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ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND WATERThe geographic location of Arua town, UgandaSudanARUACongo, DRCUgandaTanzaniaRwandaSource: Vairavamoorthy et al, 2012Emerging technologies that maximize opportunities for water reuseand recycling from used waterKenyaImage:Aqua Services and Engineering, 2013build infrastructure. We need a change in mindsetabout wastewater; we should stop viewing it aswaste and a burden, but rather see it as a resourcethat could be effectively utilized to augment watersources. And building a decentralized system forwastewater recycling, using innovative options suchas the Decentralized Wastewater Treatment System 6and Soil Aquifer Treatment, can both improvesanitation and generate additional water sources.Decentralized systems allow water to be used andreused closer to where it is produced and whereit is needed. Decentralized systems can also lowerenergy demand and reduce operational and maintenancecosts, making them especially well suited toconditions in sub-Saharan Africa. In addition, thedecentralized treatment options and the resultingclusters optimize the adaptive capacity of the emergingurban space by allowing infrastructure growthto be staged in a way that traces the urban growthtrajectory more carefully. The IUWM strategy alsopromotes the development of a strong watershedprotection plan where the needs and wishes of allupstream and downstream stakeholders in the watershedare considered.It is possible that this IUWM strategy could providesufficient water resources to meet the increasingdemand in the next 20 years. Allocation of the differentwater resources is prioritized from a cost-benefitperspective. The feasibility study estimates that forArua, the average unit costs for the proposed IUWMscenario are US$0.57 per cubic metre, while the unitcosts for the traditional approach of using water fromconventional surface water sources 20 km away isUS$0.74 per cubic metre.A unique opportunityIn conclusion, we need to recognize that global changepressures will affect our ability to manage urban waterin the city of the future. We all live, and our citiesexist, in a rapidly changing environment. The thinkingbehind much urban planning today predates thesechanges and the time has come to think fresh! Wecannot continue investing in water infrastructure thatis unsuited to future societal needs. At the same timewe have to find new ways of catering for more people,with more needs, with the same quantity of water. Allthis has to be achieved while reducing our ecologicalfootprints. This complicated challenge calls for a realparadigm shift in urban water management. In emergingurban areas in Africa where water infrastructureis still in its infancy, there is a unique but fleetingopportunity to implement radically different urbanwater systems based on the principles of IUWM. Theconclusion from the Arua case study is that IUWMis a powerful approach to managing freshwater andwastewater (and stormwater), and provides the potentialto satisfy the water needs of communities at thelowest cost while minimizing adverse environmentaland social impacts.[ 282 ]