BLUE CITY: New Report Highlights Innovative Water Solutions for Municipalities and Regions across Canada
Note to Reader:
Canada faces an estimated cost of $88 billion water and wastewater infrastructure deficit and this estimate is expected to grow under a “business as usual” approach. As record infrastructure costs grow, the need for innovative solutions alongside innovative funding mechanisms, are increasingly in demand. To facilitate change, the Blue Economy Initiative has released a visionary report, Blue City: The Water-Sustainable City of the Near Future, authored by Econics.
To download a copy, click here.
“We offer a vision of what is possible in the near future,” states Kirk Stinchcombe, lead author
“We wanted Blue City to be an accessible report, grounded in rigorous research and analysis but presented in the style of a magazine. We didn’t want to create a ‘how-to’ guide. Instead, this is intended to stimulate a discussion about the complexities of urban water management. More importantly, though, we offer a vision of what is possible in the near future,” explains Kirk Stinchcombe, Econics founder and lead author.
“We set out to write a report that will help practitioners and decision makers build a business case for more sustainable, integrated water management. The city we describe, although fictitious, is largely an amalgamation of real cities. These 
innovations are actually occurring in places across the country and around the world. This place is within reach of Canadian municipalities now,” continues Louise Brennan, Sustainability Specialist and report co-author.
“We were privileged to draw our findings from in-depth interviews with a brilliant group of prominent and knowledgeable water experts from around North America. The thought-leaders we spoke to told us what a water sustainable city would look and feel like, the emerging innovations in their fields, the barriers to progress, and their own personal wish lists. Together, they imagined what is possible in urban water sustainability,” concludes Kirk Stinchcombe.
TO LEARN MORE:
The Blue Economy Initiative seeks to inspire dialogue among Canadian decision-makers and key influencers around the opportunities and benefits of preserving water, and the economic risks of not making sustainable decisions.
To download a copy, click on Blue City: The Water-Sustainable City of the Near Future.
To read a more detailed story posted on the Water-Centric Planning community-of-interest, click on New Report Highlights Innovative Water Solutions for Municipalities and Regions Across Canada.
