Water is essential to life, yet this resource is not being managed in a way that is sustainable. Cities are faced with aging infrastructure and stress on water systems. Moreover, an alarming percentage of water is wasted each year despite an increased demand by growing populations.
The quality of water has an impact on every aspect of society. Poor quality can affect the health of citizens, sometimes pulling them out of the workplace altogether in the event of serious illness. In turn, this places strain on already-overburdened health care systems.
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Large volumes of water are also needed for food production; without a healthy water supply, crops cannot grow and livestock cannot be raised. In societies where a lack of water is already an issue, this can only compound the problem.
It is critical that governments practice smart water management, and analytics plays a role in that. Cities can use sensors to monitor supply and demand of water, address leakages in infrastructure, and establish a warning system in the event of a flood. Analytics can be used to make better decisions about how and where to store water.
For more information on how to approach water management, visit our digital library, where we have a number of whitepapers available for download.