The status of transboundary

aquifers in Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia, and

a summary of pressures and

management issues

Dr. Annukka Lipponen Water Convention secretariat

UNECE

Earlier assessments of transboundary aquifers in the pan-European region • Inventory by UNECE Task Force on Monitoring and

Assessment 1999 (Europe) • UNECE’s First Assessment of Transboundary Rivers,

Lakes and Groundwaters 2007 (South-Eastern Europe and Central Asia)

• UNESCO-IGRAC 2009 inventory (the Caucasus and Central Asia only)

• UNECE’s Second Assessment of Transboundary Rivers, Lakes and Groundwaters 2011 (pan-European region)

Second Assessment of Transboundary Rivers, Lakes

and Groundwaters

• Prepared for the 7th Ministerial Conference (Astana, Kazakhstan; September 2011)

• Collective effort by Parties and non-Parties to the Water Convention, and countries outside the UNECE region

• Covers more than 140 rivers, 25 lakes, about 200 groundwaters and 25 Ramsar Sites/wetlands of transboundary importance

Groundwater information collected & approach

• Information collected using a questionnaire on physical characteristics of the transboundary aquifers (extent, thickness, lithology etc), delineations, main uses and functions, main pressures on groundwater quantity and quality, and predicted impacts of climate change

• Based on official information provided through national experts nominated by environment and water authorities

• Country experts compare information and agree on the assessment in subregional workshops

• IGRAC assisted in compiling the inventory and prepares the TBA maps

• Groundwater looked at in an integrated way in the context of transbounday basins

• Working Group on Monitoring and Assessment under the Convention advised, reviewed and endorsed the assessments

General conceptual models of

transboundary aquifer types

Eastern and Northern Europe

Transboundary waters

Transboundary aquifers inventoried in Eastern

Europe

• XX transboundary aquifers • EU border — a divide of approaches,

concepts and regulatory obligations; Joint characterization of groundwater bodies in the EU remains limited

• “aquifer” as hydrogeological unit vs. “groundwater body” as management unit

• Pressures: agriculture (quantity, fertilizer & pesticide pollution), wastewater handling, heavily polluted sites (e.g. by oil products, hazardous substances), locally mining & solid waste

Caucasus Transboundary waters

Transboundary aquifers inventoried in the

Caucasus

• 13 transboundary aquifers • Groundwater used mainly for drinking

water but also for irrigation and some for industry

• Main pressures sewage and waste disposal and agriculture, mining only locally

• Spatial information sketchy at best – for 5 aquifers not even the approximate delineations known

Central Asia Transboundary waters

Transboundary aquifers inventoried in Central

Asia

• 35 transboundary aquifers (I.R. Iran new) • Groundwater used mainly for drinking and

agriculture, animal watering, small amounts for industry and spas, mineral water

• Pressure from agriculture, industry, elevated salinity from inefficient irrigation & drainage, depletion due to heavy abstraction, waste disposal, locally mining

• No data to assess pollution even though occurrence of pollution indicated (salinization, nitrogen, pesticides, heavy metals, pathogens, organic compounds & hydrocarbons)

General observations – monitoring & assessment

• Groundwater monitoring commonly not part of the responsibilities of environmental authorities; little coordination and integration between the agencies managing surface waters and groundwaters

• Recent monitoring data on the aquifers is scarce or in some cases monitoring is currently not performed > difficult to assess the pressure factors on transboundary aquifers

• Spatial information very limited; for many aquifers the delineations not provided – only roughly approximated

General observations – legal basis and

institutions • Many bilateral and multilateral agreements

on transboundary waters between or with participation of countries in the EECCA subregion: often no explicit reference to groundwater, or when in the scope application to groundwater still remains very low

• principle of integrated management of surface and groundwater missing in water laws in a number of countries of the EECCA

• Joint bodies in most cases do not deal with groundwaters; among the few exceptions: groundwater bodies of basin-wide importance identified in the Danube Basin, groundwater monitoring cooperation of the Russian Federation and Estonia

Management challenges

• Groundwater resources important – extensive use for drinking water requires protecting and improving groundwater quantity and quality

• Even though in most cases some level of monitoring introduced, monitoring inadequate & needs to be improved

• In many countries, a proper assessment and planning lacking

• Groundwater protection zones and vulnerability mapping occasionally used, but in many cases need to be improved

• Licensing of abstraction mostly used, but insufficiently, abstractions needs to be better monitored

• Better protection needed: e.g. introduction or improvement of wastewater treatment, more effective application of good agricultural practices

Look forward: Cooperative/joint elements in

managing transboundary groundwaters – can be

explored through projects • Joint mechanisms for identification of

transboundary issues

• A joint development strategy

• A joint legal and institutional cooperative framework

• Joint studies and research

• Data exchange

• Joint programmes for awareness, participation and inter-governmental communication