Policy Lab for Urban Water Transition
Climate change, urbanisation and increasing competition for water resources are creating new demands on how water is planned, used and managed. Experience shows that the main barriers are often not technical, but relate to unclear regulatory frameworks, insufficient coordination and weak incentives for sustainable water use.
Policy Lab for Urban Water Transition explores how governance, collaboration and the allocation of responsibilities can contribute to more resource-efficient water use in cities. By using water of the appropriate quality for the appropriate purpose, pressure on drinking water systems can be reduced while making water reuse a natural part of urban development. The project adopts an exploratory approach in which different forms of governance, collaboration and responsibility-sharing are investigated and tested together with relevant stakeholders.
Contributing to the Future of Water Management
In Policy Lab for Urban Water Transition, municipalities, water and wastewater organisations, property sector stakeholders and researchers work together to develop new approaches to more sustainable water use.
The project is based in Lund, with Lund Municipality acting as the needs owner.
The starting point is the urban development process and the responsibilities of the water and wastewater sector, but the results are intended for use by municipalities and water utilities throughout Sweden.
Focusing on Governance Rather Than Technology
The project focuses on the regulations, policy instruments and organisational conditions required for existing solutions to be implemented on a larger scale. This includes issues such as allocation of responsibilities, tariffs and financial incentives, risk and quality classes for reclaimed water, and guidance on dual water systems and municipal water budgets. In this way, incentives for water reuse can be strengthened without the need for formal legislative changes.
A central part of the project is to investigate how a municipal water budget can be used as a practical tool in the urban planning process. A water budget can help identify available water resources, future demand and opportunities for reuse, thereby supporting more long-term decision-making.
Areas Requiring Policy Development
- The Public Water Services Act
- The Environmental Code
- The Planning and Building Act
- Guidance on dual water systems
- Municipal water budgets
- Tariffs and economic incentives for water reuse
- Risk and quality classes for reclaimed water
A Model for Understanding the Entire System
A key component of the project is the development of a systems-based simulation model.
The model is used to illustrate how different decisions, policy instruments and allocations of responsibility affect opportunities for efficient and sustainable water use. It enables the analysis of institutional, organisational, economic and legal barriers and opportunities, and allows different policy options to be tested.
This makes it possible to understand how changes in one part of the system influence other parts and to identify measures that can accelerate the transition towards more sustainable water use.
Three Areas for Policy Development
The project develops proposals for policy development at three levels
- Spatial Planning How physical planning and urban development can create the conditions for water reuse and resource-efficient water systems.
- Governance and Management How responsibilities, governance structures and collaboration can be designed to support long-term sustainable water management.
- Value Creation How economic incentives, business models and policy instruments can make circular water solutions attractive and feasible.
