BlueSCities

Within the BlueSCities project, a prominent role has been given to City Blueprint, a tool that was especially developed for the assessment of urban water management.

Quick scan of the sustainability of the urban water cycle

City Blueprint is a quick scan of the sustainability of the urban water cycle. It uses 25 indicators, divided into 7 categories: water quality, household waste, basic water services, wastewater treatment, infrastructure, climate adaptation and governance. The indicators are scored on a scale of 0 to 10, and the average of the 25 scores produces the Blue City Index (BCI). This single number provides an indication of the sustainability of the urban water cycle.

We will be applying the new City Blueprint approach to many cities in Europe. So far, reports have been produced and published on 45 cities worldwide. Combined with Amberscan (indicators for energy, transport and ICT), the tool presents a broad picture of the performance of cities. We will be doing this for 8 cities.

Removing cross-sectoral obstacles

The BlueSCities objectives are to enhance the understanding of the problems and challenges related to water and waste in cities; to underpin responsible and good choices regarding the investments required; and to share best practices. The results will be incorporated in practical recommendations to the European Commission.

Blue City Index (BCI) for different cities around the world.