, packaging and paper companies are looking to align to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal 6 to manage their water impacts accordingly.

“Water is a key natural resource,” explains Gladys Naylor, Group Head of Sustainable Development at Mondi. “We started by addressing the efficiency of our water use by trying to reuse water as many times as possible throughout the process. In water scarce areas we don’t just discharge water, but we loop it back in for further usage.”

Consumption versus use The company distinguishes between water consumption, where water is required within the manufacturing process and a proportion retained within the product, and water use, where some water can be released back into the environment with negligible changes to its quality.

Of Mondi’s total water intake, 93% is returned to the environment.

“Water is very much a shared resource, so while we depend on it for our manufacturing processes, we are cognisant that other users need it too. We therefore invest significantly in our wastewater treatment infrastructure, enabling us to achieve an 18.4% reduction of emissions to water (measured as Chemical Oxygen Demand) over the last five years. We also provide wastewater treatment for some local communities, such as in Slovakia and Russia.”

Find out more at mondigroup.com/en

Understanding different water contexts Water efficiencies have proved particularly vital in areas where water is less readily available.

“We have operations in areas where water is plentiful and in areas with much lower availability,” says Naylor. “We need to understand these different contexts and take appropriate

action. It is definitely not one size fits all when it comes to water.”

In areas prone to drought, Mondi works with other water users to manage supply across the catchment, be it by agreeing measures to reduce water use or by contributing to programmes, which improve water efficiency in other sectors.

There is a direct economic benefit as more efficient use of water reduces operational costs. But longer term there will be even greater benefits as it begins to mitigate the risks of climate change.

Water stewardship A focus on shared responsibility to protect water helps the company ensure careful and responsible management of the resource, also known as water stewardship. The benefits of such an approach are many, according to Naylor.

“There is a direct economic benefit as more efficient use of water reduces operational costs.

But longer term there will be even greater benefits as it begins to mitigate the risks of climate change.

“Having efficient practices in place now will minimise risks as water continues to come under pressure. The future cost of inaction is likely to be much higher than taking action now and collaboration is key for us to tackle global challenges.”

Last year, Mondi secured a place on CDP’s ‘Triple A List’ for tackling climate change as well as acting to protect forests and water security.

From a field of 5,800+, they are one of only 10 companies worldwide recognised for global environmental leadership.

Case study As a member of the Alliance for Water Stewardship (AWS), Mondi aims to encourage and recognise good water stewardship.

Working alongside the WWF, Mondi has integrated the AWS International Water Stewardship Standard (AWS Standard) into its 12 pulp and paper mills by introducing a pathway to establish water stewardship practices and standardise the way they are implemented across its mills.

First, a full water risk assessment was undertaken for each of the mills using the WWF’s Water Risk Filter (WRF), an online tool enabling companies to assess and identify responses to water risks.

The second task involved assigning a level to each mill based on the water-related risks they faced.

This group-wide water stewardship standard provides Mondi with a graduated and standardised approach for implementing water stewardship across its mills based on regular water risk assessments. It also establishes an auditable framework that outlines what is required if an individual mill decides to work towards obtaining the AWS Standard.