INTERNATIONAL WATER-RESOURCES ISSUES

Some Concepts and Case Studies

Water-Resources Management Concept

Examples of Global Water Issues

• Human health (water supply/sanitation)

• Food and agriculture• Mining and industry• Other water uses – recreation &

fishing• Political conflicts• Lack of regulatory enforcement• Discussion, opinions, and questions

A “check list” – to keep in mind during this presentation:

• Water availability (supply) – quantity & quality

• Water-resources sustainability (climate change)

• Water law, administration, and enforcement

• Studies and decisions with limited data– Characterization assessments– Model applications

(calibration/verification/simulation)

• IWRM – the current “silver bullet”

Topics of Interest

• Definition of “basin”

• Transboundary basins

• Basin organizations

• Water development

• Trade-offs – impacts

• Structural issues

• Institutional issues

• IWRM approaches

• built into governmental

• agencies (Africa, EU)

Global Population and Water-Use TrendsSource: Gleick (1998)

• Per cápita alcanzó su punto máximo la extracción de aguaen los EE.UU. en 1975 (2.300 m3/p/yr), pasando de 500en 1900 y m3/p/yr actualmente m3/p/yr 2000. Lasdemandas globales están aumentando 4.3 por ciento /año.

• El mayor uso de agua en el mundo se da en la agriculturade regadío, este uso es en gran medida ineficaz. De bajaenergía aplicación de precisión (LEPA) puede aumentar laeficiencia de rociadores 60 a 70 hasta tanto como 95 porciento. El riego por goteo es cada vez más utilizados.

• El precio del agua juega un papel clave en el uso del agua.

*Fuente: Gleick (1998), The World’s Water.

Uso del Agua - Algunos datos

• First Roman aqueducts – 312 B.C. Eventually, nine watersystems conveyed through an extensive system of lead pipes.Per-capita water supply matched much of the modernindustrialized world. Well-built sewers drained the city. [Leadbecame the “downfall” of this empire]

• 1990 estimates include 1.2 billion population without safedrinking water and 1.7 billion without sanitation.

• 2012 estimates conclude that unsafe water and poorsanitation will kill more children than malaria, AIDS, andaccidents combined. Most deaths come from diarrhealdisease, and 90% of the victims are children under the age offive.

*Sources: WHO (1996); Gleick (1998), The World’s Water; Water & Wastes Digest (2012)

Drinking Water & Basic Sanitation -- Some Facts

International Water-Resources Examples

• Nepal• Republic of Yemen• Chile (2nd, regional GW development/basin

study)• Argentina• Mexico (various regional studies; WQ network

design)• Mali – groundwater contamination/airport• Panama – rural and municipal water supplies• Pakistan – salinity control & reclamation• NW PR China – master water-resources

planning• The Philippines – City of Manila water supply

Case Study 1 – Koshi River Basin, Nepal

Himalayan Mountains, Nepal

Water-Resources Issues and Concerns, Nepal

• Koshi – A transnational river basin

• Climate change– Changes in seasonal streamflow variations

– Water-management implications

• Deforestation

• Land-use changes

• Erosion and sedimentation

• Water supply and sanitation (sewage treatment)

Water-Resources Management Components and Tools -- Nepal

• Data– Precipitation (rainfall, snow) – areal and

temporal patterns

– Streamflow monitoring – sites, data gaps, etc.

– Land use

– Geology and soils

– Socio-economic -- population, agriculture, etc.

• Physical-process hydrologic model(s)

• Hypothetical scenarios – climate, land use, etc.

Components of a Hydrologic Model (J2000)

Kosi River, Nepal – Actual vs. Model-Simulated Monthly Streamflows for Assumed Scenarios

Case Study 2 -- Republic of Yemen – A Water-Shortage Land

Islamic Water Law and Environmental Protection

What are the water issues in Yemen?

• Water scarcity (with focus on groundwater)• High population-growth rates• Policy and institutions• Water contamination (pollution)• Lack of sustainable goals

(planning/management)

• Water awareness and education• Ineffectiveness of financial-donor projects

– The World Bank– Various U.N. agencies (primarily UNDP)– Other national governments (e.g., The

Netherlands)

Physiographic Zones in Yemen

Sana’a, the Capital of Yemen

• 1962 population, 62,000

• 1998 population, 1.2 M

• Approx. 15% sewered

• Water supply

– Some wells; WQ issues

– Water trucks to cisterns

• Migration to suburbs

• Old city/zuk in center

– UNESCO cultural site

– Wadi served as road

Yemen Photos – Water/Waste “Management” in Sana’a, the Capital

Yemen Photos – Al Mukallah Region

Yemen Photos – Rural Water Supply & Irrigation

Yemen Photo – Desertification & Dune Control

• What are the hydrologic/institutional issues?

– Increased water use – agriculture, municipal, industrial

– Groundwater contamination – salinity, other WQ issues

– Water administration – surface water vs. groundwater

• What are the engineering “solutions”?– Build a large dam– Line irrigation canals– Regulate well-construction

specifications

• Other – water pricing; water-use regulation

Case Study 3 – Mendoza Province, ArgentinaFAO Consultancy (2001-2002)

Landsat Image Mendoza Irrigation System

Poor Well Construction & Aquifer Contamination

Instituto Nacional del Agua

Centro de Economía, Legislación y Administración del Agua

PROSPECTIVA DE LAPROBLEMÁTICA DE LA

CUENCA NORTE DE MENDOZA

El cambio estructuralque introduce la construccióndel dique de Potrerillos,producirá una serie de impactosen el sitema hídricoe hidrogeológico.

Case Study 4 -- Concepción, Chile –Pollution Control Plan

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Point-Source Pollution Sources and Public Perception

Issues and Study Approaches, Concepción and San Vicente Bays, Chile

• Fish kills (oxygen-depleted waters)• Pollution controls of fish-processing plants• Identification of other sources of pollution

– Steel and metallurgy– Textile– Chemicals and cement– Refinery and hydrocarbon (oil/LPG) off-loading– Domestic (municipal) sewage

• Bay water-quality/hydraulic study (DHI MIKE 3 model)

• Pollution Control Plan (PCP) for CONAMA• Technical transfer and training• Stakeholder identification and involvement• Local technical collaboration and public meetings

Bay Transects and Example of DHI’s Model

Data Input

Lessons Learned and Reality Check

• Mendoza, Argentina

– Engineering structural components have inherent environmental and socio-economic trade-offs

– Water administration and pricing – key attributes

• Concepción, Chile

– Initial perceptions on causes may need to be modified

– Important data-model links & non-technical factors

– Role of regulatory controls – consistent with real world

Thanks for your interest in this topic

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