Blue buildings: decentralized and integrated management of water from ‘Source-To-Source, At Source’

The high upfront investments, inadequate funding, technical challenges and major gaps in implementing centralized water systems necessitate the exploration of more viable, environment friendly and economically sustainable options. At the same time, the increasing scarcity of water requires an ‘end-to-end’ or ‘source-to-source’ management approach.

This paper provides the framework for an alternative decentralized solution that can both complement the conventional centralized solution to water and wastewater management. It provides the vital building blocks for the development of SMART Cities by making homes, buildings and communities water sustainable through a new Blue Building Standard that uses economically and technically viable technologies. In such a framework, the end users become active partners and collaborators with service providers and utilities in the management of water from source to source, at source. Only with the development and adoption of new standards can decentralized solution realize its potential of becoming a mainstream solution in urban water management.