Search

Context and motivation: Climate change is manifested by climate variability, rising temperatures (and thus evaporation), and extreme events such as droughts and floods, which have a profound effect on the availability of natural resources, for example, high-quality water. While several technologies for addressing these challenges are available, their adoption is not widespread. In this study, a design thinking (DT) approach was applied to understand the problem space of floods and their handling by the Israeli water sector. Specifically, we aim at addressing the following question: What are the gaps in and barriers to adopting solutions that address sewerage flooding during extreme heavy rainfall events? The DT approach exposed major problems in the conduct of the water sector, including a lack of communication among organizations, the ill-defined distribution of responsibility, unclear and conflicting guidance, and insufficient funds and technological solutions, all hindering the possibility of adopting an integrative solution. This study demonstrates the role that DT plays in understanding a complex, multi-organizational problem space, in our case, the climate change readiness of the water sector, before delving into technological development. Any solution development should involve participants from the various organizations involved in the challenge. It is vital to address not only each organization's requirements but also its technology adoption barriers and to initiate a comprehensive discussion, ultimately resulting in a shared understanding of all the facets of the challenge that can impact solution development and deployment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In a time of growing climate crisis, and despite the global warming trend, Israeli citizens routinely enjoy a regular constant supply of clean fresh water thanks to local desalination plants. Establishment of the desalination plants has become a model of water management for many countries in an era of growing climate crisis. At the same time, Israel's water sector is faced with challenges and threats related to earthquakes, various states of warfare, and security confrontations. In such times of emergency, Israel's water sector is particularly vulnerable to disruptions of the water infrastructure and its adequate operation by both contamination of the water sources and damage to the desalination plants. This study examines the challenges of the Israeli water sector that require it to contend with these emergency situations in an era of reliance on desalination plants. The research findings lead to the conclusion that public policy on managing the water sector, manifested in the development and establishment of water desalination plants, has resolved Israel's water crisis, put an end to its dependency on the amount of precipitation and on natural water sources, and allowed for an increase in water production to match the rise in consumption. Nonetheless, as successful as this public policy may be, it does not consider the possibility of extreme scenarios and does not develop the entire range of steps necessary to confront them, and thus it undermines the ability of the Israeli water sector to provide its citizens with water in times of emergency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explores the interrelationships between Knowledge Sharing (KS), Knowledge Transfer (KT), and Knowledge Gaps (KG) within the water sector of Caribbean Small Island Developing States (SIDS), highlighting their diverse socio-cultural, economic, and biophysical characteristics and unique vulnerabilities. The research utilises a quantitative, non-experimental survey involving 515 employees across 16 SIDS, with findings indicating a well-educated and experienced workforce, yet a notable gender disparity. Reliability analysis yielded a high Cronbach's Alpha, confirming the robustness of the KS questions. Significant positive correlations were identified between KS and KT (r=0.741, p<0.001), KS and KG (r=0.649, p<0.001), and KT and KG (r=0.644, p<0.001), emphasising the need for open communication, collaboration, and information exchange to enhance KT processes. However, increased KS may widen KG due to varying knowledge interpretations and applications, posing challenges in achieving effective understanding. The study underscores the necessity of robust governance, adaptive strategies, community participation, and capacity building to mitigate climate change effects and improve water management practices. Effective Knowledge Management (KM) is critical for organisational success, with information technologies offering solutions to enhance KS and KT, thereby contributing to sustainable development and climate resilience in Caribbean SIDS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the role of government-linked companies (GLCs) in public–private partnerships (PPPs) for urban water supply in China. GLCs are corporations in which the government has significant ownership, control and influence while being registered under the same corporate law as private companies. Separate from local governments that own water utilities, they form contractual relationships with local governments (or water utilities owned by local governments) under PPP arrangements, rendering them more accountable and profit-driven. We analyze an emerging PPP model in China's water sector, where GLCs serve as major investors, and assess their effectiveness and limitations. Our findings indicate that the involvement of GLCs improves water utilities' performance, and the quality of their water supply services, while offering potential advantages such as stronger financial capability, higher political risk resistance capacity, and mitigation of public tension. However, concerns persist about risk-sharing, political interference, and local government control. This research contributes to understanding the evolving landscape of PPPs in China's water sector and the potential implications of GLC involvement for urban water supply systems globally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of World Water Policy is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Reliable water governance will ensure the strength and sustainability of an institution. The rising needs for water warrant a thorough study of critical variables of water governance. These variables are crucial for the development of a sound institutional framework. However, there were still insufficient studies that systematically review the existing literature in this field. Hence, the current study aims to examine the key components of the institutional framework for water governance. This study was guided by PRISMA 2020 in its systematic searching strategy on three databases, namely Web of Science, Scopus, and ScienceDirect. Articles for the period of 2018–2022 were screened. The process resulted in the selection of 20 related studies which were then assessed using the Mixed-Method Appraisal Tool (MMAT). Thematic analysis was employed and three themes were identified, namely stakeholders engagement, policy and practices, and water resource management. Based on the pattern of previous studies, the study offered significant contributions to practical purposes and the body of knowledge. HIGHLIGHTS Key components of institutional capacity for water governance.; Systematic literature review on water governance.; Application of PRISMA 2020 and MMAT methods.; Critical variables of water governance: stakeholders engagement, policy and practices, water resource management.; Political interference highly influenced water governance.;

A series of performance measurement need to be carried out throughout the project life cycle to ensure the successful transfer of public-private partnership (PPP) assets and meet stakeholder needs. More and more water projects are stepping into the transfer phase, but less studies carry out in-depth and systematic discussion on the performance measurement of PPP water projects at the transfer phase. Hence, to fill this gap, this research establishes a new performance measurement system (PMS) for evaluating the performance of the PPP projects stepping into the transfer phase based on the key performance indicators (KPIs). Through case study, expert interview and questionnaire, this paper formulates the logical basis behind PPP water projects at the transfer phase and subsequently constructs the transfer performance measurement system (TPMS) of these projects. Then, it conducts a confirmatory analysis of the impact relationship between the indicators based on structural equation modeling (SEM). Findings of expert interview and questionnaire indicate that there are 7 primary and 26 secondary indicators, and the model has a good fit. The TPMS will provide governments, operators and other stakeholders with a comprehensive and complete understanding as to indicators required of an effective performance measurement of PPP water projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper assesses the impact of corporate social responsibility spending on the performance of water supply and sanitation authorities in Tanzania. Revenue collection efficiency and non-revenue water were used as performance proxies. The study employed a retrospective longitudinal research design with a quantitative approach, utilizing secondary data from 114 water supply and sanitation authorities over five years (2015–2019). Both random and fixed effect estimation techniques were applied to determine the impact of CSR spending on performance. The results indicate a significant positive effect of CSR spending, notably enhancing revenue collection efficiency and reducing non-revenue water. Additionally, control variables such as organization size, age, number of employees, and customer complaints significantly impact performance. This study provides a nuanced understanding of how CSR spending in the public sector, specifically within water supply and sanitation authorities, can improve revenue collection efficiency and minimize non-revenue water. It emphasizes the importance of CSR activities in the water sector and advocates for policies promoting CSR to enhance organizational performance.

Drought impacts are rising worldwide, mostly because of an increase in the severity, frequency and duration of drought events. Water scarcity is one of the direct consequences of drought. A proactive approach based on drought risk management is needed to successfully lessen the vulnerability to droughts. The source of measures selected for a particular river basin in its Drought Management Plan is a Catalogue of drought management measures. One such catalogue is proposed in this paper by extensive literature and documentation review, from the perspective of the water sector. Five groups of measures comprise the catalogue of twenty-six individual measures. The grouping of measures is done according to the tradition of organizing the water sector in Serbia: (1) water systems, (2) green solutions, (3) agriculture-oriented measures, (4) aquatic ecosystems, and (5) non-structural measures. The aim of the paper is to contribute to an existing list of drought risk management measures in the light of activities on the first National Drought Plan, and the next Action plan after 2023 for the implementation of the Water Management Strategy for the Territory of the Republic of Serbia until 2034.

This study focused on the unbalanced relationships that can arise in current public–private partnership (PPP) risk management frameworks, especially in developing countries' water sectors. Different stakeholders' perceptions of risk management were examined by analyzing 15 interviews in Portugal and Mozambique. The hybrid method included semantic, descriptive statistic, content, and narrative analyses. To achieve the research objectives, the semi-structured interview transcripts were processed using quantitative and qualitative techniques to collate relevant actors' opinions of risk management in PPP water projects. Five risk categories were identified. The interviewed experts ranked the financial risk category as the most crucial, followed by infrastructure, commercial, technical and operational, and context risks. However, when the transcripts were evaluated from a risk factor perspective, the context risk category unexpectedly jumped to first place. Twenty-five high-impact risk factors were isolated in the semi-structured interview contents. The top five most critical risk factors were political interference, no performance measurement baselines, an unfavorable private investment climate, nonpayment of bills, and water assets uncertain condition. The results comprise a fresh contribution to the existing knowledge about experts' perceptions of PPP contract risks, including that prior research and specialists categorize financial risks as the most important. The findings further reveal that experts consider managing context risks to be the key factor in PPPs success in developing countries, as well as highlighting the need to explore these risks more fully in emerging economies' water sectors. In addition, a complete risk management cycle is proposed based on the interviewed professionals' opinions, in which risk assessment and risk treatment or mitigation measures are dealt with simultaneously. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In China, public–private partnership (PPP) projects consist of six phases, from inception to completion. In the final phase, known as the transfer phase (TP), the project assets are transferred back to the government, and the project is effectively closed out. Although success factors (SF) covering the earlier phases of PPPs have been well-documented, little is known about the effective execution of the TP in China. The main reason is that PPPs are a relatively new phenomenon, with few having reached the end of their life cycle, although this is happening now. Consequently, the determination of critical success factors (CSFs) in the TP is of great interest. This study aims to identify those CSFs that are most impactful to the success of the TP. A total of 23 process factors, arranged in four factor groups, are taken from an earlier study. These factors were presented to China's water PPP project experts in an online questionnaire, with 52 valid responses returned. Of the 23 process factors, 22 were revealed to be statistically critical to the success of the TP, which were identified as critical transfer success factors (CTSFs). The top five CTSFs are (1) contract system, (2) infrastructure, (3) transferred assets, (4) transfer acceptance criteria, and (5) overhaul information. The identification of the relative criticality of CTSFs and, in particular, the identification of the leading factors, can be expected to support the government and contractor entities in effecting the smooth transfer of many Chinese PPP water projects approaching maturity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To challenge the masculinity of the professional water sector, I take in this paper one of the core questions of feminist technology studies as the starting point: why are there so few expert women in technology? By means of a critical feminist reading of policy and research documents, from the 1950s onwards, focusing on Nepal's history of rural development and technology transfer, I trace the origins of expert women's limited participation in politically relevant processes of water decision making. The analysis reveals that both technology-and-development—and women/gender-and-development policy narratives have validated, and continue to validate, women expert's subordinate position in the Nepali water sector. This is partially so, because donors and national governments insufficiently recognize the racial and sexist assumptions that are historically rooted into these policy narratives.

This article deals with the theoretical aspects of state antimonopoly control, doctrinal and legislative definition of the concepts of state control, state antimonopoly control, principles of state antimonopoly control, its types and forms, which are the subject of close attention from the representatives of both economic and legal sciences. Uniform definition of the concept of state antimonopoly control, clear classification of its principles, types and forms is dictated by the need for adequate application of this type of state control in the practical plane, as well as in the training of specialists in this area. By means of comparative-legal analysis and the study of different positions of scientists concerning the highlighted problems, the possibility of finding the most succinct definition of state antimonopoly control, which is presented in a broad and narrow sense, was realized. Using the above methods, a generalized classification of the principles of state antimonopoly control, its types and forms was proposed. Normative enshrining in the antimonopoly legislation of Kyrgyzstan the theoretical provisions proposed in this article, which are directly related to the antimonopoly control, will contribute to improving the economic and legal mechanism of protection and development of competition, civil rights of economic entities and other stakeholders (interested parties) in this area of public relations.

Infrastructure services are closely related to human life and development, as they are an essential indicator of the progress of life in countries. Infrastructure projects including the water sector are indeed the backbone of a country's economic development, providing many social, economic and environmental benefits. This paper aims to study the existing infrastructure (water sector) in Diyala Governorate, analyse the available data, prepare indicators of deficit ratios according to international standards, and propose possible solutions to address the problems in this sector. Data were collected for the water sector, which included the quantities of potable water supplied for the past eleven years. The results showed that the deficit rate in the water sector amounted to 32% in 2021, as evidenced by the deficit rates and the presence of clear deficiencies in the water sector in Diyala Governorate, and this deficiency does not result only from lack of availability, but rather due to a weak planning vision and the absence of future plans that take into account the increase in the governorate population. The results of predicting using simple linear regression using the Spss program version 26 showed that the demand for drinking water will reach 554,354 m³ per day in 2035. Three plans have been proposed to address the current deficit and future demand in the water sector, which is a short-term plan extending from 2022 to 2025, addressing 50% of the current deficit in 2021; A medium-term plan extending from 2022 to 2027 addresses the current deficit once and for all, and a long-term plan extending from 2022 to 2035 addresses the current deficit and future demand in the water sector.

This article addresses the causes of instability and non-sustainability of municipal water and wastewater by the 25 Service Providers (SPs) in the Gaza Strip (GS), Palestine. The analysis of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) of municipal water and wastewater SPs in the GS shows a serious deficiency in the administrative, financial, and operational dimensions; such deficiency affects efforts to achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goal 6 (SDG 6). The deficiencies include inappropriate planning, lack of comprehensive capacity-building programmes, very high levels of Non-Revenue Water, and distortions in the tariff structures of almost all service providers, where the average selling price per m3 of water was less than the average unit cost of m3 of water sold. Moreover, levels of collection efficiency were very low, which resulted in a serious cash flow problem for the SPs'. The study has found a lack or absence of accurate or completed customer complaint, satisfaction, and inquiry logs; this is clearly reflected in customer behaviour related to reluctance to pay bills and high levels of illegal connections.

The provision of water and sanitation services is a key challenge worldwide. The size, complexity, and critical nature of the water and wastewater infrastructure providing such services make the planning and management of these systems extremely difficult. Following the digital revolution in many areas of our lives, the water sector has begun to benefit from digital transformation. Effective utilization of remotely sensed weather and soil moisture data for more efficient irrigation (i.e., for food production), better detection of anomalies and faults in pipe networks using artificial intelligence, the use of nature-inspired optimization to improve the management and planning of systems, and greater use of digital twins and robotics all exhibit great potential to change and improve the ways in which complex water systems are managed. However, there are additional risks associated with these developments, including—but not limited to—cybersecurity, incorrect use, and overconfidence in the capability and accuracy of digital solutions and automation. This paper identifies key advances in digital technology that have found application in the water sector, and applies forensic engineering principles to failures that have been experienced in industries further ahead with automation and digital transformation. By identifying what went wrong with new digital technologies that might have contributed to high-profile accidents in the car and aircraft industries (e.g., Tesla self-driving cars and the Boeing 737 MAX), it is possible to identify similar risks in the water sector, learn from them, and prevent future failures. The key findings show that: ① Automation will require “humans in the loop”; ② human operators must be fully aware of the technology and trained to use it; ③ fallback manual intervention should be available in case of technology malfunctioning; ④ while redundant sensors may be costly, they reduce the risks due to erroneous sensor readings; ⑤ cybersecurity risks must be considered; and ⑥ ethics issues have to be considered, given the increasing automation and interconnectedness of water systems. These findings also point to major research areas related to digital transformation in the water sector.

Water is often referred to as our most precious resource, and for a good reason – drinking water and wastewater services sustain core functions of the critical infrastructure, communities, and human life itself. Our water systems are threatened by aging infrastructure, floods, drought, storms, earthquakes, sea level rise, population growth, cyber-security breaches, and pollution, often in combination. Marginalized communities inevitably feel the worst impacts, and our response continues to be hampered by fragmented and antiquated governance and management practices. This paper focuses on the resilience of water sector (drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater [DWS]) to three major hazards (Sea-Level Rise, Earthquake, and Cyberattack). The purpose of this paper is to provide information useful for creating and maintaining resilient water system services. The term resilience describes the ability to adapt to changing conditions and to withstand and recover from disruptions. The resilience of DWS systems is of utmost importance to modern societies that are highly dependent on continued access to these water sector services. This review covers the terminology on water sector resilience and the assessment of a broad landscape of threats mapped with the proposed framework. A more detailed discussion on two areas of resilience is given: Physical Resilience, which is currently a major factor influencing disruptions and failures in DWS systems, and Digital Resilience, which is a rapidly increasing concern for modern infrastructure systems. The resilience of DWS systems should be considered holistically, inclusive of social, digital, and physical systems. The framework integrates various perspectives on water system threats by showcasing interactions between the parts of the DWS systems and their environment. While the challenges of change, shock and stresses are inevitable, embracing a social–ecological–technical system-of-systems and whole-life approach will allow us to better understand and operationalize resilience.

This research conducted a systematic literature review by taking into account bibliometric analysis of public—private partnership (PPP) studies published from 2001 to 2021 in the water sector. This study carried out a three-stage approach involving data collection, filtering, cleaning, and pattern and findings of research. The study generated 541 articles from 14 renowned international journals searched within Scopus database, and qualitative analysis was performed to produce 332 papers focusing on PPP studies in the water sector. The results showed that PPP studies in the water sector can be divided into five thematic areas including (1) risks, (2) sustainability, (3) success factors, (4) privatization, and (5) governance. The finding of this study reveals that scholars are interested in risk factors, risk allocation, risk mitigation and a number of success factors. On the other hand, the themes related to sustainability and typical governance models are found to remain limited. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In AQUACLEW (Advancing the QUAlity of CLimate services for European Water), a project funded by JPI Climate and the ERA-NET Consortium ‘European Research Area for Climate Services (ERA4CS), we examined different ways of improving the usability of existing Climate Services across Europe tackling key aspects in Climate Services improvement: user engagement, lack of resolution, uncertainties, and the need of an evaluation. The rationale of the project is based on an interactive process between service developers and users in seven study cases across Europe assessing the implications of Climate Service’ advancement in users’ decision-making process. A qualitative evaluation assessment allowed us to identify-four pillars when improving the quality of the climate services in the water sector: (1) Robustness, accounting for better quality of the service’ information in certain aspects; (2) Recruitment, understood as a need of involving users more actively in CS structures; (3) Reform, highlighting the possible need for changes in both the service structure and users mindsets; and (4) Reflection, as a process of continuous evaluation of the climate service during its life.

To improve sustainable service provision, the public sector has been repeatedly subject to administrative reforms. Yet, the question arises of which types of organizations might be preferred. To address this, we systematically analyze which water supply organizations decision-makers and stakeholders, across different levels of government in Switzerland, prefer. We find that the actors prefer public organizations that involve coordination between municipalities and reject private organizations. Distinguishing between different actor levels reveals a distinct pattern, mainly related to the level of responsibility: the national (confederation) and regional (cantonal) actors only prefer coordination across municipalities, where local politicians lose a degree of control. In contrast, the local actors prefer those organizations where they can maintain democratic control the most. However, such organizations are not expected to perform sustainably, mainly because of lengthy decision-making processes, lack of access to external funds, and short-term financial planning. We, thus, conclude that, at the local level, there is potentially a trade-off between democratic values and performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study focused on the unbalanced relationships that can arise in current public–private partnership (PPP) risk management frameworks, especially in developing countries’ water sectors. Different stakeholders’ perceptions of risk management were examined by analyzing 15 interviews in Portugal and Mozambique. The hybrid method included semantic, descriptive statistic, content, and narrative analyses. To achieve the research objectives, the semi-structured interview transcripts were processed using quantitative and qualitative techniques to collate relevant actors’ opinions of risk management in PPP water projects. Five risk categories were identified. The interviewed experts ranked the financial risk category as the most crucial, followed by infrastructure, commercial, technical and operational, and context risks. However, when the transcripts were evaluated from a risk factor perspective, the context risk category unexpectedly jumped to first place. Twenty-five high-impact risk factors were isolated in the semi-structured interview contents. The top five most critical risk factors were political interference, no performance measurement baselines, an unfavorable private investment climate, nonpayment of bills, and water assets uncertain condition. The results comprise a fresh contribution to the existing knowledge about experts’ perceptions of PPP contract risks, including that prior research and specialists categorize financial risks as the most important. The findings further reveal that experts consider managing context risks to be the key factor in PPPs success in developing countries, as well as highlighting the need to explore these risks more fully in emerging economies’ water sectors. In addition, a complete risk management cycle is proposed based on the interviewed professionals’ opinions, in which risk assessment and risk treatment or mitigation measures are dealt with simultaneously.

Public–private partnership (PPP) infrastructure projects progress through separate phases, with each phase subject to unique risks, thereby requiring a phase-based strategy for managing risks. To date, most research on PPP risk has emphasized phases, with an obvious neglect of the final, transfer phase (TP) of PPP projects, in which the project ownership reverts to government. This study identified and evaluated critical risk categories of the TP, using China's PPP water sector as the context of analysis. A two-stage approach was adopted, including both qualitative and quantitative research methods. Seven critical transfer risk categories (CTRCs) were identified, namely overhaul risks, contract risks, posttransfer operation risks, residual value risks, political risks, information risks, and succeeding operator risks, of which three are unique to the TP. Expert recommendations were presented for the facilitation of a smooth transfer of water PPPs in China. The findings of this study contribute to the body of knowledge in PPP risk management, and the specialized research approach employed may be utilized in similar exploratory studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article addresses the causes of instability and non-sustainability of municipal water and wastewater by the 25 Service Providers (sps) in the Gaza Strip (gs), Palestine. The analysis of Key Performance Indicators (kpis) of municipal water and wastewater sps in the gs shows a serious deficiency in the administrative, financial, and operational dimensions; such deficiency affects efforts to achieve the un Sustainable Development Goal 6 (sdg 6). The deficiencies include inappropriate planning, lack of comprehensive capacity-building programmes, very high levels of Non-RevenueWater, and distortions in the tariff structures of almost all service providers, where the average selling price per m³ of water was less than the average unit cost of m³ of water sold. Moreover, levels of collection efficiency were very low, which resulted in a serious cash flow problem for the sps.' The study has found a lack or absence of accurate or completed customer complaint, satisfaction, and inquiry logs; this is clearly reflected in customer behaviour related to reluctance to pay bills and high levels of illegal connections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The unprecedented scale and impact of the COVID‐19 pandemic have required organizations to adapt all facets of their operations. The impact on the UK water sector extends beyond engineering and treatment processes, with social, economic and environmental consequences. Semi‐structured interviews were conducted with executives from 10 UK water companies to investigate the organizational response to the pandemic, and how their response impacted operational delivery. The Safe and SuRe framework was used to structure interview questions and analysis. Emergent themes of changes to customer behaviour, changes to operational practices and industry collaboration were mapped onto the framework and a ripple effect map developed. Lessons learnt highlight a failure to adequately prepare for the scale of the threat, the success of sector‐level collaboration and a need to embrace new ways of working. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article analyses the press coverage of gendered labour division in Uzbekistan’s water sector. The study focused on the content, types, methods, forms, techniques and principles of gendered labour division coverage in the Narodnoye Slovo [Popular Word], Pravda Vostoka [The Truth of the East], and Darakchi [The Reporter] newspaper periodicals. The research aimed to review the activities and approaches of Uzbekistan’s press to covering gendered labour division in the water sector, stereotypes in covering the topic, and ways to eliminate them. Three theoretical approaches were applied to the essence of journalism – i.e. agenda setting, framing and altercasting – to fulfill this task. The results of monitoring press materials indicate that whereas males more often serve as lead characters of publications as water management specialists, women are mostly depicted as housewives.

Scaled up planning and implementation of nature-based solutions requires better understanding of broad characteristics (typologies) of the current governance and financing landscape, collaborative approaches amidst local complexities, and factors of scalability. An inventory was compiled of water-related ecological infrastructure intervention projects in two river systems in South Africa, incorporating actor, environmental, social, and financial dimensions and benefits. Qualitative participatory analysis revealed eight typologies. Post-hoc classification analysis determined similarities and/or unique characteristics of seven quantitative typologies. Key characterising factors included the complexity/size of financial flows, complexity of partnership/governance arrangements, mandates/goals of actors, type of ecological infrastructure, trade-offs in investment in ecological/built infrastructure, and the model used for social benefits. Identified scalable typologies offer structures suited to increased investment, with other typologies offering specialised local value. A range of ecological infrastructure intervention typologies with differing biophysical and socioeconomic outcomes provide choices for investors with specific goals, and benefits to landscape actors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cyberattacks on critical infrastructure systems are becoming a significant concern. Sabotage and destruction of critical infrastructures may cause devastating impacts on physical systems, economic security, public health, and safety. The water sector is one of the most critical infrastructures, and as such, identifying and managing cyber threats on the water sector's facilities is crucial to providing a continuous and safe supply of water. This study reports on a stakeholder engagement process conducted in the form of an active workshop that aims to show different stakeholder's perspective on cyber threats, knowledge gaps, and barriers to implementations of cybersecurity procedures and technologies in the water sector. The workshop, demonstrated on the Israeli water and cyber sectors, brought together 45 professionals from the water and cyber sectors (government, academia, utilities, consultants, and commercial suppliers). In the cybersecurity domain, many studies focused on developing algorithms, but only a few considered the organizational and policy aspects of the problem. The present study addresses this gap and presents an example demonstrating the importance of integrating stakeholder engagement into decision making in the water domain. The workshop's findings are summarized and analyzed to highlight top priority activity areas and suggest required actions according to the stakeholders' perspective, which can help shape the landscape of the water sector's cybersecurity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Challenges regarding the sustainable management of the water sector require the diffusion of innovative technologies and the implementation of innovative solutions. The aim of the article is to make a SWOT analysis based on the assessment of the possibilities of innovations to contribute to sustainability in the water sector and the analysis of the problems for their implementation. This allows being outlined recommendations for improving the process of innovation implementation in the sector. The methodological framework of the study includes: 1. Theoretical review of the implementation of innovations in the water sector 2. Methodology for the study of sustainable management of the water sector through the implementation of innovations 3. Study of the problems and the possibilities for achieving sustainability through the implementation of innovations based on a survey among experts 4. Conclusion on the implementation of innovations in the water sector and recommendations for process improvement. The results in the article are part of a study related to the sustainable management of the water sector in Bulgaria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When speaking about facilitating normal conditions for living and working, in the modern world, water resources are significant. We need to maintain water safety according to the specific environment and particular territory demands. Water resources are renewable natural resources, but they are unevenly distributed in the world territory. This fact turns water resources into priceless valued property. In the future, most conflicts will occur because of the limited amount of water resources and their unbalanced distribution in the world. That is why water resources and water sector management become the most dominant activities in the sustainable development of regions. This research is to outline the role of water sector management in the context of sustainable and regional development. The author uses systemic, and territory approaches and systemic, descriptive, analytic, comparison, and other methods for purpose achievement. The specific aim of this research is to point out the problems and challenges of Bulgarian water resources management through an analyze the system of water sector management. The null hypothesis of the author is that there is a strong connection between water resources and water sector management and sustainable development of the regions, concerning regional development. The author fulfills the research aim using systemic and territorial approaches and different scientific methods as descriptive, comparison, analytical, expert opinion citation, and others. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research aimed to identify the factors influencing the water sector's financial efficiency and receivable collection. Financial efficiency is measured using the financial efficiency ratio (FER), which is obtained by dividing the operating cost of the water service by the revenue generated from it. The receivables collection ratio (RCR) is calculated by dividing the total fees collected from water customers by annual water billed sales. The study utilized secondary data from 260 water providers and employed structural equation modeling. The analysis revealed that using prepaid meters, ensuring water continuity, employing dunning actions, adhering to tariff compliance, and offering various payment methods positively influenced the receivables collection ratio. However, while all of these factors have a significant impact, the effect of payment discounts was not statistically significant. Additionally, the study uncovered that using prepaid meters, ensuring water continuity, employing dunning actions, and adhering to tariff compliance negatively impacted the financial efficiency ratio. This finding implies that these factors could improve water providers' financial position. The study suggests that using prepaid meters, ensuring water continuity, employing dunning actions, adhering to tariff compliance, and offering various payment methods can reduce costs relative to revenue and enhance the collection of receivables. Ultimately, these actions can strengthen water providers' overall financial performance. • Research explores the impact on financial efficiency and receivables collection in the water sector. • Identifies prepaid meters, water supply continuity, dunning actions, tariff compliance, and diverse payment options as positive influencers on receivables collection. • Suggests that these measures improve cost-revenue balance and receivables collection, enhancing water providers' financial performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The concept of sustainable risk assessment in industrial wastewater treatment is vital to determine the causes and consequences of plant failure. The potential wastewater-related risks that could hamper the operation of the entire manufacturing facility are currently inadequately defined and under researched. This work proposes a framework that includes the comparison of literature and experimental data to quantify the impact of the significant process parameters on the critical process outputs. From the business perspective, managing and minimising risks will be possible when the number of impact parameters is low and the relationships between different parameters are clearly understood. The results show that even only the evaluation of technical risks can provide an assessment platform template for other risk types. Also, the structured and statistically analyzed data sets applied might be further used in the design and development of machine learning platforms algorithms to inform sustainable process outcomes adjusted for various geographical locations and human factors which significantly affect the industrial water sector globally.

Societal, economic and environmental impact generated by academic research is a key focus of publicly funded research in the UK. Drawing on experiences from the Safe & SuRe project, a five-year research project that was co-produced with industry, this paper explores the challenges, learnings and benefits of co-producing research with academics and practitioners to create a more resilient UK water sector. Three aspects of the project are explored in detail: the use of a steering group, co-developing research intensively with a water company, and co-dissemination industry-facing events. Emerging themes include: (1) benefits of the industry steering group to develop working relationships and trust among the group; (2) increased dialogue and sharing of information between industry and academics going beyond the one-way communication more commonly reported by STEM academics; and (3) the value of co-disseminating research to maintain and engage new connections and spark new research questions.

As the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change reported in 2013, climate change will have significant impacts on all water sectors. Since water is essential for live, culture, economy and ecosystems, climate change adaptation is crucial. Therefore, a legal and political framework was established by the commissions of the European Union, the United Nations and on national levels. For the Danube River Basin (DRB), the International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River got the mandate to develop an adaptation strategy in 2012 and to update this strategy in 2018. The natural science basis on which the adaptation strategy and its update are based on are two studies, conducted in 2011/2012 and updated and revised in 2017/18. Numerous documents from actual research and development projects and studies dealing with climate change and its impacts on water related issues were analysed in detail and the results summarised. It is agreed that temperature will increase basin-wide. The precipitation trend shows a strong northwest-southeast gradient and significant changes in seasonality. Runoff patterns will change and extreme weather events will intensify. However, the magnitude of the results shows a strong spatial variability due to the heterogeneity of the DRB., It is assessed that these changes will have mostly negative impacts on all water related sectors. Based on the scientific findings an approach for an improved basin-wide strategy on adaptation to climate change is developed. It includes guiding principles and five categories of adaptation measures targeting different objectives.

The purpose of this article is to create a new conceptual model for sustainable development of the water sector in Bulgaria on the basis of concessions by statistical regions according to the NUTS-2 classification of the European Union. The essence of the proposed model includes an approach for consolidating the existing 66 WSS operators in three WSS operators – concessionaires. The approach is applied to provide WSS services for drinking and household needs of the population. WSS services for the sectors – Industry, Services, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries remain outside the scope of the study. The proposed model is based on statistical analyses of the effectiveness of the WSS operators working by statistical regions and the state of the technical infrastructure they use. Such concessioning by combining one region from the North and South Bulgaria should help to overcome the existing disproportions in the social and economical development and its harmonization in the regions of Northern and Southern Bulgaria. Its implementation should create new opportunities for introducing foreign direct investment which will contribute to the sustainable development of the water sector in the country. The practical significance of the proposed model for overall concessioning of the WSS sector is for Bulgaria as well as for other countries with low and middle incomes. The model is a part of a comprehensive study of a scientific project, according to the Ordinance No.9 of the Ministry of Education and Science of 08.08.2013, with No.NPI-130/2014, on the topic: „The concession as a factor for development of the Water Supply and Sanitation sector in the Republic of Bulgaria“.

The COVID‐19 pandemic led to drastically altered working practices. During the UK lockdown, a questionnaire was distributed to water professionals to understand their experiences and perceptions of organisational response. Findings were evaluated on the measures of mitigation, adaptation, coping and learning. Employees' perceived there were adequate procedures to mitigate a threat, partly due to preparations for Brexit. Participants quickly adapted, with eighty‐four percent working from home. Coping was experienced at an individual and sector level. IT issues and care responsibilities made it harder for individuals to cope, but good communication and signposting of support helped. Eighty percent felt able to continue their usual role, implying coping mechanisms were effective. At the sector level, coping involved the ability to meet an increased water demand with a remote workforce. Lessons learned highlight the importance of communication and collaboration. Future crisis plans should prepare for prolonged crises of international magnitude and multiple threats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents an adaptation of the Resilience Analysis Grid (RAG) method framed on the Resilience Engineering theory as a proposal for tackling the lack of organisational resilience metrics in the water sector of England and Wales. The method was adapted to the sector by selecting 16 indicators and the addition of a 'Resilience Ethos' section to the grid. Its applicability was tested by analysing the evolution of resilience in Ofwat's Price Reviews 2009 (PR09), 2014 (PR14) and 2019 (PR19). Key conclusions obtained were that: (I) PR14 acts as a pivot between PR09 and PR19, as it installs a new regulatory approach; (II) the sector has advanced significantly towards greater consideration of resilience and its management in PR19; and (III) the PRs lack instruments for in‐period performance assessment. The RAG method proved to be simple and flexible to use, delivering clear and straightforward graphical results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The central theme in this article is Consumer Social Responsibility (CnSR) in the context of sustainable water consumption at home. In this paper, a conceptual SEM model will be tested based on the Theory of Planned Behaviour. This model focuses on the role of trust mediated by CnSR attitude, in influencing water conservation behaviour. Using a sample of 493 respondents, SEM analysis results show that trust in water companies and general trust disposition have significant effect on CnSR attitude. Attitude is approached via environmental, economic and social angle, covering three (triple) mentioned domains of sustainability each with an associated minimum (bottom) required level (line) also known as the Triple Bottom Line (TBL). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We estimate the effects of the Chinese water sector's privatization reforms based on firm-level panel data from 1999 to 2006. By applying a translog stochastic frontier production function and a Parametric Generalized Malmquist Productivity Index, we find that the privatization reforms and the participation of multinational water firms contributed to the performance improvement of the Chinese water sector. The foreign-owned water firms stood at the sector's productivity frontier and the domestic privately-owned water firms were close to the frontier. However, state-owned water firms had the lowest technical efficiency scores, though they improved modestly over time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper addresses the 'digital imperative' and how organisations are pressured to digitalise. In comparison to previous studies that often emphasise market pressures to digitalise, this paper focuses on institutional pressures exerted on organisations that lack competitive pressures. By drawing upon institutional theory, which considers the social embeddedness of organisations, it acknowledges that social expectations and approval can shape the way organisations respond to technological change. Based on a study of digitalisation within the water sector, where the perceived benefits of digital technologies are advocated under the label of 'digital water', it shows that there are isomorphic processes in place through which the idea of digital water is legitimised. Hence, water utilities are under institutional pressures to digitalise which, in turn, can influence how they respond to digitalisation. • Studying the 'digital imperative' and institutional pressures to digitalise. • Case study of the water sector and 'digital water'. • Digital water travels and gains legitimacy through normative and mimetic processes. • The institutional perspective can provide important insights into the process of digitalisation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]