IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v13y2021i16p9130-d614665.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Precaution and Innovation in the Context of Wastewater Regulation: An Examination of Financial Innovation under UWWTD Disputes in London and Milan

Author

Listed:
  • Fritz-Julius Grafe

    (Department of Geography, University of Zurich, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland)

  • Harald A. Mieg

    (Institute of Geography, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, 10099 Berlin, Germany)

Abstract

The Water Framework Directive (WFD) under the guidance of the precautionary principle sets out standards to guarantee high quality water services for European citizens. This creates pressure on European cities to update and renew their water infrastructures in accordance with EU Law at great financial cost. Cities within the Union try to bridge this financial gap with a variety of approaches. This paper presents the cases of London and Milan, both of which were subject to legal proceedings for breaching the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive. By example of these two cases, this article details how the precautionary principle affects urban water infrastructure provision, and how the regulation of the primary risk of pollution can both trigger innovation and create secondary risks within the highly integrated urban water infrastructure sector. The London case focusses on an individual infrastructure project and shows how its financial framing has compromised the final outcome, while the Milan case presents a longer-view perspective that shows how structural changes in the urban water infrastructure sector have enabled an environment for sustainable financial innovation. The role of transparency and good local governance practices are emphasized for a successful implementation of the precautionary principle requirements in a city’s water sector. Managing this process effectively can result in meaningful social innovation for urban water infrastructure provision.

Suggested Citation

  • Fritz-Julius Grafe & Harald A. Mieg, 2021. "Precaution and Innovation in the Context of Wastewater Regulation: An Examination of Financial Innovation under UWWTD Disputes in London and Milan," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(16), pages 1-10, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:16:p:9130-:d:614665
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/16/9130/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/16/9130/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Fritz-Julius Grafe & Harald A. Mieg, 2019. "Connecting financialization and urbanization: the changing financial ecology of urban infrastructure in the UK," Regional Studies, Regional Science, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 6(1), pages 496-511, January.
    2. S. H. A. Koop & C. J. Leeuwen, 2017. "The challenges of water, waste and climate change in cities," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 19(2), pages 385-418, April.
    3. Richard Owen & Phil Macnaghten & Jack Stilgoe, 2012. "Responsible research and innovation: From science in society to science for society, with society," Science and Public Policy, Oxford University Press, vol. 39(6), pages 751-760, December.
    4. Fritz-Julius Grafe & Hanna Hilbrandt, 2019. "The temporalities of financialization," City, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 23(4-5), pages 606-618, September.
    5. Fritz-Julius Grafe, 2020. "Finance, water infrastructure, and the city: comparing impacts of financialization in London and Mumbai," Regional Studies, Regional Science, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 7(1), pages 214-231, January.
    6. Andy Pike & Peter O’Brien & Tom Strickland & Graham Thrower & John Tomaney, 2019. "Financialising City Statecraft and Infrastructure," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 18319.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Harald A. Mieg, 2022. "Social Innovation in Sustainable Urban Development," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(9), pages 1-4, April.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Hanna Hilbrandt & Monika Grubbauer, 2020. "Standards and SSOs in the contested widening and deepening of financial markets: The arrival of Green Municipal Bonds in Mexico City," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 52(7), pages 1415-1433, October.
    2. Paredes-Frigolett, Harold, 2016. "Modeling the effect of responsible research and innovation in quadruple helix innovation systems," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 110(C), pages 126-133.
    3. Estibaliz Sáez de Cámara & Idoia Fernández & Nekane Castillo-Eguskitza, 2021. "A Holistic Approach to Integrate and Evaluate Sustainable Development in Higher Education. The Case Study of the University of the Basque Country," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(1), pages 1-19, January.
    4. Luciana Maines da Silva & Claudia Cristina Bitencourt & Kadígia Faccin & Tatiana Iakovleva, 2019. "The Role of Stakeholders in the Context of Responsible Innovation: A Meta-Synthesis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(6), pages 1-25, March.
    5. Wuliyasu Bai & Liang Yan & Jingbo Liang & Long Zhang, 2022. "Mapping Knowledge Domain on Economic Growth and Water Sustainability: A Scientometric Analysis," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 36(11), pages 4137-4159, September.
    6. Ivan Ligardo-Herrera & Tomás Gómez-Navarro & Edurne A. Inigo & Vincent Blok, 2018. "Addressing Climate Change in Responsible Research and Innovation: Recommendations for Its Operationalization," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(6), pages 1-20, June.
    7. Cesar Casiano Flores & Joep Crompvoets & Maria Eugenia Ibarraran Viniegra & Megan Farrelly, 2019. "Governance Assessment of the Flood’s Infrastructure Policy in San Pedro Cholula, Mexico: Potential for a Leapfrog to Water Sensitive," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(24), pages 1-28, December.
    8. Tina C. Ambos & Katherine Tatarinov, 2022. "Building Responsible Innovation in International Organizations through Intrapreneurship," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 59(1), pages 92-125, January.
    9. Pangbourne, Kate & Mladenović, Miloš N. & Stead, Dominic & Milakis, Dimitris, 2020. "Questioning mobility as a service: Unanticipated implications for society and governance," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 131(C), pages 35-49.
    10. Jeroen van der Heijden, 2021. "When opportunity backfires: exploring the implementation of urban climate governance alternatives in three major US cities [Are LEED-Certified Buildings Energy-Efficient in Practice?]," Policy and Society, Darryl S. Jarvis and M. Ramesh, vol. 40(1), pages 116-135.
    11. Paul Drummond, 2021. "Assessing City Governance for Low-Carbon Mobility in London," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(5), pages 1-24, February.
    12. Anja Salzmann & Frode Guribye & Astrid Gynnild, 2021. "Mobile Journalists as Traceable Data Objects: Surveillance Capitalism and Responsible Innovation in Mobile Journalism," Media and Communication, Cogitatio Press, vol. 9(2), pages 130-139.
    13. Nikas, A. & Gambhir, A. & Trutnevyte, E. & Koasidis, K. & Lund, H. & Thellufsen, J.Z. & Mayer, D. & Zachmann, G. & Miguel, L.J. & Ferreras-Alonso, N. & Sognnaes, I. & Peters, G.P. & Colombo, E. & Howe, 2021. "Perspective of comprehensive and comprehensible multi-model energy and climate science in Europe," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 215(PA).
    14. Llopis, Oscar & D'Este, Pablo & McKelvey, Maureen & Yegros, Alfredo, 2022. "Navigating multiple logics: Legitimacy and the quest for societal impact in science," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 110(C).
    15. Hoti, Ferdiana & Perko, Tanja & Thijssen, Peter & Renn, Ortwin, 2021. "Who is willing to participate? Examining public participation intention concerning decommissioning of nuclear power plants in Belgium," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 157(C).
    16. Apurva Pamidimukkala & Sharareh Kermanshachi & Nikhitha Adepu & Elnaz Safapour, 2021. "Resilience in Water Infrastructures: A Review of Challenges and Adoption Strategies," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(23), pages 1-15, November.
    17. Reichelt, Nicole & Nettle, Ruth, 2023. "Practice insights for the responsible adoption of smart farming technologies using a participatory technology assessment approach: The case of virtual herding technology in Australia," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 206(C).
    18. André Luis Azevedo Guedes & Jeferson Carvalho Alvarenga & Maurício Dos Santos Sgarbi Goulart & Martius Vicente Rodriguez y Rodriguez & Carlos Alberto Pereira Soares, 2018. "Smart Cities: The Main Drivers for Increasing the Intelligence of Cities," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(9), pages 1-19, August.
    19. Kathryn Oliver & Annette Boaz, 2019. "Transforming evidence for policy and practice: creating space for new conversations," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 5(1), pages 1-10, December.
    20. Natalia Sajnóg & Katarzyna Sobolewska-Mikulska & Justyna Wójcik-Leń, 2019. "Methodology of Determination of the Range of Restrictions Related to the Existence of Transmission Devices on Private Land—Case Study of Poland," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(14), pages 1-21, July.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:16:p:9130-:d:614665. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.