Water Resource Management: Moving from Single Risk-Based Management to Resilience to Multiple Stressors

Water resource management in the UK is multifaceted, with a complexity of issues arising from acute and chronic stressors. Below average rainfall spring 2020 coincided large-scale changes to domestic water consumption patterns, first UK-wide COVID-19 lockdown, resulting increased pressure on nationwide resources. A sector wide survey, semi-structured interviews executives, meteorological data, plans market information were used evaluate impact threats demand UK, how resilience both can be increased. The pandemic was particularly threat: across country, it unpredictable hard forecast, compounding this, below resulted some areas having tanker ‘top up’ network. This occurred regions that are ‘water stressed’ as well those not. We therefore propose need look beyond ‘design droughts’ ‘dry weather demand’ characterise future As sector, we learn this threat administer more integrated approach, combining action social value water, implementation trading development multi-sectoral better respond short long-term disruptors.