Brefing: Proactive risk management of urban water supply systems

Urban water-supply systems play a fundamental role in modern society. These infrastructures are exposed not only to natural hazards, but also to technical failure and terrorist attack. The effects of such events extend beyond direct users as they upset the performance of other systems. During a crisis, other infrastructures, like hospitals and other emergency systems, may be unable to respond. Economic losses may ensue in industrial facilities or power generation and distribution. Decision-makers therefore have to decide how infrastructures can be strengthened and operated to cope with hazardous situations. This paper discusses the technical and scientific challenges faced in building and applying decision models that include risk/uncertainty issues for the planning, design and management of urban water infrastructures.