Comparative Analysis of Water Sustainability Indices: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Abstract The achievement of water sustainability necessitates the development and application of comprehensive assessment tools to monitor and evaluate the impact of water resources management. This paper provides a comparative analysis of a wide range of water sustainability indices described in recent scientific literature, focusing on their underlying principles, methodologies, and potential applications. By systematic review of 124 publications, this study provides insights into existing composite indices related to water sustainability, highlighting their specific applications and potential contributions to water resource management and sustainability. The information gathered from the selected papers was synthesized and analysed thematically to identify common patterns through keyword co-occurrence mapping, SDG mapping, standard review protocol, and cluster analyses. This review also identified research gaps in the existing literature. The analysed indices represent a range of sectors and dimensions related to water resource management. This study found that indices serve as a tool for assessing and managing water resources sustainably, addressing diverse aspects of sustainability, and aiding decision-making in different sectors and contexts.