The Water, Energy and Food Security Nexus- is it really new?
Gerald Lacey Memorial Lecture
Jeremy Bird, IWMI12 May 2014
Ringler, Bhaduri and Lawford, Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability , Science Direct,
2014 in press
Correlation of food and energy prices – and rising
Global Risks Report 2014, World Economic Forum
‘Water crisis’ is the third highest
global risk
..extreme weather, climate change and
biodiversity loss also very high
Nexus- why worry now?
Agricultural water productivity gains reduce water and
energy consumption
Energy efficiency measures can reduce
water footprint
Sectoral “nexus wins”
Subsidy on electricity for groundwater
pumping for irrigation
Shift to more water intensive energy mix,
e.g. fracking
Sectoral “nexus losers”
…water, energy provision and food security certainly lie at the heart of climate compatible development. An emphasis on explicit negotiation of trade-offs in delivery of these water-energy-food services could enhance climate compatible development approaches.
Looking at how ‘nexus thinking’ and ‘climate compatible development’ approaches could complement each other is a fruitful area for further exploration. (Mairi Dupar, CKDN )
More complex than just water, energy and food ….
Other sectors are taking water seriously – have we found the entry point for dialogue?
Proportion of energy inputs to irrigated agriculture Source: T. Jackson and MA Hanjra in Sustanable Energy Solutions in Agriculture, 2014
Surface irrigated Groundwater irrigated
Increase policy coherence• Identify synergies and trade-offs and incentivize cooperation
Accelerate access• Prioritize access for the poor and marginalized to water, sanitation, energy and food
Create more with less• sustainable intensification use of land and water, increasing resource productivity
End waste and minimize losses• To reduce demands on water, land and energy, and turn waste into a resource
Value natural infrastructure• Secure, improve and restore the multi-functional values of biodiversity
Mobilize consumer influence • encouraging the catalytic role of consumers
Bonn2011 Nexus: Key messages
Significant differences in water use intensity of biofuels
Different situations require
different solutions
– e.g. reducing food waste in
different contexts
New partnerships are addressing nexus issues
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Wiley, 2013
Extensive coverage in the research community
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But, is the nexus new?
.. compared to basin planning and regional development
Mahaweli Authority, Sri Lanka
Trade off – irrigation and hydropower production – Kotmale dam - Mahaweli system, Sri Lanka
Peronne and Hornberger, Wiley, 2013
Integrated Water Resources Management
Acknowledgements to GWP
….a process which promotes the coordinated development and management of water, land and related resources in order to maximise economic and social welfare in an equitable manner without compromising the sustainability of vital ecosystems.
… a cross-sectoral policy approach, designed to replace the traditional, fragmented sectoral approach to water resources and management that has led to poor services and unsustainable resource use.
Some question the efficacy of IWRM
1. “Ideas of IWRM are fine, but costs of IWRM implementation must not be forgotten
2. IWRM principles should not have a monopoly on potential solutions.
3. There are imperfect alternatives to the IWRM package and its components that can solve real world water problems
4. An implemented, imperfect solution is usually better than an unimplemented ideal”. M. Giodarno and T. Shah
Nexus dimension to much of IWMI’s work
Sustainable groundwater use
Revisiting water storage
Balancing built and natural infrastructure
Recycling waste
Urban expansion
Water Storage Continuum
Source: McCartney & Smakhtin 2010
Reduce vulnerabilities, enhance resilience through complementary solutions
Underground Taming of Floods for Irrigation (UTFI)Source: Pavelic 2012
www.iwmi.orgWater for a food-secure world
E.g. new approaches to rehabilitate and adapt
• For example, encourage distributed storage to improve system flexibility and reliability e.g. Rajasthan: farm-storages; Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh: village tanks replenished by canal water
• Modernize irrigation systems e.g. pressurized systems
Groundwater – a clear nexus issuetwo contrasting cases from India
1. Gujarat - ‘free’ electricity encouraged groundwater overuse
2. Eastern Gangetic Plain – barriers to access
Jyotigram in Gujarat – separate feeders• Pragmatic solution - separation of
electricity supply to villages and pumps• Outcome - reduced electricity use, less
groundwater use, improved power supply to domestic users
Tushaar Shah, IWMI
Halved subsidy to agriculture
Reduced groundwater overdraft
Increased yields
Spurred rural non-farm enterprises
Now rolling out in other states
Result in Gujarat
West Bengal – easing regulatory and pricing barriers
• Agricultural growth in West Bengal had slumped by more than half
• Research identified that a major obstacle to agricultural productivity was getting access to groundwater
• New policies recommended by IWMI were adopted to reduce ‘red-tape’ and improve groundwater access for smallholder farmers.
• The policy change could benefit more than 5.6 million smallholders
Uniting agriculture and nature for poverty reduction
Aral Sea Basin Groundwater irrigation (GWI) has higher energy and water use
efficiency compared to traditional Lift Irrigation (LI)Crop Water productivity,
kg/m3
Energy productivity (kg/Kwh)
LI GWI LI GWI
Cotton 0.19 0.21 0.25 2.10 Vegetables 0.59 1.00 1.65 7.93 Maize for silage 1.99 1.46 2.61 14.17 Sorghum 0.55 1.66 1.54 3.30 Alfalfa 0.59 0.78 0.78 1.56 Apricots 0.16 0.51 0.44 4.92
Grapevines 0.11 0.70 0.15 1.37
GW irrigation
…back on the agenda in Africa and India – groundwater a major source
Unlocking the potential for smallholder agriculture to
improve the lives of smallholder farmers in 5 countries in sub-Saharan
Africa and 2 states in India
Small-scale irrigation
(Giordano et al, 2012)
Development puts pressure on electricity, groundwater supply and water quality - Jaffna
Urban expansion - Hyderabad, 2003-14
Pulling water in from an increasing distance Hyderabad, India
Krishna RiverHimayat Sagar
Osman Sagar
GW
Musi River
GW – Ground WaterNJS – Nagarjuna Sagar reservoir
HyderabadWaste water irrigation
industry
Godavari Basin
Krishna Basin
NJS
Basin Border
Musi River
P ETManjira
Singur
Godavari River water
Water pum
ped
Water pumped
Source: van Rooijen, D.; Turral, H.; Biggs, T.W. 2005. Sponge city: Water balance of mega-city water use and wastewater use in Hyderabad, India. Irrigation and Drainage 54: 81-91.
Water quality improves over 40 km along the Musi River
Hyderabad
Sources: IWMI/J. Ensink
Managing transfers from rural to urban - Zhanghe Irrigation District, China
• Top-down approach with water reallocated to cities
• Farmers “induced” to respond with construction of 1000s of small reservoirs to capture runoff and return flow.
• Research provided ways to grow more rice with less water through alternative wetting and drying and extension got the message out.
Result - less water, but stable production
Agricultural production levels maintained…
…as allocation to agriculture reduced and transferred to urban use
In most cities in sub-Saharan Africa, S. Asia and SE Asia, population growth has outpaced the development of sanitation infrastructure, making the management of urban waste, human excreta and wastewater ineffective. Investment in treatment will not catch up for decades.
Waste – another nexus issue
Sour
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iqa
Rasc
hid-
Sally
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
Dilutedwastewateror polluted
water
Untreatedwastewater
Groundwater Treatedwastewater
River Othersurface
water bodies
Rainfed Irrigationcanal
Opendrainage
Nu
mb
er
of
cit
ies
Source: IWMI, RR 127
Global survey of irrigation source in urban and peri-urban areas:In and around three of four cities in the developing world, farmers use
polluted irrigation water for the production of high-value crops
Challenge:closing the
nutrient loop
?
Enhance efficient resource use and reuse
Waste to fertilizer – closing the nutrient loop
Co-composting
Introducing business models to turn waste into an asset
• Solid waste and fecal sludge composting
in Asia and Africa could save billions of
US$ per year, assuming a market for
only 25% of the urban organic waste.
• Not a new concept, but many pilots not
viable or sustainable
• Business models for resource recovery
& reuse (RRR) target private and public
investors and business schools.
Resource recovery and reuse - Sustainable waste and wastewater treatment Source: DrechselNexus benefits:
Energy reduction in: Water treatment, chemical fertilizer production and transport
Environmental benefits: Reduced pollution of water bodies, reduced nitrogen and phosphorous demand, reduced GHG emissions
Interactions between “agricultural” and “natural” ecosystems – providing multiple servicesSources: McCartney, Senaratne Sellamuttu, de Silva
Sustainable use of wetlands: fulfilling multiple needs throughecosystem services including food production, fisheries, storage
Benefit from functioning ecosystems
Natural basin
CropsHydropower
Industrial Regulation of water balance
Erosion control
Climate regulationSoil
formation
Nutrient cycling
Recreation
CropsHydropower
Industrial Regulation of water balance
Erosion control
Climate regulationSoil
formation
Nutrient cycling
Recreation
Intensively utilized basin
CropsHydropower
Industrial Regulation of water balance
Erosion control
Climate regulationSoil
formation
Nutrient cycling
Recreation
Multifunctional “green” basinProvisioning services
Regulatory services
Cultural services
Supporting services
Acknowledgements: Meynell, P-J.
Constructed wetlands in reservoirs
Mekong: influence
of upstream
dams – dry season 2014
Source: MRCS
www.iwmi.orgA water-secure world
Sri Lanka Environmental Flow Calculator (SLEFC) A software package to provide a preliminary planning estimate of how much water should be left in rivers to ensure they remain healthy
Awareness raising is spreading Knowledge base expanding Analytic tools being developed Increasing evidence of engagement across sectors, particularly
private sector
? Policy formulation – still predominantly sector based
? Planning systems mainly fragmented
Nexus scorecard
Concluding thoughts on the nexus No its not entirely new, but ‘the nexus’ frames the debate differently at
a time of heightened competition – it has convening power There is no single nexus – multi-dimensional – water, energy, food,
land, climate change, natural resources, etc In a world of increasing water demands, the consequences of not
taking a cross-sectoral approach are more significant now than a generation ago
We shouldn’t turn nexus concept into a structured framework – its value lies in its principles and flexibility
Doesn’t displace other forms of planning (regulatory frameworks, SEA, IWRM, etc), but provides a focus or ‘lens’ for integration
Important to extend the knowledge base and analysis of nexus issues Ultimate test is who is ‘sitting at the table’ to discuss the consequences
and implications of policy and planning interventions
Uniting agriculture and nature for poverty reduction
Water, Land and Ecosystems Program
. . . with targeted interventions in a number of priority focal regions
iwmi.orgCGIAR Research Program on Water, Land and
Ecosystems
wle.cgiar.org
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