Governing to Deliver Safe and Affordable Water: Perspectives from Urban Planning and Public Policy

Severe water stress is now a global crisis. The water crisis in Flint (Michigan), Toledo (Ohio), and Cape Town (South Africa) is a minutiae of the global water story: one in four of the world’s 500 largest cities is water stressed. By 2030, water stress will be the reality for almost half of the world’s population, which will force governments to spend around $200 billion annually to mitigate this stress. Apart from its public health and economic implications, water stress presents untold geopolitical ramifications. Mark Twain rightly opined, “whisky is for drinking; water is for fighting over.” Globally, water wars are expected to further complicate the existing tensions in conflict regions in the Middle East and South Asia. This chapter provides an understanding of the threats facing our common water future.