The risks identified in the Inception Report became ‘real’, that is the lack of interest of the management of the WSC in the project activities and in particular any changes in operational practices that the project was tasked with achieving.

23 L3 Baseline survey of socio-economic conditions in Beipiao with particular focus on water availability, water supply reliability and affordability, associated health issues and overall community relationships with regard to water, WAB and WSC.

A WSC customer may access the WSC’s web site and from there be directed to the national standards organisation or to firms selling water efficient appliances or to the water resources agency for drought status reports etc.

The WSC can also use this mechanism to promote meter use, to advertise services that it offers to assist customers with leaks or water audits, and to provide details on how to report leaks and other problems.

However, the WSC has an incentive to encourage WDM activities by the users since the WSC and is obliged to meet the WAP conditions which depend partly on user behaviour.

It will then be possible for the WSC to provide smaller total volumes of water to meet the WAP volume (whilst ensuring that all users can access this fairly) and improve the quality of waste water (which may require better operation, upgrading or construction of treatment works).

A public education programme can use various communication channels, such as leaflets distributed with water bills, WSC and other web sites, TV and radio messages, posters or public notices in newspapers.

The penultimate Milestone for Case Study L3 is Milestone 25: “Implementation of water saving plan by WSC.

The mission was informed by CS 3 (Beipiao WSC) that the recommendation for tariff reform has been submitted to the local government.

However, there will be exceptional circumstances where the WSC is unable to meet this target and the supply will be restricted – for example during short term emergencies (eg pollution incident, burst main) or longer term problems associated with a shortage of resources (eg drought, under capacity of delivery systems).

This can be mitigated by an appropriate progressive tariff structure that reflects the expected reduction in customer consumption and ensures adequate revenue (and incentives to the WSC).

This will potentially reduce revenue and hence the WSC may resist their introduction.

Delegates at the World Conference on Science (WCS) held in Budapest, Hungary, in June-July 1999 welcomed the proposal to establish the SESAME Centre.

Except in the case of some large individual users, the link between the demand management targets in the permit conditions and the individual customers is therefore indirect, since the WSC stands between them.