워터커뮤니티(water community)를 연구·지원하는 물연구재단(WRF)이 물환경연구재단(WERF), 호주물연구기관(WRA)과 함께 유틸리티가 통합된 물, 또는 'One Water' 관리 방식으로 전환되는 방법을 연구한 결과 오늘날 성공적으로 연구를 완성했다고 밝혔다.

워터유틸리티는 여의치 않은 시설과 사회의 장애물로 인해 통합 물관리 방식 채택이 어려운 다수의 대중들에게 서비스를 제공하기 위해 지금도 변화하는 다양한 환경들을 연구한다. 방식이 채택된 장소에 효과는 확실하게 나타나지만 ‘One Water‘ 관리 방식으로의 전환은 도시 물계획 설계자와 계획에 관련된 정책입안자들에게 풀리지 않는 과제를 제시한다.

Today, the Water Research Foundation (WRF), a sponsor of research supporting the water community, announced the completion of a study -- conducted with Water Environment Research Foundation (WERF) and Water Research Australia (WRA) -- that's focused on helping utilities successfully transition into an integrated water, or 'One Water,' management approach.

Water utilities are working in increasingly diverse landscapes that present a multitude of unique institutional and societal barriers to adopting an integrated water management approach. While effective once firmly in place, transitioning to a One Water approach has historically presented challenges to urban water planners and policymakers alike.

The research in "Institutional Issues for One Water Management (Project #4487)" supports that a One Water approach can be effectively employed to address a multitude of confounding factors and align them through workable institutional arrangements and management. The project uses a collection of case studies to identify the transitional challenges others have faced and how to navigate through those challenges to best support actionable next steps.

"The water landscape we live and work in today is quite different than 50 years ago," said Rob Renner, WRF executive director. "Our goal in partnering with WERF and [WRA] on this project was to provide practical examples of how agencies and communities can, and have, worked through barriers to practice a more integrated and sustainable approach to water resource management. The shift in the water community demands greater understanding and support for this type of transition, and our agencies are aligned in delivering on that need for our community members."

The project resulted in a final report, a guidebook to help utilities apply research findings and best practices, and a collection of three in-depth case studies and 25 snapshot case studies. The report and guidebook:

Document challenges encountered by local governments, water utilities, urban planners, and regulators in transitioning to a One Water, integrated water management approach

Provide a framework for decision makers, practitioners and planners to identify potential enabling actions for overcoming these challenges

Include recommendations that water associations can take in order to create a conducive environment to encourage and provide a smoother transition to a One Water approach

The case studies provide practical examples of how agencies and communities worked through institutional barriers so they could practice a more integrated and sustainable approach to water resource management. Likewise, they looked at initiatives and interactions between different levels of government, private entities, NGOs, and citizens across a range of institutional barriers. All materials are available on the WRF website (here).

In addition to tactical efficiency, the case studies indicate that strong leadership and vision from senior level personnel, as well as collective transparency around processes and information sharing are key to driving an integrated water management approach. Interlinked cross-industry initiatives were also suggested that could be taken by the urban planning and water service sectors to further transition to a One Water paradigm.

[출처 = Water World / 2015년 8월 18일]