Specification of a human right to water: a sustainability assessment of access hurdles

Any implementation of the right to water requires a sound specification. For that purpose, this article offers an innovative analytical framework. First, the object of the analysis should be the hurdles to access (pecuniary, spatial, temporal, qualitative), not least because they partly fulfil sustainability functions. Second, these hurdles need to be assessed on the basis of three criteria: functionality, reasonableness and non-discrimination. This framework allows the identification of supply situations that infringe upon the right to water, provides starting points for improving access, and honours the commitment of the Sustainable Development Goals to take equal account of social and sustainability concerns.