Southwest Urban Water Systems Aim for Sustainability Amidst Growing Challenges
The Colorado River, a crucial water source for over 40 million residents in the United States Southwest, is currently struggling to meet escalating demands. Confronted with climate change, expanding populations, and outdated infrastructure, urban water systems in this arid region must adapt to ensure sustainability. A promising approach, known as Net Zero Urban Water (NZUW), seeks to fulfill community water needs sustainably and locally, without compromising interconnected systems or long-term resources.
Transitioning to a NZUW model necessitates significant changes in water availability, sourcing, technological application, management practices, cost structures, and urban design. Critical to this transition is the acceptance of these changes by key stakeholders. Research identifies three primary actors — institutions, civil society, and the public — along with five vital factors affecting change acceptance: public trust, perceived issue severity, infrastructural inertia, cultural preferences, and economic costs.
Each of these factors has been addressed through various strategies by the actors involved, such as transparent communication, community engagement, inter-agency cooperation, advocacy efforts, and financial incentives. To gain a comprehensive understanding of the acceptance dynamics necessary for a NZUW future, four cities within the Colorado River System—Albuquerque, Denver, Los Angeles, and Tucson—were studied. These case studies reveal the importance of building public trust, overcoming institutional and cultural barriers, and aligning financial policies to advance a sustainable water system future.
Currently, cities in the Southwest are experiencing significant sociotechnical shifts towards more sustainable urban water systems. The continued acceptance of these changes by institutions, civil society, and the public remains crucial for realizing a NZUW future.
Keywords: Net zero urban water, Sociotechnical systems, Public trust, public acceptance, water reuse and decentralization
Received: 28 May 2025; Accepted: 23 Oct 2025.
Correspondence: Courtney Crosson, ccrosson@arizona.edu
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Original Story at www.frontiersin.org