The water transition
In the face of pressing challenges such as climate change, environmental degradation, and population growth, the water transition represents a vital shift towards sustainable and resilient water management that will benefit all of society.
The role of water in facilitating healthy, robust communities, a successful economy, and a thriving environment has never been more evident.
Water is a key resource in all aspects of our lives and is a crucial element in the wider green transition. Robust water provision, collection and treatment systems ensure a resilient water supply and mitigate the impacts of climate change on the population. Introducing advanced wastewater treatment technologies facilitates water reuse to reduce reliance on freshwater sources.
Effective water management is vital in achieving climate resilience and environmental conservation. Increasing the use of nature-based solutions will preserve ecosystems and provide natural defences against climate impacts to protect our water bodies and maintain biodiversity and ecological balance. Additionally, incorporating green/blue infrastructure in urban planning helps manage stormwater, mitigate flooding, and improve water quality.
At Sweco, we aim to be a role model in the green transition, taking responsibility for and being part of the solution to society’s sustainability and carbon reduction challenges. Our commitment is to do more to support and challenge our clients in delivering innovative energy, transport, urban, water and industry solutions through expert consultancy, high-quality design and technical excellence.
Max Joy President Sweco UK
Looking to Industry, water plays a critical role in generating energy and supporting cooling systems in renewable energy plants. Water recycling and the transfer of water treatment technologies to industrial applications further reduces the demand for freshwater and minimises pollutants being passed to the environment.
At Sweco, our Water team is at the heart of this transition to a more sustainable approach to water. We support our clients across both the regulated and non-regulated water sectors and beyond, implementing innovative systems-based, catchment solutions that improve water management, enhance water efficiency, and protect our vital water resources.
Transforming society together
As Europe’s leading architecture and engineering consultancy, Sweco has the vast and diverse sustainability consultancy expertise to transform society together with its clients across all sectors. Operating at the heart of the green transition, our 22,000 architects, designers and engineers work with organisations of all types to optimise solutions for major challenges across the built environment, transportation networks and critical infrastructure.
A successful green transition requires the adoption of new technologies, alongside adaptation to new ways of thinking and best practices that reduce our collective carbon footprint, cut greenhouse gas emissions, preserve (and revive) natural resources, and address the effects of climate change through net zero strategy.
Bringing together ‘sub-transitions’ in energy, transportation, urbanisation, water and industry will be critical in combating the negative impacts of human activities on the planet. Specifically, the bigger picture concept of a green transition encompasses renewable energy, sustainable and active travel, circular economy methodologies, and nature-based solutions.
Our green transition focus areas
How we help businesses drive climate action
Strategic support
There is growing understanding that drastic change is required. But clear guidance is in short supply. Sweco’s role is to join the dots between strategic climate ambitions and practical implementation. We show our clients where efforts can be best directed.
Insight leadership
We want to go beyond simply enabling carbon reduction in our projects. We need to make it happen. To do this, we continue to raise industry awareness and make carbon reduction a contractual standard across the supply chain, by providing thought leadership as well as practical direction.
Carbon collaboration
Through a programme of continuous carbon management, including design team training and the introduction of enhanced digital techniques, we highlight new opportunities for carbon reduction to clients. If carbon management is applicable to a project but not requested, we set out the opportunities that it offers.
Digital transformation
We have developed digital techniques to clearly communicate the carbon impact of design decisions. This helps to build awareness among clients, engineers, and key stakeholders. Developments in artificial intelligence are set to automatically optimise carbon and associated costs in the near future.
Lifecycle foresight
We help clients in every sector actively challenge their supply chain, through procurement mechanisms that require carbon reduction and encourage innovation. Critically, we also ensure that focus is maintained on carbon impacts throughout project lifecycle, and post-completion.
UNSDG mindset
Each project we undertake is aligned to multiple United Nations Sustainable Development goals. Sustainability is at the heart of our building designs, transportation projects, landscape architecture visions, and infrastructure planning workflows – which allows us to truly transform society.
The green transition as a whole holds great potential for mitigating the effects of climate change. As more and more countries and industries adopt sustainable practices, we can expect to see a significant decrease in greenhouse gas emissions and a slowing of global warming.
However, it is important that we continue to push for even more ambitious and comprehensive green initiatives across buildings, transportation and infrastructure projects to make a meaningful difference. By working together and prioritising the health of our planet, we can create a more sustainable and resilient future for generations to come.