Principles of Integrated Water Management
As mentioned previously, to avoid significant problems in the future, major improvements are required in the way the built environment is planned and designed. Developments must act in synchronisation with the natural water cycle to avoid an imbalance between water extracted and that returned to the groundwater and aquifers.
The improvements required fall under the collective heading of Integrated Water Management (IWM).
IWM aims to ensure that the manmade built environment is planned and designed to function in partnership with the natural water environment, so that they can both be of high quality and sustainable. IWM has a number of sub-management processes, which can each be related to the natural water cycle: