The City of Cologne, for example, co-ordinates water and spatial planning for new building areas to prevent flood damages because of heavy rainfalls. Municipal authorities in the Netherlands, through the “Water Assessment” instrument, take water management into account in their spatial planning decisions. Even though it is not binding, this tool is considered effective for linking water authorities and cities (OECD, 2014b). Energy production is strongly dependent on water for power generation, fossil fuel extraction, transport and processing, and irrigation of biofuels crops.