Our Scans · (LF.6) Clean Water and Sanitation · Weekly Summary

In September 2015, 193 world leaders agreed to 17 Global Goals for Sustainable Development. If these Goals are completed, it would mean an end to extreme poverty, inequality and climate change by 2030.
Goal 6. Ensure availability of water and sanitation for all.

• [New] By the mid-2020s, heat waves, floods, droughts, and other extreme weather events had become more frequent and severe across many parts of Asia, increasing risks to food security, water resources, infrastructure, and public health. EBSCO
• [New] The mass deployment of sensors, including Event Duration Monitoring, at all UK storm overflows creates opportunities for digital solutions to improve the way water quality is both managed and subsequently communicated to communities. CIWEM
• [New] Water companies must have improved 75% of storm overflows by 2035, and 100% by 2045. / UK CIWEM
• [New] There are renewed warnings that threats to food and water security in the Pacific arising from a stronger than usual El Nino climate pattern will compound the shocks emanating from the ongoing Middle East conflict. Devpolicy Blog from the Development Policy Centre
• [New] The roughly 50,000 known rock glaciers around the world could collectively contain about 48 gigatons of water. ScienceDaily
• [New] Asia Pacific is anticipated to be the fastest-growing region as governments are promoting digital agriculture to improve food security while using land and water more efficiently. Persistence Market Research
• [New] German companies have faced disruption after Rhine water levels fell to record lows earlier this month, driving up transport costs, creating logistics bottlenecks and curbing production. gCaptain
• [New] Attacks targeting critical infrastructure could have serious real-world consequences, including disruptions to hospitals, electrical systems and water treatment facilities. KDBC
• [New] By 2030, global water demand will exceed supply by approximately 40%, underscoring the urgency of robust water management solutions. Persistence Market Research
• [New] Longer droughts, rising populations and a siphoning off of resources via a large dam in Ethiopia may soon contribute to conflicts over water and its natural resources downstream in Egypt, potentially putting millions of people at risk of poverty and starvation. News Decoder
• [New] The scale of planned investment in water infrastructure across England and Wales is creating a substantial delivery opportunity, but workforce availability is emerging as an important constraint on how effectively that capital can be deployed. DirectorsTalk Interviews
• The kind of increasingly frequent heatwaves we have experienced and greatly reduced rainfall that we could see over successive summers with climate change, plus a projected increase in demand for water, have raised the prospect that England could at some point run out of water. BBC News
• The U.S. Department of Energy finalized standards requiring over 50% of newly manufactured electric storage water heaters to use heat pump technology by 2029. Persistence Market Research
• Industrial water utilities are expected to register the fastest growth, expanding at a CAGR of 13.9% between 2026 and 2033, driven by sustainability commitments, water reuse initiatives, and rising freshwater costs across manufacturing, mining, and power generation industries. Persistence Market Research
• Fastest Growing Region: Asia Pacific is the fastest growing region, projected at a 13.7% CAGR fueled by rapid urbanization, water scarcity, and large-scale government-backed smart city programs. Persistence Market Research
• Standards such as the Global Industry Standard on Tailings Management, the repricing of insurance for water-exposed assets, and the direct exposure of infrastructure and balance sheets mean the ability to measure and evidence water-driven risk is increasingly a condition of operating. African Mining Market
• NASA plans a sustainable moon base staffed by astronauts and robots near the lunar south pole, where permanently shadowed craters are thought to hold tons of frozen water that could be turned into rocket fuel and drinking water. The Guardian
• On the water side, MPs were warned earlier in 2026 that official forecasts of England's future water needs excluded datacenters, despite the growing number of them, and that they could end up competing with homes and businesses for supply. theregister
• AI-powered data centers are becoming significant consumers of electricity and water, with demand expected to increase substantially by 2030. GCC BUSINESS WATCH
• Water and food security will form another major pillar of WGES 2026, reflecting the growing pressure that climate change is placing on essential resources. GCC BUSINESS WATCH
• Swiss startup Riverkin develops river monitoring technology that tracks water, sediment, and flood risks. Vestbee
• Increasing pressure on global water resources is encouraging industries to adopt water reuse and recycling strategies, creating new opportunities for zero valent iron technologies. Persistence Market Research
• The potential economic consequences are significant: the African Development Bank estimates that a Super El Nino could result in a US$ 10 billion to US$ 20 billion hit across African countries, with impacts extending to food and water security, infrastructure and economic activity. African Mining Market

Last updated: 07 September 2026