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Water scarcity in urban areas, pollution, and the growing interdependence of resources have led to the emergence of the urban water footprint (UWF) as a significant indicator of urban sustainability. However, research on the UWF has attracted considerable interest from the scientific community, given the methodological shortcomings that currently exist. This paper focuses on available studies on the UWF through a systematic literature review (SLR) using the Scopus and ScienceDirect databases. Following the PRISMA 2020 statement and the quality assessment framework developed by Kitchenham and Charters, a total of 61 studies were identified. The results reveal an increase in the number of studies on the UWF, particularly since 2016, focusing on specific cities where volumetric methods were used to calculate the blue or total water footprint. Other findings highlight changes in application objectives, particularly the shift from descriptive studies to prescriptive studies aimed at policy formulation, water efficiency, water governance, and the assessment of sustainability in urban systems from a water perspective. In summary, this research highlights significant gaps in multiscale and comparative studies, inconsistencies in system boundaries, and a lack of a socio-ecological perspective in the assessment of the UWF.
Zapata-Pinedo et al. (Tue,) studied this question.