Investigating urban household water-energy nexus towards supporting sustainable and smart city policies: The case of Hanoi City, Vietnam

Abstract

Sustainable and smart management of urban water and energy sectors is one of challenges facing by Vietnamese cities today. This study examined the water-energy nexus in urban households by analysing the "cause-and-effect" relationships among four major individual attributes (age, gender, education level, and family size) and three household behaviours (showering, cooking, and washing) with water and water related energy uses for the case of Hanoi City. The amount and component of water and water related energy uses with respect to those household behaviours and individual attributes were explored. The results showed that both water use and water related energy use had relationship with gender, education level, and family size. Specifically, people with more water and energy uses were female with age ≤ 30 years old, especially who have higher education level and live alone. The better understanding on how household behaviours and individual attributes influencing the household water and water related energy uses provided by this study could help the urban planners, policy makers, and relevant stakeholders to identify the opportunities for designing better and smart solutions for household water and energy management, towards achieving the goals of sustainable and smart cities.