Rethinking urban water management: a case study of vulnerability in the Kingston Basin

ABSTRACT

Climate change has created much uncertainty about the future sustainability of freshwater resources. This study presents a hydro-social approach to vulnerability reduction within the Kingston Hydrological Basin as a critical aspect of advancing sustainable water management in Jamaica over the next 30 years. The study identified vulnerability measures across the basin’s natural, social, technical and political components using a vulnerability assessment and risk-based analysis. The methodology involved an integrated and multi-stakeholder approach. The results revealed 21 measures constituting the basin’s vulnerability to observed and projected societal and environmental change, 11 of which present a high to very high risk level.

KEYWORDS:

• Vulnerability reduction
• adaptation
• freshwater systems
• Kingston hydrological basin
• Jamaica

Acknowledgements

I thank the Water Resources Authority of Jamaica for providing the hydrostratigraphy and hydrological data used in this study.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).