Climate Change and Urban Water Utilities : Challenges and Opportunities

This report is part of a larger World Bank effort that seeks to provide analytical and strategic assistance to Bank staff and utilities in client countries as they begin to consider the implications of climate change on water resources. The key objectives of this document are to: 1) improve understanding and awareness of the operational implications of climate change on the provision of water and wastewater services by urban utilities; 2) present adaptation actions conducted at the utility level for inspiration; 3) establish an analytical framework to assist Bank staff and client countries' utility managers to identify and prioritize potential climate change adaptation measures; and 4) assess the feasibility of implementing adaptation measures based on a set of criteria. This report is structured as follows: chapter one provides an overview of the role that climate change will have on urban water utilities and highlights the often competing priorities that water managers are faced with in developing countries; chapter two describes the relationship between climate change and water resources as they influence water service provision; chapter three presents a framework for analysis of vulnerability and adaptive capacity of water providers; and chapters four presents a framework for adaptation actions. Annexes contain detailed graphs and statistics taken from the international workshop held in Madrid, Spain in January of 2009 and utility specific case studies which are highlighted throughout the report.