Publication Details

Category Data Publication
DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18752509
Licence creative commons licence
Title (Primary) Stochastic flow and weather data (Version v1.0.2) [Dataset]
Author Skerker, J.; Klassert, C.; Francois, B.; Verma, A.; Brown, C.; Fletcher, S.
Source Titel Zenodo
Year 2026
Department OEKON
Language englisch
Topic T5 Future Landscapes
Abstract Climate change intensifies water stress globally, necessitating expensive infrastructure interventions to maintain reliable supply. To fund infrastructure, utilities often raise rates, increasing water bills for low-income households. The resulting affordability impacts depend on utility costs and interactions between rate design, financing, climate and household demands. Here we develop a city-scale modelling framework to estimate climate change impacts on water affordability, integrating climate, utility adaptation decisions and demand. In Santa Cruz, California, we find that climate change alone could double water bills by mid-century, leaving an additional 7–16% of Santa Cruz households with unaffordable water. Our results suggest that climate change may lead to greater water affordability challenges than previously estimated in hotspots where supply is vulnerable to climate change. This highlights the need for policy intervention and financing to ensure climate adaptation does not compromise affordability. The magnitude of climate-related affordability challenges depends on local context, requiring city-scale assessments.
linked UFZ text publications
Skerker, J., Klassert, C., Francois, B., Verma, A., Brown, C., Fletcher, S. (2026):
Stochastic flow and weather data (Version v1.0.2) [Dataset]
Zenodo
10.5281/zenodo.18752509