Scotland’s critical water infrastructure faces growing pressure from urban expansion and rising water demands compounded by climate change. These challenges highlight the urgent need to strengthen the resilience of our water resources. Learning from diverse perspectives and practical examples is essential as Scotland moves from traditional surface water collection and treatment systems toward greater surface water reuse.
A recent CREW workshop offered a valuable opportunity to share ideas and experiences that can help inform this transition. The workshop brought together a wide range of key stakeholders relevant to the water sector, from researchers to practitioners and regulators, with participants joining from Scotland, the wider UK, and internationally. This forms an important part of an ongoing CREW project, led by Dr Alan Cuthbertson at the University of Dundee, in collaboration with the University of Abertay, and supported by Scottish Water and Consumer Scotland.
Framing Scotland’s water future
Dr Rebecca Wade opened the workshop as the research team presented an overview of the project’s findings, focusing particularly on Dundee, which has the highest proportion of combined sewage network among Scottish urban areas. Their modelling of total runoff in selected wet and dry years offers valuable insights into seasonal variability and infrastructure pressures.
An interactive question and answer session followed the presentation, exploring the potential applications and barriers to surface water reuse and helping to set the scene for subsequent breakout discussions. The overarching theme guiding the workshop was developing a future vision for a more resilient water system, which prompted rich discussions on opportunities and best approaches to transition surface water, and associated assets, from collection to reuse.
Breakout sessions explored four key considerations: technical delivery, behaviour change and paradigm shifts, environmental aspects, and policy and regulation.
Taking the vision forward
Building on the insights from the breakout sessions, participants came together in a facilitated roundtable to help shape a roadmap toward a more resilient water system.
The discussions highlighted the interconnections between the breakout room topics and the importance of taking a holistic approach. Key priorities identified included the need for collaboration across the water sector and greater public engagement. In support of this, participants emphasised opportunities such as learning from successful initiatives, tailoring solutions to local contexts, scaling up effective practices, and raising public awareness. One participant summed up a long-term ambition neatly: ‘Scots love to talk about the weather - we need them to talk about water in the same way’. A reminder that building Scotland’s resilience starts not just with technical solutions, but with a cultural shift in how we value this essential resource.