EVALUATION METHODS FOR THE DESIGN OF ADAPTIVE WATER-SUPPLY SYSTEMS INURBAN ENVIRONMENTS

The issue of sustainable modes of development are not restricted to th ose concerning environmental protection or pollution control / minimis ation. In generic terms, sustainable systems are those which can be ad apted to changing circumstances. Given the essential nature of utiliti es there is a clear need to plan and manage their technologies in a su stainable manner. This paper offers an initial theoretical structure f or designing and managing adaptive technological infrastructures for u tilities in generic terms and suggests how such a framework may apply to water supply systems. In particular. the development of new water r ecycling technologies and the emergence of 'complex system' modelling techniques provide opportunities for the design of water supply system s which are adaptive to changes in the urban social and physical envir onment in which they are embedded. (C) 1997 IAWQ. Published by Elsevie r Science Ltd.