Water supply safety – Vulnerabilities of the drinking water supply

Abstract

Drinking water supplies can be affected by a blackout, flood, cyberattack or other hazards. But how do specific scenarios affect your own supply facilities and how many residents can still be supplied and for how long? The vulnerability of the plants is very diverse depending on scenarios and supply structure. In this paper, the methodology of balance structure models to determine vulnerability and extent of damage is presented and tested on a case study. As a result of the scenarios considered, the extent of damage is determined based on the number of consumers affected and the remaining supply time. Based on specific simulations, further steps such as risk assessment, planning of measures and concepts for crisis management can be derived and demonstrated.