Basin Stories
Urban stakeholders of a water basin play a critical role in preserving the freshwater resources on which they depend. A disruption in the supply of freshwater resources to cities can have significant socio-economic, environmental and health consequences.
Basin-Connected Cities Stories
San Francisco
The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) provides high quality, efficient, and reliable water, power, and wastewater services to millions of people but are faced with key challenges from natural disasters and climate variabilities such as severe flood and droughts.
Bourbre’s Basin
Contributed by Syndicat Mixte d’Aménagement du Bassin de la Bourbre (SMABB), France
City of Kunshan
Kunshan, a city in the north-west of Shanghai, China, that inhabits more than 1.6 million people, is one of the most economically successful county-level administrations in the Jiangsu Province.
City of Lisbon
The clean-up of the Tagus River and its estuary near Lisbon, Portugal, involved 19 municipalities and required active engagement of all stakeholders at each step, from strategy and planning to construction of infrastructure and asset management, as well as raising awareness with the public and industry.
Dakar
Dakar’s urban population is exploding with an annual growth rate of 2.5% and urbanisation rate of 97.2%. This massive urban expansion leads to overpopulation and construction in restricted areas, creating illegal slums without planned infrastructure including proper drainage and sewage systems.
Densu River
The Densu River forms part of the Coastal River System and serves as a source of drinking water for 74% of the population in greater Accra, the capital of Ghana. Water quality in the Densu River is adversely affected by inappropriate waste disposal, agrochemicals, and degradation of the riparian zone (among others).
Derwent Estuary Program
Today, 200 000 people, the equivalent of 41% of Tasmania’s population, reside around the Derwent estuary. Furthermore the upstream reaches of the Derwent River support industry, agriculture and hydroelectricity production.
Douro River Basin
Contributed by Paula Malheiro and Rita Cunha, Águas do Porto.More than 75% of the streams and rivers in Porto are enclosed by pipes due to a variety of urban pressures ranging from infrastructure development to tourism. This has led to the degradation of the city´s ecosystems.
Ebro River
Contributed by: Rogelio Galván Plaza, María Luisa Moreno Santaengracia, Mario Carreras Fernández, Lorenzo Polanco Fernández, David Gargantilla Cañero, Oficina de Planificación Hidrológica, Confederación Hidrográfica del Ebro
Fez
The imperial city of Fez, listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1981, currently has a population of 1,200,000 inhabitants. Located in the center of the Sebou basin, it covers an area of 100 km2. Water supply security, industrial pollution and flood risks are the main challenges facing the city.
Fundamentals to Enhance Büyük Menderes River Basin
Büyük Menderes River Basin is one of the most important basins in Turkey mostly composed of agricultural and semi-natural areas. About 79% of water from the basin is widely used for agriculture purposes with the remaining for industrial and human consumption.
Huzhou City
Taihu Lake, the third largest freshwater lake in China, is considered the heart of the Yangtze River Delta. Huzhou City, a city named after the lake, is part of the Taihu Basin located on the southern shore of Taihu Lake.
Júcar and Moscas
In the area surrounding the Júcar and Moscas rivers as they pass through the city of Cuenca, there are a number of important services that are highly vulnerable to flooding, such as the Fire Station, the Civil Protection Service of Cuenca, the Fairgrounds, the Bosque de Acero pavilion, the Recoletas de Cuenca Hospital and the Alameda geriatric residence.
Júcar River Basin
In the Júcar River Basin, the growth of cities has led to a progressive occupation of river space which, together with the deterioration of water quality, resulted in the degradation of associated habitats. Although the conservation of rivers in urban areas is a responsibility of local administrations, in many cases the high level of deterioration means that the municipalities do not have the capacity to undertake restoration actions alone.
Kinshasa and Brazzaville
The cities of Kinshasa and Brazzaville are the respective capitals of the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Republic of Congo Brazzaville and have 18 million and 2 million inhabitants. These two cities are crossed by the Congo River, which is heavily polluted due to inadequate infrastructure to treat the effluent and waste.
Mackenzie DataStream
The Mackenzie River Basin represents a very important source for water resources for communities in the Northwest Territories, Canada. The Mackenzie River and its tributaries form the largest river basin in Canada. People in the basin extract and discharge water for a variety of uses; land and water use changes, impacts from industry, and climate change contribute to concerns over water quality.
Manila
Similarly to many developing urban cities, Metro Manila has experienced an increase in population density and an urban sprawl with a disproportionate portion of households found at the bottom of the national income distribution. Consequently, achieving an inclusive sanitation programme requires intensive policy coordination and investment choices.
Mechanisms of Rewards for Ecosystem Services (MRSE)
Over the past few years, water resources in Peru have been decreasing. Overpopulation, urbanization, infrastructure and climate change are some causes leading to water stress in the country. For example, the city of Lima, the country’s capital is one of the most water stressed cities in Peru (282 Million m3 of freshwater reserves). Water utilities and the government are taking urgent actions to secure water resources.
Melbourne
Melbourne currently holds the “world’s most liveable city” status, and the sunny Australian landscape certainly helps. Faced with the millennium drought, Melbourne had to find a way to effectively approach the challenges of climate change and a growing population whilst maintaining their liveable city status. They accomplished this through sharing knowledge, resources, and community involvement.
Mexico City
The Metropolitan Area of Mexico City is an example of city development becoming disconnected from hydrology. Large water transfers to supply the city, groundwater depletion and an extensive drainage system that artificially discharges into neighboring areas have ignored integration with the natural lake basin in which Mexico City sits.
One stop shop’ for water management
The BC Water Tools have demonstrated an effective approach to providing information on water supply and demand to be considered in decisions regarding water allocation. Thousands of people each year use the tools to find out information on the timing and amount of natural water supply, existing water allocations, and the needs of the environment.
Paris
Paris is the capital of the French Republic, and the most important city in the country in terms of economy and politics. It is also the most populated city in France (12 million inhabitants). The city is crossed by the river Seine, which is the main river of the region, and the one in which most of the wastewater of Paris is discharged after treatment.
Shaoxing City
Shaoxing city has a river network across the city. The Huancheng River, which includes the moat encircling the ancient city, has a history of 2,510 years and connects with East Zhejiang Canal and Jianhu Lake. With increasing economic development, rivers became polluted and silted. In 1999, the government established a project called the “Comprehensive governance of Huancheng River” with the aim to enhance the cities’ flood control and drainage.
The Upper Swakop River Basin
Windhoek, Namibia’s capital in the dry and hot central highland, has water demand which outstrips both conventional (rivers and dams, groundwater) and unconventional (desalination, managed groundwater recharge, water reclamation) water resources. An economically viable mix of all conventional and unconventional resources must be established to sustain the City’s development, including inter-basin transfer of fresh water from the bordering perennial rivers or desalinated seawater.
The Upper Tana-Nairobi Water Fund
Nairobi, Kenya’s capital is the industrial and business centre of the country and consequently has a growing population, attracted by the prospects the city offers. A key challenge is ensuring the population has a steady supply of fresh water for their domestic and industrial needs.
Yorkshire Water
Kingston Upon Hull (known commonly as Hull), a city of 260,000 people, is located on the north bank of the Humber Estuary in the heart of the East Riding of Yorkshire. Due to both physical geography and a complex drainage system the city is at risk from extreme flood events and the communities are amongst the most vulnerable to climate risks in the UK.
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