Something to think about

Five cities have recently been selected to take part in a project funded by the philanthropic Rockefeller Foundation to help develop a global framework for water resilience

The five cities on five continents were selected because they represent the range of water challenges facing cities around the world. They are also diverse in terms of size of population, geographic location and economic status but share a common sense of purpose in their commitment to take a strategic approach to resilience.

Amman (Jordan) has a population of 4 million and it's problem is that geographically and logistically it is not located near sustainable sources of water. The City regularly experiences drought. There is an equally significant impact from unusually heavy downpours which cause flooding in the lower lying districts of the city.

Cape Town (South Africa) is home to around 3.7 million inhabitants. It has had unprecedentedly low rainfall over the last three years. Last year there were prominent features in the global media that the city was within a critical phase with a matter of days until the water supply ran out. This led to a massive relief programme of bottled water.

Mexico City has a vast population of 21.3 million. Its rapid growth has put a huge strain on the underground aquifers which are relied upon for the water supply and there is a real risk of the city simply running out of water in the future. The main developed areas are also on a former lake making it prone to flooding.

Greater Miami and the Beaches (United States). Population 5.9 million. The coastal location, high groundwater table and complex canal system make the area very vulnerable to rising sea levels. Tidal surge flooding is increasingly common causing significant disruption and risk to life.

The fifth location is my home city of Hull , or given its full name, Kingston Upon Hull in Yorkshire in the United Kingdom. 

Compared to the other four places it is a relative minnow with only 323,000 residents but most significantly some 90% of the land area of Hull is below the high tide line. This makes it very vulnerable to rising sea levels which are an inevitability of global warming as well as storm surges and surface water issues. 

Large parts of the housing stock were flooded in 2007 and as recently as 2013 the defences of the Humber Estuary were breached by a combination of high tides and adverse weather conditions. 

The City Water Resilience Framework (CWRF) is being developed by multiple agencies of engineers, scientists, water authorities and emergency services with support from the Rockefeller Foundation, to help cities better prepare for and respond to shocks and stresses to their water systems in the years to come.

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 spokesperson for the project reported that “A changing climate coupled with rapid urbanisation is increasing the frequency of water related crises facing cities. Increasingly, unpredictable rainfall, flooding and droughts are impacting cities across their water cycle. To develop a global framework we’ve selected these five diverse cities, all facing very different water challenges. 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.”

I wait to see how the research and modelling translates into actual schemes and measures in my local area. There are already some major excavations and earthworks intended for surface water storage on the western side of Hull which is of slightly higher ground and in 2007 was the main source of the run off problem. 

One Scientist said that the education and attitudes of those in the potential risk areas required as much attention as the physical projects. Many people had no emergency plan whatsoever in the event of a flood threat or event and yet a good proportion of the population knew exactly what they would do in the case of a Zombie Apocalypse.