scholarly journals Assessing Water Shortage through a Balance Model among Transfers, Groundwater, Desalination, Wastewater Reuse, and Water Demands (SE Spain)

Water ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 1009 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antonio Jodar-Abellan ◽  
Patricia Fernández-Aracil ◽  
Joaquín Melgarejo-Moreno
Keyword(s):  
Water Policy ◽  
Water Distribution ◽  
Water Governance ◽  
Wastewater Reuse ◽  
Water Shortage ◽  
Balance Model ◽  
Se Spain ◽  
Water Demands ◽  
Interbasin Transfers ◽  
Increasing Demand

Currently, water demands are increasing notoriously, spreading the pressure on available water resources around the world in both quantity and quality. Similarly, the expected reduction of natural water inputs, due to climate change, depicts a new level of uncertainty. Specifically, Southeast Spain presents water scarcity due to its aridity—irregular and scarce precipitation and high evapotranspiration rates—combined with the competition between several water demands: environment, agricultural dynamics, urban-tourist activities, and industry. The study area of this work is the most relevant functional urban area of Alicante province (SE Spain), where the administration of water management is carried out by a range of authorities at different levels as the consequence of a complex historical development of water governance schemes: at the national, regional, and local levels. This study analyzes 21 municipalities and proposes a conceptual model which was developed by including different origins of water inputs—surface resources, groundwater, desalination, wastewater reuse, or interbasin transfers—and water demands with information obtained from 16 different sources. Our main results denote a relevant water deficit of 72.6 hm3/year even when one of the greatest rates of desalinated water and reused wastewater in Europe are identified here. This negative balance entails restrictions in urban development and agricultural growth. Thus, presented results are noteworthy for the water policy makers and planning authorities, by balancing the demand for water among various end users and providing a way for understanding water distribution in a context of scarcity and increasing demand, which will become one of the most challenging tasks in the 21st century.

Analysis of water governance in Malawi: towards a favourable enabling environment?

2014 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 313-323 ◽  
Author(s):  
Quinex W. Chiluwe ◽  
Bimo Nkhata
Keyword(s):  
Water Resources ◽  
Water Policy ◽  
Water Distribution ◽  
Water Governance ◽  
Water Shortages ◽  
Resources Management ◽  
Enabling Environment ◽  
International Water ◽  
Effective Water ◽  
National Water

This paper examines the enabling environment for effective water governance in Malawi by specifically determining the extent to which the water acts and policies of Malawi reflect international water governance principles of participation, accountability and transparency. It is argued that governance issues determine the extent to which sound and equitable water sharing is achieved among competing uses. Despite the fact that Malawi has vast freshwater resources, the country experiences chronic water shortages in some parts; this is due to disparities in water distribution to the extent that the country has been classified to be going towards water stress by 2025. In this study, it was found that the Water Resources Act of 1969, which is currently being used by the country has not clearly set the scene for good water governance. This is despite a number of treaties on water resources management that the country has ratified. However, despite the failure to update the archaic Act of 1969, the country has taken some important strides such as the development of the National Water Policy of 2005. This policy attempts to espouse key governance prerequisites required to improve the country's capacity to deal with the impeding water crisis situation.

Water Governance and Management in Indus Basin - Challenges & Threats

2020 ◽  
Vol 38 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marium Sara Minhas Bandeali
Keyword(s):  
Water Management ◽  
Civil Society ◽  
Water Resources ◽  
Water Policy ◽  
Water Governance ◽  
Sustainable Use ◽  
Water Security ◽  
Sampling Technique ◽  
The State ◽  
Indus Basin

Water governance and management are important challenges for the River Indus Basin in Pakistan. Water governance refers to social, political and economic factors that influence water management. The water scarcity and water security are a major concern for the state to control its water resources. The study aims to give Sindh water policy by exploring the challenges to Indus Basin in managing water resources and to identify opportunities Indus Basin can look to improve water management. Interviews were conducted from water experts and analysts having 5 years’ experience or more in the water sector of Pakistan through a semi-structured self-developed questionnaire using purposive sampling technique and transcripts were analyzed using thematic content analysis. The findings show that increasing population, climatic change and rising demand of water are major challenges Indus is facing and Indus with time is getting water-scarce therefore need strong institutions, civil society and legislatures to ensure equitable distribution of water and maintain the ecosystem. The study emphasizes that water governance and management are necessary for sustainable use of water. Pakistan, the water stress country needs to address ‘governance’ at a wider scale to solve problems in the Indus Basin for the livelihood of people. The research will benefit the state, water experts, institutions as well as civil society to promote efficient use of water in Indus Basin.

scholarly journals Disinfection by-products in desalinated and blend water: formation and control strategy

2018 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-24 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shakhawat Chowdhury
Keyword(s):  
Distribution Systems ◽  
Water Distribution ◽  
Cancer Risks ◽  
Domestic Water ◽  
Desalinated Water ◽  
Water Demands ◽  
Product Water ◽  
And Control ◽  
Different Sources ◽  
By Products

Abstract Desalinated seawater is the major source of drinking water in many countries. During desalination, several activities including pretreatment, desalination, stabilization, mixing, storage and distribution are performed. Few disinfectants are used during these activities to control the biofouling agents and microbiological regrowth. The reactions between the disinfectants and natural organic matter (NOM), bromide and iodide form disinfection by-products (DBPs) in product water. The product water is stabilized and mixed with treated freshwater (e.g., groundwater) to meet the domestic water demands. The DBPs in desalinated and blend water are an issue due to their possible cancer and non-cancer risks to humans. In this paper, formation and distribution of DBPs in different steps of desalination and water distribution systems prior to reaching the consumer tap were reviewed. The variability of DBPs among different sources and desalination processes was explained. The toxicities of DBPs were compared and the strategies to control DBPs in desalinated water were proposed. Several research directions were identified to achieve comprehensive control on DBPs in desalinated water, which are likely to protect humans from the adverse consequences of DBPs.

Integrated watershed management in Quebec (Canada): a participatory approach centred on local solidarity

2006 ◽  
Vol 53 (10) ◽  
pp. 301-307 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Baril ◽  
Y. Maranda ◽  
J. Baudrand
Keyword(s):  
Water Policy ◽  
Integrated Management ◽  
Water Governance ◽  
Public Consultation ◽  
Master Plan ◽  
Integrated Water Management ◽  
The Government ◽  
Development Perspective ◽  
Initial Process

The Quebec Water Policy was launched in November 2002 in support of reform of the water governance. One of the government commitments is to gradually implement watershed-based management for 33 major watercourses located primarily in the St. Lawrence plain. At the local and regional levels, watershed organizations are responsible for implementing integrated management, from a sustainable-development perspective, by preparing a master plan for water (MPW), which will include watercourses, lakes, wetlands and aquifers. These watershed organizations rely on public consultation, as well as local and regional expertise, on the responsibilities for water of the municipalities and regional county municipalities of the territory, as well as those of the ministries and other government agencies. They are also required to observe national priorities regarding protection, restoration, and development of water resources and to comply with relevant guidelines, directives, standards, regulations, and legislation. The role of watershed organizations is to act as planning and consultation tables. Government representatives are present, on the initial process, as the facilitator and for scientific and technical support. They do not have, at this moment, any voting or decisional rights. After two years, integrated water management mobilized water stakeholders on watersheds and they are on their way to initiating their first MPW.

DETERMINANTS OF NON-REVENUE WATER

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 642
Author(s):  
Haslinda Ab Malek ◽  
Mohamad Hafizi Zakaria ◽  
Muhammad Luqman Zulkifli ◽  
Nur Farahin Roslan
Keyword(s):  
Water Distribution ◽  
Water System ◽  
Multiple Linear Regression Model ◽  
Water Shortage ◽  
Water Losses ◽  
Efficient Management ◽  
The People ◽  
Water Plant ◽  
Production Quantity ◽  
Non Revenue Water

Water is one of the most essential needs in human daily life. Water losses or Non-Revenue Water (NRW) refers to the treated water that has been produced from water plant which did not reach to the customer. This waste of water has caused the company to suffer losses and hence, burdens the people with increasing water tariff. Moreover, it becomes one of the challenges for commercial water system management because the water company must fulfil the demand from the society which keep increasing day by day. In addition, the demand for water is increasing, as the population is growing. Despite having the rainfall throughout the year in Malaysia, many cities are experiencing water shortage and frequent water supply disruptions. Therefore, efficient management of water distribution is required to minimise the water losses and to make sure the sustainability of water reserve for a long period. This study focuses on identifying the significant factors that influence the Non-Revenue Water and modelling the data using Multiple Linear Regression Model. The sample size used in this study were 212 observations and the variables involved were Length of Connection, Number of Connection, Production Quantity, Consumption Quantity and Non-Revenue Water. It is found that the variables of Number of Connection, Consumption Quantity and Production Quantity were significant to Non-Revenue Water whereas the variable of Length of Connection was not significant. It is hoped that the result from this study can be used by the water authority company in improving the water distribution and thus reduce water losses and cost.

Water Ownership and Governance

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sally Babidge
Keyword(s):  
Urban Areas ◽  
Water Distribution ◽  
Multiple Scales ◽  
Water Governance ◽  
Resource Scarcity ◽  
Regulatory Control ◽  
Early 21St Century ◽  
Eastern Australia ◽  
Governance Challenges ◽  
Key Sites

Water governance refers to the material and regulatory control of water and waters. It involves questions such as who makes decisions about water and how; at what scale such decisions are made in relation to different waters; and who and which water or ecosystem benefits. Classical work in anthropology considered how irrigation practices may have given rise to the development of state forms, and in response to early-21st-century privatization regimes, anthropologists have considered how different groups have challenged the apparent global dominance of commodity values and water as property. Infrastructures for water distribution in urban areas (such as systems of canals, pipes, and faucets), and considerations of the sociocultural effects of hydrological unit delineation and definition (e.g., groundwater or river “basins”) have become key sites for the ethnographic investigation of water governance, emerging forms of personhood, and societal inequalities. The diversity in anthropologies of water unsettles generalized models in global regimes of water governance. The anthropology of water governance and ownership considers the context and contingencies of water and power. It reveals the global dominance of markets, rights, and technical approaches to water management, such as the case of “private water” in Chile, in which water markets have failed to provide equity and environmental health, but also how certain groups avoided complete privatization of water under this extreme example. Ethnographic studies of the cultural organization of resource scarcity over topographically complex and remote terrain, such as that of irrigators in the Andean cordillera, express the diversity of human innovation at the intersection of politics and ecology. In arid South Eastern Australia, basin plans that treat water as a unit of calculation and economic trade place social and ecological relations in peril. Infrastructures of development provide a narrative of unsettled state and development ideologies, and the problem of groundwater management reveals governance challenges in the face of unstable, unknown, and invisible material. Anthropological studies of water contribute to knowledge of earth’s diverse humanity, knowledge practices, and ecologies. Researchers propose that water governance might engage with human differences articulated at multiple scales, as well as in understanding water’s material agency and waters as dynamic, especially in an ever-changing climate.

scholarly journals Evaluation of Water-Storage and Water-Saving Potential for Paddy Fields in Gaoyou, China

Water ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 1176 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chuanjuan Wang ◽  
Shaoli Wang ◽  
Haorui Chen ◽  
Jiandong Wang ◽  
Yuan Tao ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Southern China ◽  
Financial Burden ◽  
Water Shortage ◽  
Water Saving ◽  
Paddy Fields ◽  
Balance Model ◽  
Agricultural Water ◽  
Average Water ◽  
Agricultural Water Resources ◽  
Water Fee

In China, the stress on agricultural water resources is becoming increasingly severe. In response, a range of water-saving irrigation (WSI) policies and practices have been promoted to improve irrigation efficiency. In this study, a water-balance model in paddy fields was calibrated and validated using a 2-year field experimental dataset collected from an irrigated area in Gaoyou, China, in 2014–2015. The model was used to assess the effects of WSI practices and provides options for implementing water-price reforms. Results show that paddy fields effectively retain rainfall with utilization rates greater than 70% for both shallow wet irrigation (SWI) and shallow humidity-regulated irrigation (SHRI) scenarios. The estimated average water-saving rates from 1960 to 2015 using SWI and SHRI are 33.7% and 43%, respectively, which represent considerable reductions in water consumption. The benefits of WSI practices combined with water management policies are also evident. For example, conversion of irrigation water to industrial water yields a 3-year average water fee of 205.2 yuan/ha using SWI and 20.6 yuan/ha using SHRI, considerably reducing farmers’ financial burden for agricultural water supplies. In conclusion, we recommend the adoption of SWI and SHRI practices in southern China as a means of partially alleviating China’s water-shortage problem.

scholarly journals An Engineering Perspective of Water Sharing Issues in Pakistan

Water ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 477 ◽  
Author(s):  
Muhammad Tariq ◽  
Nick van de Giesen ◽  
Shahmir Janjua ◽  
Muhammad Shahid ◽  
Rashid Farooq
Keyword(s):  
Water Availability ◽  
Water Distribution ◽  
Water Footprint ◽  
Water Shortage ◽  
Agricultural Products ◽  
Indus Basin ◽  
Effective Measure ◽  
Allocation Policy ◽  
Water Sharing ◽  
Water Treaty

Water sharing within the states/provinces of a country and cross-border is unavoidable. Conflicts between the sharing entities might turn more severe due to additional dependency on water, growing population, and reduced availability as a result of climate change at many locations. Pakistan, being an agricultural country, is severely water stressed and heading toward a worsening situation in the near future. Pakistan is heading toward water scarcity as water availability in the Indus basin is becoming critical. Being a downstream riparian of India and Afghanistan in the Indus basin, water availability depends on the releases of water from both countries. The Indus Water Treaty is governing the water distribution rights between India and Pakistan. However, there exists no proper agreement between Pakistan and Afghanistan and the construction of new dams on the Kabul River is another threat to water availability to Pakistan. Correct implementation of the Indus Water Treaty with India is required, together with an effective agreement with Afghanistan about the water sharing. In addition to water shortage, poor management of water resources, inequitable sharing of water, lack of a systematic approach, old-fashioned irrigation practices, and growing agricultural products with large water footprints are all exacerbating the problem. The water shortage is now increasingly countered by the use of groundwater. This sudden high extraction of groundwater is causing depletion of the groundwater table and groundwater quality issues. This water shortage is exacerbating the provincial conflicts over water, such as those between Punjab and Sindh provinces. At one end, a uniform nationwide water allocation policy is required. At the same time, modern irrigation techniques and low-water-footprint agricultural products should be promoted. A fair water-pricing mechanism of surface water and groundwater could be an effective measure, whereas a strict policy on groundwater usage is equally important. Political will and determination to address the water issues are required. The solutions must be based on transparency and equity, by using engineering approaches, combined with comprehensive social support. To develop a comprehensive water strategy, a dedicated technopolitical institute to strengthen the capabilities of nationwide expertise and address the issues on a regular basis is required to overcome the complex and multidimensional water-related problems of the country.

scholarly journals The Water Governance Reform Framework: Overview and Applications to Australia, Mexico, Tanzania, U.S.A and Vietnam

Water ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 137 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Grafton ◽  
Dustin Garrick ◽  
Ana Manero ◽  
Thang Do
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Water Policy ◽  
Water Governance ◽  
Supply And Demand ◽  
Public Access ◽  
Reform Process ◽  
Freshwater Ecosystem ◽  
Policy Cycle ◽  
Governance Reform ◽  
Trade Offs

The world faces critical water risks in relation to water availability, yet water demand is increasing in most countries. To respond to these risks, some governments and water authorities are reforming their governance frameworks to achieve convergence between water supply and demand and ensure freshwater ecosystem services are sustained. To assist in this reform process, the Water Governance Reform Framework (WGRF) is proposed, which includes seven key strategic considerations: (1) well-defined and publicly available reform objectives; (2) transparency in decision-making and public access to available data; (3) water valuation of uses and non-uses to assess trade-offs and winners and losers; (4) compensation for the marginalized or mitigation for persons who are disadvantaged by reform; (5) reform oversight and “champions”; (6) capacity to deliver; and (7) resilient decision-making. Using these reform criteria, we assess current and possible water reforms in five countries: Murray–Darling Basin (Australia); Rufiji Basin (Tanzania); Colorado Basin (USA and Mexico); and Vietnam. We contend that the WGRF provides a valuable approach to both evaluate and to improve water governance reform and, if employed within a broader water policy cycle, will help deliver both improved water outcomes and more effective water reforms.

scholarly journals Evaluation of groundwater recharge by rice and crop rotation fields in Kumamoto, Japan

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 1042-1049
Author(s):  
Takehide Hama ◽  
Toshio Fujimi ◽  
Takeo Shima ◽  
Kei Ishida ◽  
Yasunori Kawagoshi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Groundwater Recharge ◽  
Paddy Field ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Water Distribution ◽  
Groundwater Resources ◽  
Water Shortage ◽  
Distribution Model ◽  
Drought Risk ◽  
Large Contribution ◽  
Environmental Measures

Abstract In Kumamoto, Japan, about one million people depend for all their water on groundwater resources. Paddy fields and rice farming in the middle river watershed area make a large contribution to the groundwater recharge. In our research, an environmental measure (artificial flooding for groundwater recharge) conducted by local governments is evaluated. Hydrological measurement was conducted in a paddy plot in the area. A simple model of water distribution was developed on the basis of the field measurement. Then, drought risk in the paddy-field district was estimated using the model and GIS data. The results reveal that the fields with a high percolation rate of more than 30 mm/d result in inefficient use of irrigation water although they have large potential for groundwater recharge. In addition, the water distribution model suggests that environmental measures can increase the risk of water shortage in the paddy-field district due to the farmers' careless use of water.

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