Safe & SuRe: Towards a New Paradigm for Urban Water Management

The water sector in the UK has, by many measures, been very successful. In England and Wales, drinking water standards stands at over 99.9%, water pipe leakage is down by a third, sewer flooding reduced by more three quarters in the last 10 years and bathing water standards are at record high levels. This success has been achieved using a 19th century design approach based on the idea of plentiful resources, unrestrained demand and a stable climate. However, a perfect storm of climate change, increasing population, urbanisation, demographic shifts and tighter regulation is brewing! Each one of these challenges is a threat to the water sector and, taken in isolation, existing approaches may be able to cope. Taken together and compounded by the speed, size and uncertainty of change, the system is heading for failure unless something radical is done. The current way of working looks increasingly out of date and out of step with emerging thinking and best practice in some leading nations.

This fellowship aims to meet these emerging challenges and global uncertainties head on by developing a new approach to water management in UK cities. The starting point is a new vision that is: Safe & SuRe. In a sense, our existing water systems are all about safety goals: public health, flood management and environmental protection. These are important and still need to be respected, but they are NOT sufficient to rise to the coming challenges. In the new world of rapid and uncertain change, water systems in cities must also be Sustainable and Resilient. Only a 'Safe & SuRe' system can be moulded, adapted and changed to face the emerging threats and resulting impacts.

In this fellowship. my vision will be developed, tested and championed into practice over a period of 5 years. It will draw from multi-disciplinary collaboration with leading academics inside and outside the field. A comprehensive, quantitative evaluation framework will be developed to test in detail what options or strategies can contribute towards a Safe & SuRe water future, focussing on the challenges of water scarcity, urban flooding and river pollution. Recommendations and best practice guidance will be developed in conjunction with key stakeholders.

The work carried out under this fellowship grant will offer tangible benefits to a wide range of stakeholders in industry, government, and society in general. The key impacts revolve around contributing towards solving the pressing UK challenges surrounding water and its management, and in exploiting the knowhow and technology developed to increase the market share of British businesses in the global economy. The UK water sector is a substantial part of the British economy currently valued at £12 billion per annum. The global market exceeds £250 billion, of which the UK currently has a 13% share.
Most directly, the beneficiaries will be the UK private sector water service providers. The impacting agents will be a clearer vision of change, improved assessment methods, characterisation, processes and technologies, plus a stronger route map to implementation. Key impacts themselves will be improved service provision, more cost-effective approaches and increased competitiveness. There is also scope for influence on the commercial private sector supply chain, in terms of development and enhancement of their product ranges. In addition, British and international consultants will develop their knowhow and expertise to deliver strongly-evidenced Safe & SuRe urban water management plans and designs.

The water sector regulators will benefit from the work, particularly the Environment Agency, but also the Consumer Council for Water and the Water Services Regulation Authority. Policy makers in central government (e.g. Defra) and local government (e.g. planning authorities, building regulations) will also be impacted. The public sector should see improved effectiveness of services and better informed policy decisions, particularly as regards formulation of policies to address the key water challenges of the 21st century. Local government has a re-emerging role in water management and will benefit from advice on flood resiliency measures, sustainable drainage and how to incorporate water scarcity and water pollution prevention aspects into their development plans. The general public will be overall beneficiaries in terms of a more secure water future, enhanced quality of life and more cost-effective Safe & SuRe services.

Urban water management is such an important issue that the practical outcomes of the research are in both the national and global interest. The Grant is funded for 5 years and we would expect the benefits to begin to accrue as the project progresses and then come on stream within the following 5-years.

Developing staff is another key impact of the fellowship. Both the university and the Centre for Water Systems have systems and processes in place to ensure the academics and researchers funded on the grant will not only develop their subject-specific skills, but also gain more general abilities in project management, financial management and 'people' skills. We have a long track record of developing individuals for careers in academia, goverment and industry.

The award of a fellowship will allow me to engage consistently and meaningfully with stakeholders over an extended time frame. This would not be possible in the same way given the length and nature of a standard research grant. I believe that my background, skills and substantial experience make me ideally suited to reaching the aims of the fellowship and in particular to achieving its desired impact.