WaterManagementSystemsBEAHRSELP 2017MADHYAMA SUBRAMANIANUCBERKELEY, CLASS OF2015SOLIDARIDAD NORTH AMERICA

CONTENTS1.Water - Overview

2.WaterAvailability

3.WaterUse

Ø EnvironmentalUse

Ø HumanUse

4.WaterUseacrossUserClasses

5.Conclusion

Overview• Water– Basichumanneed

Ø Freshwateraccountsforonly3%ofwaterglobally,97%ofglobalwaterissalineØ Freshwater:69%areinicecapsandmountains;30%isgroundwater;

allsurfacewatersources(rivers,lakes,tanksetc.)accountforonly0.9%oftheglobalresources.Ø Ofthetotalsurfacewater,only2%flowsinriversandstreams;therestareinlakes(87%)andswamps(11%)

• Challenge:Freshwaterscarcity,bothintermsofqualityandquantity

• KeyDriversofFreshwaterScarcityØ GrowingcompetitionforwaterØ WeakregulationØ AgingandinadequatewaterinfrastructureØ WaterpollutionØ Climatechange

• Changesintraditionalprecipitationpatterns• Increasingincidenceofextremeclimateeventslikedroughtsandfloods• Meltingglaciersandsnowcaps

Overview• Absolutewaterscarcityisamisnomer;scarcityisrelative

•Waterisacommonpoolresource,makingitdifficulttomanage

• Smartwatermanagementiskey,toalsoadapttoachangingclimate

WaterManagementandDistribution• Needforeffectivewatermanagementsystemsforappropriatedistribution.

•WaterManagementhasthreeaspects:Ø Availability:Seasonalityofprecipitation,whileallyear-roundrequirement

Ø Use:EnvironmentaluseandHumanuse

Ø Classesofusers:Rich/Poor, Industrial/Urbanvs.Rural,UserswithdifferentWaterRights

• Noone-size-fitsallsolution:MixofDemandandSupplySidesolutions,Contextspecific

• E.g.Infrastructure,Policy,Regulation,Laws,Pricingmechanisms

• Centralizedvs.De-CentralizedSolutions

Water– Availability• Precipitationtakesplaceduringcertainmonthsinayear,

dependingonregion.

Ø SouthAsia– 70to90%rainfallover4monsoonmonths(June toSep)

Ø California– Rainandsnowduringwinter(OctobertoApril)

• ClimateChangeaffectingprecipitationpatternsglobally

• However,waterisanall-yearrequirement

• Hence,theneedforappropriatesystemstostorewater(Supply-sideSolution)

• Naturalandman-madewaterstoragesystems

Ø Natural- Groundwater (extractionratesmuchhigher thanrechargerates)

Ø Manmade- Infrastructurefor storingsurfacewatere.g.Reservoirs,man-madeponds, lakes

Water– Availability• BigDams:Focusof the20thcenturyglobally

Ø Challenges:Hugeenvironmental footprint, varieddistributional effectsacrossusers

• Alternativewaterstoragesystems:WatershedDevelopment,DecentralizedWaterHarvestingandManagement.E.g.IndiaandBrazil

• Brazil:TheNorthEasternregionofBrazil– 9states,23mill.people,poor farmers,semi-aridregion

• Since2003,thegovernmentandcivilsociety(nearly3000organizations)haveimplementedseveraldecentralizedprojectstoenhancelivelihoodsbyraisingwatersecurity,throughrainwaterharvesting.

• The“1millioncisterns,”“1pieceoflandand2sourcesofwater,”otherprojects- Tanks,flywheelpumpsonhanddugwells,rockcatchments,subsurfacedams,anddeepwaterpits+waterconservation+livelihoodprograms.

• Livinginharmonywiththesemi-aridzone,byadoptingsuitablemethodsofwaterstorageanduse,managingadecentlifeeventhoughwaterisscarce.

• Without thevoiceofCSOs,thedemocratizationofwaterdevelopmentintheNorthEastmaynothavetakenplaceandlargescalewaterusersmayhavehadtheupperhand.

Water– Availability

• Demand-sidesolutions:Surfaceandgroundwatermanagement

Ø Regulation:Conservation rulestocutCA-widewateruseby25%inurbanareasduring2015drought

• Largestcities,waterdistrictsandwatercompaniesplacedinnine tiers,basedontheirresidentialpercapitawateruse.Hadtomeettargets,comparedwiththeir2013baselineuse,orfacestatefinesofupto$10,000aday.

• Measuresincludedoutreach,incentivestobuywater-efficientequipment, limitlawnwatering,imposepenalties

Environmental UsesofWater• Allwaterbodies(rivers,lakes,andwetlands)andrelated

ecosystemsarelivingsystemsrequiringwaterinflowsandoutflows(volume,seasonality,quality)

• Waterintheecosystemisinterconnected–whathappensinonepartaffectstheother.E.g.groundwaterextractioninupstreamaffectsriverflowsdownstream

• Closeinter-linkagesbetweenthehydrological,ecologicalandsocio-economiccomponentsofriverbasinsØ Drainagesystems– “roomfortheriver”approach(2005floods in

Mumbai)Ø Ecosystemdestruction (Sundarbans mangroves)– affectedbyrampant

pollution

EnvironmentalUsesofWater• PlanningusingIntegratedRiverBasinApproach:Aholisticapproach

tomanageentireriverbasinsecosystems,includingaccompanyingwetlandandgroundwatersystems,withusageandmanagement

Ø Combinationofprotectedareas,sustainableforestryandagriculture,improved reservoirmanagement, restorationandotherinitiatives

Ø Positivemove,yettorealizefullpotential.

• ValuationandPaymentsforEcosystemServices(PES)topartiallyinternalizeecosystemexternalities:Pricingandincentivestooltocounterbalanceimpactonecosystemservices

Ø Incentivesoffered tofarmersorlandownersinexchangeformanaging theirlandtoprovidesomesortofecologicalservice;stillearlydays

Ø FONAGWaterFund,Ecuador- Downstreamwateruserssuchascities,utilities,andindustriespayintothefund, tosupportconservationandreforestationactivitiesinthepáramo andforestedwatershedsoftheAndes thatsupplydrinking watertothedownstreamurbanpopulations ofQuito

HumanUseofWater• Competingusersofwater

Ø Agriculture - 80%ofglobal freshwaterØ Domestic/UrbanuseØ Industrialuse

• Growingdemandfromurbanindustrialuse;eveninagrariancontexts

• Increasingpollutionlevels

• Socialconflictsduetoindustrialwateruse,transferfromruraltourban,diversionfromfarmingtoenvironmentetc.

HumanUseofWater• Regulatorysolutions

Ø India:TheMaharashtraGroundwater (regulation fordrinking waterpurposes) Act,1993,takesprotectionmeasuresforpublicdrinkingwatersourcessuchasprohibition ofconstructionofwellswithincertainlimits.

• Technologysolutions:Wastewaterrecycling,Desalination,MeatlessMeats

• Improveefficiency:DripIrrigation,Fixingleaksinpublicdistributionsystems,water- efficienttoilets

WaterUseacrossUserClasses• Waterusedistributionvariesacrossuserclasses

Ø Smallgeographicalregionswithinripariansystems

Ø Withinairrigationcommandarea

Ø Withinavillageofuserswithdifferentendowments

Ø Withinacitydistribution acrosspoor/richneighborhoods

Ø Seniorvs.JuniorWaterrightsholders

• Whenthereisalivelihoodimplication,waterunavailabilitybecomesevenmoreserious

WaterUseacrossUserClasses• Decentralizedsystems:

ParticipatoryIrrigationManagement(PIM)ParticipatoryGroundwaterManagement(PGWM):Waterusersfromagroup,decideoncropandwaterbudgetssothatacommunitycangetassuredwater

• Differentialpricingforurbanwateruse:Lowpriceforpoorneighborhoods,highpriceforricherneighborhoods

• Subsidies:Tonotgrowspecificcrops

SolutionsandTrade-offs•Weneedtobemindful ofalldimensions:Environmentaluse,HumanUseandClassesofHumanUse

• Largescalewaterharvesting(Dams)maybegood todealwithseasonalfluctuations,howeverecologicalconsiderationsmustbekeptinmind.

• Pricingofwaterincreasesitvalue,butpricingcannotbeusedwherewaterisa‘meritgood’, whereconsumption cannotdependontheabilitytopay,e.g.drinking waterforhumans.

• Regulationbasedonpoor information: Ifyoudon’tknowthenatureoftheresource,peoplemayberestrictedfromusingtheresource(suchasgroundwater).

• Efficiency:Insteadofreducinguseofgroundwater, dripirrigationoftenleadstoaperverseresultbywayofincreaseinirrigatedacreage,whichmaynotbeappropriate.Ithastobeusedincombinationwithotherrules.

Conclusion• Water:Notascarcity,amanagementissue• Complexchallengewithmultiplesolutions• Rightmixinacomprehensivemanneriskeytominimizetrade-offs