WaterMet 2: a tool for integrated analysis of sustainability-based performance of urban water systems

This paper presents the “WaterMet 2” model for long-term assessment of urban water system (UWS) performance which will be used for strategic planning of the integrated UWS. WaterMet 2 quantifies the principal water-related flows and other metabolism-based fluxes in the UWS such as materials, chemicals, energy and greenhouse gas emissions. The suggested model is demonstrated through sustainability-based assessment of an integrated real-life UWS for a daily time-step over a 30-year planning horizon. The integrated UWS modelled by WaterMet 2 includes both water supply and wastewater systems. Given a rapid population growth, WaterMet 2 calculates six quantitative sustainability-based indicators of the UWS. The result of the water supply reliability (94 %) shows the need for appropriate intervention options over the planning horizon. Five intervention strategies are analysed in WaterMet 2 and their quantified performance is compared with respect to the criteria. Multicriteria decision analysis is then used to rank the intervention strategies based on different weights from the involved stakeholders’ perspectives. The results demonstrate that the best and robust strategies are those which improve the performance of both water supply and wastewater systems.