How to integrate climate aspects into risk management (RisTkli)

Risk management in drinking water supply considering risks induced by climate change

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Finding the ideal data sources online can be challenging. Source: Pixabay - Merhan Saeed

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Project schedule

The amended German Drinking Water Ordinance requires water suppliers to implement risk management, explicitly calling for the consideration of risks arising from climate change. The new project by TZW and the German Environment Agency (UBA) addresses how water suppliers can analyze climate data and integrate it into their risk management.

The amended Drinking Water Ordinance, which came into effect in June 2023, requires all German water suppliers to implement a risk management for their entire drinking water supply chain by 2029. For this purpose, the concept established by the World Health Organization (WHO) known as Water Safety Planning (WSP) can be utilized.

WSP is a preventive risk assessment and risk management approach in drinking water supply, from catchment to the consumer. The goal of WSP is to ensure safe drinking water and to effectively manage microbiological, chemical, and physical hazards. The WSP approach has existed since 2003, although climate change was not explicitly mentioned at that time. However, climate aspects are addressed in a WHO publication on climate-resilient WSP (WHO 2017) as well as in the updated version of the WSP manual (WHO 2023). The Drinking Water Ordinance explicitly requires the inclusion of risks induced by climate change into risk management. Nevertheless, no specifics on how to integrate them into risk management have been published yet. With our new project, RisTkli, TZW and UBA aim to change that. The acronym is derived from the German project title (“Risikomanagement in der Trinkwasserversorgung unter Berücksichtigung von klimawandel-induzierten Risiken“) which translates to “Risk management in drinking water supply considering risks induced by climate change”.

Specifically, we will focus on the following research questions:

1.    To what extent, in what data formats, and at what temporal and spatial resolutions is relevant climate information available for water suppliers in Germany?

2.    How user-friendly is this information presented, and do water suppliers have varying needs for climate information depending on their size and/or site conditions?

3.    Which climate information should German water suppliers consider in their risk management to meet the new legal requirements?

4.    How can they integrate climate information into their risk management?

To answer these research questions, the project team will pilot risk management with a focus on risks induced by climate change at three locations in Germany. RisTkli is thus a very practical endeavor that will provide water suppliers with important insights into the use of available climate information.

The project is led by UBA.

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