Water systems in Europe under pressure

The availability of clean and safe water in Europe is no longer a given. This is evident from the Urban Insight report 'Too much, too little, too polluted – Taking on Europe's water challenges' by Sweco. Climate change, outdated infrastructure, and increasing pollution are putting drinking water and wastewater systems under immense pressure. Without targeted action, public health, the economy, and nature are at risk.“Water is a prerequisite for everything we do. From living and working to energy and food production. Yet we systematically underestimate how vulnerable our water systems are,” says Mattias Salomonsson, Water Expert at Sweco.

Six concrete actions to strengthen Europe's water systems

The Urban Insight report identifies six interconnected actions to structurally strengthen European water systems:

1. Make water risk assessments standard
   Explicitly anchor water risks in permitting, infrastructure design, investment decisions, and financing. Not retrospectively, but as a starting point.
2. Develop integrated municipal water strategies
   Combine drinking water, wastewater, rainwater, and flood management into a single coherent framework, aligned with climate developments and spatial growth.
3. Plan and finance the renewal of outdated infrastructure
   Work with multi-year investment programs that take into account lifespan, climate impact, and future purification requirements.
4. Link management and investments to structural risk assessments
   Conduct periodic risk analyses and use them as a basis for maintenance strategies and investment priorities in water systems.
5. Integrate water risk into financial decision-making
   Explicitly include water in credit ratings, investment models, and insurance considerations to better manage and price systemic risks.
6. Utilize spatial planning and nature-based solutions
   Protect infiltration areas, create space for water, and use natural systems to strengthen urban water management and climate adaptation.

Inspiring examples

The examples can be found in the report that was recently published. The report compiles iInspiring practical examples from across Europe, in which knowledge, innovation, and collaboration visibly come together. It showcases projects with local solutions that are applicable on a larger scale. They make clear that European water challenges are cross-border, but that the knowledge to address them is already widely available and being shared.