Much of the world lives in cities - 56% of the globe’s population live in cities compared to 36% fifty years ago. The United Nations has predicted that these figures will reach 68% by 2050. Numerous drivers have pushed people into urban centres, including the search for better education and higher-paid jobs, and the impact of our changing climate which makes some rural areas less habitable.
As they have grown, cities have generated more and more carbon emissions, and now contribute around 70% of the world’s CO2 emissions from energy. As cities are responsible for such a large proportion of CO2 emissions, they are a good target for changes that could alleviate the impact of emissions on the world’s climate. By developing and implementing International Standards for planning and building cities, we can make these changes effective and efficient, supporting progress at every stage.
ISO’s committee for sustainable cities and communities is working to develop new urban standards that can help slow climate change. The standards include frameworks and guidance for planners seeking to develop smart, resilient cities that provide for their population in a sustainable way.
Responsible use of resources, preserving the environment and improving the well-being of citizens are the end goal for experts of ISO technical committee ISO/TC 268. The ‘flagship’ standard for sustainable cities and communities is ISO 37101, which helps communities define their sustainable development objectives and implement strategies to achieve them. This core standard aligns with a series of standards on city indicators including ISO 37120 (indicators for city services and quality of life), ISO 37122 (indicators for smart cities), and ISO 37123 (indicators for resilient cities).
ISO/TC 268’s subcommittee SC 1 on smart community infrastructure, which maintains ISO 37101, is focused on creating local community infrastructure that keeps the environment healthy for the planet and the urban population.
A third of the emissions from cities come from transport. Buses, trains, trams, taxis, and cars are all essential means by which city inhabitants get to work or school, and enjoy the place in which they live. ISO/TC 268’s subcommittee SC 2 on sustainable mobility and transportation supports a multi-sectorial integrated approach in addressing organizational issues, infrastructure, and services related to mobility and transportation options for cities and communities, including those related to new technologies (i.e., electric, hydrogen, autonomous).
In addition to ISO TC 268, other technical committees exist within ISO to address the following specific transportation and mobility topics: Road Vehicles (ISO/TC 22), Intelligent transport systems (ISO/TC 204), Railway applications (ISO/TC 269), and Electrical equipment and systems for railways (IEC/TC 9).
ISO also has numerous standards on business continuity and community resilience, designed to make communities safe, sustainable and adaptive to face challenges. These include ISO 22313 (business continuity management systems), ISO 22326 (emergency management), and ISO 22395 (guidelines for supporting vulnerable people in emergency situations).
ISO/TC 59 contributes to sustainable development by addressing the quality and performance of buildings and describing how these issues can be incorporated in the life-cycle of the built environment. ISO 15392, Sustainability in building construction – General principles, identifies and establishes general principles for sustainability in buildings and other construction works throughout their whole life cycle, from inception to end of life.
Water utility service activities include providing drinking water supply, wastewater and stormwater management in accordance with requirements established by the applicable responsible bodies and relevant authorities, and the water utility’s corporate objectives to the level of service agreed with the registered users.
Service delivery requires activities that may not impact users directly, but which are essential for provision of the service (e.g., management of assets). Some activities are essential to maintain service standards (e.g., water loss management). And some are intended to support users in achieving their own efficiency improvements on receipt of the service, including the ISO 24526 standard which addresses water efficiency management systems.
The need for early detection and rapid response to abnormal events is encouraging some water utilities to establish innovative means of detecting and classifying abnormal events. This, allied with recent technological advances, is permitting more advanced means of on-line monitoring of water service provision. Aligned with the anticipation and management of abnormal events, such as cyber and other forms of terrorism, is the emerging need to anticipate and respond to the impacts of climate change on the provision of services.
