Water
consumption per capita
UP-8
Urban
Environmental Problems
Pressure
1 Indicator
definition and unit of measurement
The
amount of water used in litres per day per capita by the urban population.
2 Placement
in the framework
5EAP:
Chapter
5: The themes and targets of the programme, section 5.4: Management of water
resources, establishes the framework for the management of water resources.
Community policies must aim, inter alia, at ensuring that water demand and
water supply are brought into equilibrium on the basis of more rational use and
management of water resources.
Agenda
21:
Chapter
18: Protection of the quality and supply of freshwater resources: application
of integrated approaches to the development, management and use of water
resources, section A: Integrated water resources development and management,
section B: Water resources assessment, section C: Protection of water
resources, water quality and aquatic ecosystems, and section E: Water and
sustainable urban development, identify activities to promote efficient and
equitable allocation of water resources for urban use.
International
conventions and agreements:
None.
Ranking:
Core
ranking:
8
(21%)
Policy
Relevance:
13
(2.7)
Analytical
Soundness:
12
(2.7)
Responsiveness:
11
(2.5)
Most
appropriate related state indicator:
Contamination
of surface water.
3 Significance
Purpose:
The
availability of water resources is essential to urban areas. Excessive
withdrawals and waste threaten the future ability to supply water resources to
the urban population. The purpose of this indicator is to monitor trends in the
use of water and potential impact on its future availability.
Relevance:
Increasing
quantities of water resources are being depleted through excessive withdrawals
and waste, and degraded through uncontrolled dumping and pollution.
Linkages
to other pressure indicators:
The
amount of water used in litres per day per capita in urban areas is linked to
other pressure indicators such as RD-8: Surface water abstraction for drinking
water and RD-1: Water consumption per capita, including Ground water
abstraction for drinking water.
Targets:
None.
4 Methodological
description and underlying definitions
Underlying
definitions and concepts:
The
amount of water used per capita reflects consumption patterns and lifestyles in
urban areas. These are typically influenced by the levels of income of the
urban population. However an important factor in water consumption is the
inadequate infrastructure and consequent waste of water before it reaches the
household.
Measurement
methods:
Data
on water use is collected at the municipal scale. OECD/Eurostat collect data on
water abstraction by categories of final users.
Limitations
of the indicator:
Major
problems are due to the quality of data in many urban areas and the different
disaggregation by final users.
Alternative
definitions:
A
possible alternative is the use of water disaggregated by end uses.
