At the SmarterCities forum in Berlin, the city of Rotterdam, one of the main engines of the Dutch economy and the largest port in Europe, announced a collaboration with IBM on the design and testing of a monitoring and forecasting system for smarter water and energy management.

The system, managed through an intuitive dashboard, will collect and analyze real-time data on the rivers, ocean, weather, and more, creating the world’s first Smart Delta City.

With this collaboration with IBM, Rotterdam aims to transform into the first Smart Delta City – a city that utilizes real-world, real-time operational information to manage infrastructure and operations related to the effects of climate change in a dynamic, complex natural water system. The Smart Delta system’s information portal will enable officials and professionals to more quickly and effectively respond to concerns such as flood and drought threats, safety or accessibility issues, and changes in water conditions that could harm fish and other aquatic life.

“We are committed to reducing carbon dioxide by 50 percent and reaching a climate adaptive situation while also strengthening our region’s economic condition by 2025,” said Paula Verhoeven, Rotterdam Climate Office Director. “To reach these goals, we have defined a holistic approach to climate change and water management, considering economic and spatial planning factors in the decision-making process. This collaboration is important to help Rotterdam evolve to a Smart Delta City.”

As part of the collaboration, IBM intends to leverage the expertise of its Research arm, involving scientists across a broad spectrum of disciplines to explore additional areas such as the management of carbon in logistics processes.

Together with leading people from academia, industry and government, IBM has engaged over the past two years in projects worldwide to identify current and future impact on operations from changing water availability, accessibility, quality and quantities. In February 2008, IBM opened the Global Center of Excellence for Water Management in the Netherlands.

“Over the next few years, the business impact of either too-much or too-little water will be devastating in many parts of the world. The Smart Delta City initiative addresses the need to start thinking and acting in new ways to make our systems more efficient, productive and responsive,” said Sharon Nunes, Vice President, Big Green Innovations, IBM.