Analyst Insight: Smart Water Trends

The confluence of urbanization, population and economic growth, and climate change provides strong economic and societal drivers for the adoption of smart water technologies. The focus on public health issues during the COVID-19 pandemic has also demonstrated the value of smart water solutions, namely in wastewater epidemiology. However, smart water projects continue to be relatively underrepresented among smart city projects, where the limited deployment of smart water technologies stands in contrast to the growing need for safe and efficient resource use. Of the 798 smart city projects across 370 cities tracked by Guidehouse Insights, only 35 tracked projects, that is around 4.4% of the overall total, include a water-focused initiative.

City or municipal-level water-focused projects have consistently seen low numbers of deployments in the Guidehouse Insights’ Smart City Tracker, although there are notable private-sector initiatives around the world. Flood management systems, smart water meters, and smart water treatment initiatives are expected to be the focus going forward, though factors such as the availability of funding, the strength of public policymaking, and the severity of need, will likely inform the scale and depth of rollout.

This Analyst Insight provides an overview of the deployment of smart water projects as informed by the latest Smart City Tracker update, 3Q 2021. The report focuses on climate change, energy demands, and public health issues as drivers for smart water applications.