Climate Resilience Declaration

ROCKBlue’s mission is to advance water and sanitation to the world’s unserved billions of people, beginning with the most vulnerable: the urban populations in the developing world. Our primary approach is to partner with existing water and sanitation utilities to meet their needs today and in the future.

Our capacity building addresses utility management for universal service issues such as safe water supply, water losses, adequate distribution network, facility maintenance, customer service, operation efficiency, financial health, and future reinvestment. 

Utilities, no matter their geography, now have an added responsibility to plan for climate change mitigation and adaptation, collectively, for system resiliency.

The Challenge

Climate change affects water supply and demand via acute and chronic weather disruption. Higher temperatures increase the need for drinking water per capita; they also increase evaporation losses from open reservoirs. Droughts can stunt vegetation in watershed areas, which then retain less precipitation when it finally occurs. Less regularity of rainfall can allow groundwater levels to fall below the reach of some wells, while intense weather events can impair facilities, including dams and water channels, and damage water supply quality.

Guiding a utility through near- and long-term climate resilience challenges requires continually advancing skills, and we are committed to helping utility leaders develop them.

Declaration

To fulfill our mission and ensure a proactive, comprehensive approach, ROCKBlue remains committed to integrating climate resilience into all our programs and processes to best support urban utilities worldwide.

Resilience-Specific Standards

ROCKBlue climate resiliency support services include:

1. Risk assessments on all components of utility resources and infrastructure
2. Strategic planning for climate resiliency 
3. Change management guidance for utilities implementing climate resiliency strategies
4. Communication plans for climate resiliency efforts and customer behavior change
5. Climate sensitivity testing on procedures for assessing water sources and infrastructure
6. Assess return sensitivity for water loss reduction and increased supply security
7. Demand projections for acute and chronic extreme weather event scenarios
8. Survey end user needs and satisfaction, providing users with information about system operations. Communication training is a ROCKBlue standard and best practice 
9. Provide users with best practices to prepare for, survive, and recover after extreme weather events 
10. Support utility investment planning to include climate variability

For years, we have applied guidelines for identifying and serving the poor and disadvantaged end users. These and similar best practices will be accelerated for groups most vulnerable to heat, drought, urban migration, and other climate-related stresses.

Utilities also have influence beyond the systems they directly manage. ROCKBlue’s best practices encourage utilities to use their influence by incentivizing better management of watershed catchment areas, optimizing groundwater recharge through stormwater management, and promoting urban design that minimizes heat traps and enhances drainage management.

Carbon Reduction

In addition to water and sanitation-related resilience and watershed protection, we promote energy efficiency to reduce emissions and ultimately lower utilities’ power and fuel costs. Our guidelines aim to minimize carbon release from sewage treatment, while wastewater and stormwater reclamation help recharge groundwater and minimize the need for new raw water sources.

Your support can help us continue this critical work. Donate today to strengthen water and sanitation services for those most affected by climate change.