The theme for Singapore International Water Week is ‘Sustainable Cities – Clean and Affordable Water’. In line with the overall theme, the Water Convention will provide a platform for water professionals to share experiences and case studies on technological solutions to solve water challenges, as well as examine issues related to water quality and safety, financing and pricing, and urban water sustainability. In this respect, abstracts for the four listed themes are welcome.

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Theme 1: Solutions for Water System Efficiency & Effectiveness
Most water (and wastewater) systems around the world are notoriously known for their inefficiencies and ineffectiveness – energy and resource intensive treatment processes; massive leakages in distribution systems; non-existent wastewater collection systems; partial or little wastewater and sludge treatment; aging infrastructure; and many more. It is no wonder many people continue to lack access to clean drinking water and basic sanitation. For the situation to improve, utilities and local governments need to start realizing that the status quo is not good enough and that they need to improve and optimize their systems to enhance their performance and efficiency. This is best achieved through peer-to-peer interaction and learning from the successes of others.

This theme will therefore focus on case studies of well-functioning utilities which have implemented changes to their systems that resulted in improved performance. The success factors of these case studies would be examined so that lessons learnt can be adapted and applied by other utilities. The theme will focus only on urbanized environment, namely (a) large cities, and (b) small/ medium cities. Papers with case studies on systems efficiency and effectiveness in the following areas would be welcome:

• Source control and drinking water treatment
• Network management and reliable water supply
• Wastewater collection and treatment
• Sludge treatment and disposal
• Water reuse
• Solutions to alternative water sources, e.g. desalination

Theme 2: Planning for Sustainable Water Solutions
The world is undergoing unprecedented changes in human demographics brought about by rapid urbanization. For the first time in history, the number of urban dwellers exceeds the number of people living in the rural areas. In Asian countries such as China and India, cities are growing at an amazing rate as the population migrates to urban areas in search of new opportunities. This phenomenon, together with the impact of climate change, is expected to create severe stress on existing water infrastructure and system, and force water engineers and urban planners to remodel conventional design and thinking and invent new approaches towards water services delivery that would be more resource efficient, scalable and sustainable.

This theme will focus on the following topics and areas. Special preference will be given to case studies that demonstrate effective and sustainable approaches towards water systems planning and implementation.

• Water and global change – modelling and managing uncertainty in cities
• Flexibility of urban water infrastructure systems to adapt to changing environments
• Water and energy footprints – measures and targets for cities
• Spatial planning & urban design – its contribution to efficient water management
• Planning and design of sustainable & efficient urban water systems
• Integrated treatment technologies for efficient urban water management
• Cities of the future

Theme 3: Water Quality and Health
The provision of safe drinking water to consumers is of the highest priority for water suppliers and utilities worldwide. However, contamination of water sources and supply systems remains a challenge in many countries. At the same time, demands for better evaluation and understanding of the health impacts of emerging contaminants on water quality also increases, as more non-conventional water sources are developed to augment existing water resources. This drives the need for more stringent but yet pragmatic water quality guidelines, standards and approaches.

The sessions in this theme will cover different aspects of water quality and safety issues relevant to the provision of safe drinking water, including water quality regulations, water safety management, risk assessment, detection of various contaminants and development of sensors for water assessment. Papers which focus on the sharing of experiences through case studies, regional issues and practical applications are encouraged. Possible topics include:

• Formulation and implementation of water quality initiatives, guidelines and standards
• Water quality risk assessment
• Water safety plans
• Source water protection & management

• Heavy metal contamination (e.g. mercury, arsenic, molybdenum, lead)
• Microbial contaminants - waterborne bacteria, viruses and parasites
• Emerging and controversial issues - health effects of nanoparticles, endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) and pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs)
• Trends in water quality monitoring – practical chemical and biological sensors that can be used in any context

Theme 4: Governance and Finance
Good governance involves institutions that cut across multiple agencies and maintains linkages with all stakeholders. It requires policies, laws and regulation. It also requires creative and flexible management and budgetary practices that design tariff structures to balance affordability and sustainability and enable delivery of targeted services. Lastly, it requires a system of reporting and monitoring such as a citizen’s report card or annual corporate reports. The presentations in this theme will share the experience of inspired leaders and institutions that link customers with the planning and delivery processes.  In addition, financing for well structured and sustainable projects is available. However, the issue is the design of the projects and the operating framework that can make them sustainable. Successful examples of how this has been done covering various facets of project development and strengthening of the financial base of the utilities will be examined. Funding schemes for water projects would also be one of the focus areas in this theme. Participation of the private sector through public private partnerships (PPPs) in developing water infrastructure will also be a key focus for the sessions.

For this theme, the presentations are intended to be practice-oriented, especially in the sharing of experiences. They should include concrete examples of projects/case studies specific and limited to any one of the following areas:

• Inspired Leadership in Policy Making
• Developing Bankable Projects
• Risk Assessment and Allocation
• Improving Creditworthiness of Utilities & Financial Restructuring of Projects
• Customer Participation in Project Planning & Delivery
• Pricing of Water
• Sources of Financing
• Renegotiation of Contracts