Sustainable Urban Water Management in China: A Case Study from Guangzhou and Kunming

Abstract

In China, the notion of a water sensitive city has gained popularity in urban water management as a result of the detrimental effects of flooding and pollution caused by developmental activities. Urban systems and their interrelationships are critical for long-term urban water management and water sensitivity. This article is a case study considering how a strength, weakness, opportunities, and threat (SWOT) analysis-based approach to urban water management interventions in Guangzhou and Kunming cities (China) enables decision makers to identify solutions for cities to become more water-sensitive and resilient. The similar difficulties and rewards with respect to the contexts of both cities were synthesized using SWOT analysis. The contextual SWOT analysis, in conjunction with the comprehensive inclusion of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in intervention planning in these cities, revealed that a water-sensitive-cities approach requires the establishment of a comprehensively multi-objective rainwater management system; this approach would have the goals of reducing rainwater draining sources, controlling processes and adaptive measures, and governing the system to make it more resilient. The water strategy should be holistic and adaptive, capable of providing a broad range of ecological services and other social benefits consistent with the fulfilment of the Sustainable Development Goals, and adaptable to other Chinese cities seeking to achieve water sensitivity.