Future Perfect

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ustainability

olicies

, P

rogrammes

and

their

conomic

mpact

times of increased human influence and the growing need for drink-

ing water, prudent water management is essential, together with

technical innovations.

Sweden takes an integrated approach to water management,

beginning with the movement of the water through the landscape

and on to the drainage area. In 2011, a new Agency for Marine

and Water Management was established. Its objective is to further

integrate marine water management, allowing better conditions for

sustainable water use. The serious environmental conditions in the

sea surrounding Sweden are a Government priority.

Sweden has a long coastline and this is a great responsibility

for marine environments. When increasing numbers of offshore

facilities for wind and wave energy are added to fishing and trans-

portation, the need for marine resource planning and management

becomes more urgent. Marine planning allows for use – without

misuse – of sensitive seas. Such work is jointly undertaken with

neighbouring countries. For example, in the Baltic Sea, Sweden and

Finland are collaborating in the Plan Bothnia project, which is aimed

at ecosystem-based marine planning.

There is also wider collaboration around the Baltic Sea, where

132 pollution hotspots were identified in the 1990s within the

framework of the Helsinki Commission. The Swedish International

Development Cooperation Agency and its partners in various coun-

tries have been involved in about 40 water and wastewater projects,

resulting in a 40 per cent reduction in nitrogen and phosphorus

discharges over a ten-year period. This translates into a total reduc-

tion of 3,500 tons of phosphorus into the Baltic Sea each year, which

is more than the total national discharges of Sweden.

Courses and training sessions are undertaken in Sweden and

abroad with the purpose of enhancing capacity in this field. One

example is the Swedish support given to the Indian

organization Tarun Bharat Sangh, which is active

in more than 1,000 villages in Rajasthan. Improved

management has resulted in raised water tables,

increased access to water and higher agricultural yields,

which in turn has contributed to improved incomes and

reduced poverty.

Sweden is host to two important international

resource centres in the field of water management,

the Global Water Partnership and the Stockholm

International Water Institute. The latter hosts the

largest annual international water conference – World

Water Week – and has emerged in recent years as an

international knowledge and capacity centre for water

issues.

Sustainable cities

More than half the world’s population lives in cities, and

urbanization continues at a rapid pace. Urbanization is

inherent in economic and cultural development and

these trends are universal. Life chances and economic

opportunities are often better in cities, even for the

many poor and disadvantaged.

How urban growth is managed has enormous impli-

cations for whether the potentially disastrous impact

of climate change can be avoided. A number of envi-

ronmental problems – many of them related to climate

change – must be dealt with in cities. Large-scale urban

growth, particularly in parts of Asia and Africa, has

created a pressing need for more holistic planning and

The Hammarby Sjöstad, Stockholm, has set a new standard for future housing development with its integrated planning approach

Image: Kristofer Samuelsson /Johnér