Developing a water infrastructure planning framework for the complex modern planning environment

• Reviews evolution of planning theory and concepts.
• Finds that existing water infrastructure planning frameworks have conceptual gaps.
• An original water infrastructure planning framework is developed.
• Framework is refined through consultation with 34 water industry experts.
• Utility includes planning future projects and collecting data on past case studies.

Prevailing water infrastructure planning frameworks tend to present planning processes as rational and objective, paying little attention to whose interests are served. In reality, the planning process is inherently subjective and shaped by social and political dimensions. In this paper we develop a water infrastructure planning framework that is mindful of this context, beginning with a review of the evolution of planning theory. Existing frameworks are compared in order to develop a draft framework, which was then refined through consultation with water industry experts. Compared to the prevailing frameworks, our approach: (1) makes explicit the iterative process between decision analysis and decision taking, (2) ensures that cost-sharing arrangements are in place before final recommendations are made, (3) considers the effects of public and media perceptions about project outcomes on future planning, and (4) makes explicit the impact of government and community preferences on the planning process. We recommend this framework for use in both planning and analysis.