RIVER BASINS:CURRENT RESEARCH AT IWMI

Vladimir Smakhtin,

Inputs from

Mark Giordano, Paul Pavlic, Matthew McCartney, C.T. Hoanh, Guillaume Lacombe, Sonali Selamuttu, Robyn Johnston, Charlotte MacAlister, Catherine Pfeifer,

Mulugeta Lemenih, Katherine Snyder, Simon Langan, Barbara van Koppen, Kai Wegerlich, Jonathan Lautze, Diana Suhardiman, JP Venot, Dennis Wichelns, Akmal

Karimov, Upali Amarasinghe, Lisa-Maria Rebelo, Luna Bharati, Fred Kizito

Water for a food-secure world

COVERAGE - GEOGRAPHY

• Global• Ganges and Indus • Nile• Volta • Syr-Darya • Zambezi, Limpopo• Mekong• Other (Krishna, Godavari, Chao Praya)

Water for a food-secure world

COVERAGE - TOPICS

• Managing resources’ variability• Water infrastructure• Allocate and manage water and land to raise

productivity, improve equity and safeguard ES• Benefit-sharing• Political economy of policy selection

Water for a food-secure world

MANAGING VARIABILITY – managed aquifer recharge

• Harvest only high floods (e.g. once in 4 years); Around 25% MAF• Use harvested water for agricultural production every year• Estimated 100 km2 dedicated land necessary • Some 270,000 ha additional irrigation may be possible• $200+ M /year income to smallholder farmers• Farmers must be encouraged to become flood harvesters • Desktop, preliminary study only. No precedents yet

IF SOME 15% OF INDIA TOTAL FLOW IS HARVESTED SIMILARLY, IT WILL INCREASE WATER SUPPLY BY 285 KM3 – ABOUT 50% OF

TOTAL INDIA WATER WITHDRAWAL AT PRESENT

Chao Praya, Thailand

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MANAGING VARIABILITY – WATER STORAGE

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MANAGING VARIABILITY – WATER STORAGE

• What is the best combination of storage options that meet technical, environmental and social objectives?

• Can storage evaluation metrics be developed to facilitate storage development planning?

Livestock storage NEED – based on poor population density, livestock density, rainfall pattern

Projects in Volta, Nile, Nepal

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WATER INFRASTRUCTURE – Improving livelihoods: Mekong

Laos – Nam Nounang Reservoir:Suitability of land for recession agriculture - based on access, slope stability, duration of land exposure to drawdown

Mekong

How dams can be constructed and operated to optimize benefits for all ?

• Testing local livelihood enhancement strategies around reservoirs (recession agriculture, fishing)

• Reviewing policy and legal frameworks to incorporate livelihoods in decision making in hydropower development

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WATER INFRASRUCTUREEvaluating scenarios of CC and water infrastructure development

Nanggodi

Dapola

Kanazoe dam (75Mm3)

Yakala

WayenIrrigation(66.2Mm3)Bagre dam

(1700Mm3)

Irrigation(2.6Mm3)

Nawuni

Sabari

Livestock3.5Mm3

Irrigation (46.4Mm3)

Irrigation (19.2Mm3)

NwokuyLerinord

Livestock3.8Mm3

Blac

k V

olta

Arly

Livestock3.3Mm3

Hydropower 577Mm3

Irrigation 27Mm3

Livestock1.3Mm3

Prang

Irrigation81Mm3

AkosomboHydropower 38,660Mm3

Tono (93 Mm3)

Irrigation 67Mm3

Vea (16 Mm3)Irrigation

Lerinord Seouro (277Mm3)

Whi

te V

olta

Livestock5.5Mm3

Livestock16.3Mm3

Livestock5.5Mm3

Livestock13.4Mm3

Livestock12.5Mm3

Livestock2.6Mm3

Ekumdipe

Diversions

Reservoir

Koumangou

Oti

Low

er V

olta

Noumbiel

Bamboi

Pwalugu

Kompienga

Mango

Senchi

Livestock4.9Mm3

Estuary

Flow gauging station

Burkina Faso

Togo

Burkina Faso

Ghana

Togo

Benin

Ghana

Benin

SRs: (0.6Mm3)

SRs: (41.6Mm3)

SRs: (7.7Mm3)

SRs: (5.8Mm3)

SRs: (1.0 Mm3) SRs: (24.3Mm3) SRs: (12.9Mm3)

SRs: (22.6Mm3)

SRs: (2.1Mm3)

SRs: (6.5Mm3)

SRs: (42.6Mm3)

SRs: (64.9Mm3)

SRs: Small Reservoirs

Ziga dam (200Mm3)

Subinja dam (135Mm3)

Tanoso dam (125Mm3)

Amate dam (120Mm3)

Schematic of the Volta Basin with both existing and planned development

A1B scenario with three different development scenarios

Projects in Volta, Mekong, Nile, Ganges, Indus

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WATER INFRUSTRUCTURE AND ES – Regulating functions of wetlands and floodplains: Zambezi

0

20

40

60

80

100

1-O

ct-8

0

1-No

v-80

1-De

c-80

1-Ja

n-81

1-Fe

b-81

1-M

ar-8

1

1-Ap

r-81

1-M

ay-8

1

1-Ju

n-81

1-Ju

l-81

1-Au

g-81

1-Se

p-81

Flow

(m3 s

-1)

Daily flow with and without floodplain

Without floodplain (simulated) With floodplain (observed)

• Method to quantify natural flow regulating impacts of floodplains for decision-making• Potential for a similar much larger study on natural water infrastructure

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ALLOCATION OF RESOURCES FOR IMPROVED PRODUCTIVITY, EQUITY AND ES

Sudd (Southern Sudan)– understanding ET and impacts of upstream water developments on it using RS

Volta: Valuation of ES and Identification of hot spots for interventions to reduce land and water degradation

SEDIMENT YIELD EVAPOTRANSPIRATION

ALLOCATION OF RESOURCES FOR IMPROVED PRODUCTIVITY, EQUITY AND ES:Environmental flows in the Upper Ganges, India

• Huge tropical river- done first time ever in the world• Iconic river – cultural and spiritual angles• Multi disciplinary Expert Panel approach• Large capacity building

Ganges

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1.4 ObjectivesALLOCATION OF RESOURCES FOR IMPROVED PRODUCTIVITY,

EQUITY AND ES: Water footprint of crops and production systems

0.18 0.13

0.15

0.06

0.27

0.27

0.03

0.23

0.29

0.00 0.12 0.24 0.36 0.48 0.60 0.72

Value of output per m3 of groundwater WFP

(US$/m3)

Rice Wheat Milk-internal Milk-external

1418985

803

679

2630

4221

075015002250300037504500

Milk-wheat-rice

Milk-wheat

Milk only

Value of output per ha of net irrigated area (US$/ha)

• Milk – Punjab and all-India• Coffee – Global and Viet Nam• Biofuels – Thailand and Malaysia

Milk- Best in terms of land use Milk- wheat -

Best in terms of water use

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ALLOCATION OF RESOURCES FOR IMPROVED PRODUCTIVITY,

EQUITY AND ES - Blue Nile

Proportion of rainfall used by various hydrological processes

Assessment of feasibility of Rainwater management systems (RMS) –under different water resource, policy and socioeconomic scenarios

Willingness to adoptMapping suitability ofmanagement strategies

Mapping ES based on LULC and how ES change under different management strategies

Current ES value distribution, USD/ ha

Water for a food-secure world

ALLOCATION OF RESOURCES FOR IMPROVED PRODUCTIVITY,

EQUITY AND ES : Critically evaluating concepts of basin management

• Understanding policy making processes that govern basin management & planning: Volta, Mekong, Limpopo and Aral Sea Basins

• Designing participatory approach to implement IWRM policies, at national level, Volta

• Examining how RBOs relate to the existing formal institutions for water management (local government and line agencies) and informal water management at community level - Limpopo and elsewhere in SSA

Water for a food-secure world

ALLOCATION OF RESOURCES FOR IMPROVED PRODUCTIVITY,

EQUITY AND ES : Examining Transboundary Water Issues

• Analyzing commissions such as the MRC and issues of legal plurality in transboundary basin contexts

• Examining the entire body of transboundary water law to derive lessons on such issues and data and information sharing, flow variability and conflict resolution

• Applying insights to particular regions, e.g. Central Asia

Fergana Valley, Syr Darya BasinSuitability of groundwater banking As a solution to transboundary disputes

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BENEFIT SHARING

• Examining the role, or lack thereof, of Payment for Environmental Services in basin management- Mekong, Nepal

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POLITICAL ECONOMY OF POLICY SELECTION

• Examining the role of scientific assessments in shaping basin scale development (e.g. hydropower debates in the Mekong)

• Conceptualizing community-driven MUS through local government as a possible missing institutional link between basin organizations and water users: the possibility of ‘bottom-up IWRM’.

• Establishing Innovation Platforms at local community and regional levels (Nile) - the mechanisms of exploring and advancing tailor made institutional / biophysical interventions that improve NRM

Water for a food-secure world

THANK YOU