Introduction to
Integrated Water
Resources Management
Franziska Steinbruch
Visiting Professor, IIT Madras, Chennai
IGCS Summer school 2015 in Kiel
1
Outline
1. Water
2. Water Scarcity
3. Water and Development
4. Integrated Water Resources
Management / Sustainable Water
Resources Management
5. Systems Approaches to Water
Resources Management
2
About Water
• A “Single” Resource – has no substitute and ALL living things on Earth depend on it
• A Limited Resource
• A Scarce Resource
• Has Social, Economic, and Environmental Value
• Water impacts all aspects of life on the planet
Poor water management and water shortages
can lead to
disease, malnutrition, reduced economic growth, social instability, conflict, and environmental disaster.
3
Consumptive use – water that is not available anymore for other
users (evaporation, contamination, plant transpiration, human consumption)
Drinking / domestic
Agriculture / irrigation
Production of goods
Mining
Dilution
Cooling
Removal of waste
Non-consumptive use – in-situ use, withdrawal, storage, and
return flowHydropower
Transportation
Cultural, religious, recreational
Water use is a function of the type of access to water (distance,
climate)
Water Utilization
4
Water has been turned into a goal of national economic
development
Water is considered as an asset, an economic good
River systems were changed to serve human needs and achieved
many beneficiaries, e.g.:
Water-borne sanitation systems
Irrigation systems
Pipelines
Borewells
Dams for various purposes
Water Status
5
Global Water
97% Seawater
3% Freshwater
Global Freshwater
87% Not Accessible
13% Accessible (0.4% of global)
Global Water
6
The Global Water Cycle
7
P = A + E ± S
Global
River / Basin Watershed
Temporary deficits /
Temporary surpluses
Water Budget
8
Planetary System Boundaries - Environment
(Rockstroem, et al.(2009) ,
Steffen et. al, 16 January 2015, Science)9
(Earth Security Index, 2014)
Water – Social Stability
10
http://www.irem.org
Water Scarcity
Water scarcity: is broadly understood as the lack of access to
adequate quantities of water for human and environmental uses
is increasingly being recognised in many countries as a serious
and growing concern.
11
(UNEP GRID ARENDAL)
Water Scarcity Index
Ratio of total annual withdrawals to available water resources (Raskin, et al., 1997)
A country is considered as having:
• no water scarcity: withdrawals below 10% of annual supply
• low water scarcity: annual withdrawals between 10 and 20% of annual supply
• water scarce: annual withdrawals are between 20 and 40% of annual supply
• severely water scarce: withdrawals exceed 40% of annual supply 12
Water scarcity already affects almost every continent
and > 40 % of the people on Earth
Water Scarcity
13
Water is unevenly distributed and subject to
extreme fluctuations due to climate
variability.
Physical symptoms of water stress occur not
only in water-scarce countries but in water-
wealthy countries, too.
High uncertainty for planning because of
lack of data, archives, monitoring
Water Resources Distribution –
natural challenges
14
Water Scarcity – Man-made
• competition for access to scarce water
resources at the community, national and
regional levels in an effort by states to achieve
water security; (e.g. drought induced starving-
migration)
• colonization and decolonization disputes (e.g.
country borders dividing traditionally common
resources areas)
• water security and access to freshwater are top
on the political agendas and increasingly
perceived as part of the struggle for democratic
empowerment in the region.
• competitive exclusion or resource capture
created a disadvantaged communities � in favor
of wealthy economic sectors15
Example – Jordan River
16
e.g. Cahora Bassa Dam on
Zambezi river completed in 1974
Bulk electricity was transported
to South Africa
Mozambique imported its
electricity from South Africa
South Africa determined
electricity priorities and prices
until 2012
(en.wikipedia.org)
Example: Zambezi River Dams
Competitive exclusion
17
• Decreasing per-capita availability
• Degrading water quality
• Increasing competition/conflict within sectors and within society
– Urban versus agriculture
– Haves versus have nots
– Upstream versus downstream
– National versus international
• Increasing competition/conflict with the environment
Water Pathway
18
• Water pollution
• Water governance
• Poverty
• Climate change
• Global water cycle
• Globalization – virtual water trade
• Role of corporations in water sustainability
• Demography
• Technology
• Monitoring; data, information
..examples…
Water Challenges
19
Demography - Population Growth
Nature 478, 300 (2011)
20
India
(James 2011)
The 1951– 2011 data are enumerated by decadal census, and 2025
and 2100 data are projections by the United Nations
Lagged System‘s response
21
Largest urban growth expected in India, China and
Nigeria.
It will account for 37% of the projected growth of the
world’s urban population between 2014 and 2050.
By 2050, India is projected to add 404Mio urban
dwellers (China 292Mio, Nigeria 212Mio).
Megacities: urban connected geographical area with
>10Mio inhabitants (UN)
(Revision of the World Urbanization Prospects , UN DESA 2014)
Pollution - Urbanization
22
Water – Food Security / Poverty
Food security exists when all people, at all times, have physical, social and
economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food which meets their
dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life (FAO, 2011) 23
Water and Potential Conflict
Legal and institutional frameworks largely determine the
issues of access to resources (water, minerals, wildlife
and products, land, timber) � “colonial heritage”,
“commons”
Development of national and shared water resources is
part of political economy and done on the basis of
strategic intent
Economic disparities between neighboring countries
sharing a watercourse – as these countries develop
demand in their “share” of water increases.
Underlying factors> climate, population growth, economic
development and historical realities24
Basic water needs – a human right
� Access to water linked to sanitation, and linked to
health and living quality
According to WHO, between 50 and 100 litres of water
per person per day are needed to ensure that most
basic needs are met and few health concerns arise.
Basic Water Needs
25
Water and Sanitation
26
(www.chemtech-online.com)
India
5 % domestic
use
8 % Industrial
use
ca. 87 %
agricultural
use
Germany
5.9 % other
use
13.8 %
Industrial use
ca. 80.3 %
Household
and Service
Sector use
(Bundesverband
der Energie- und
Wasserwirtschaft
e.V., 2012)
Water and Development Pathway
27
SOURCES: Igor A. Shiklomanov, Archive of World Water Resources and World Water Use, Global Water Data Files, State
Hydrological Institute, St. Petersburg, Russia, CD-ROM, 1998; Peter H. Gleick, “The Changing Water Paradigm: A Look at Twenty-
First Century Water Resources Development,” Water International, Vol. 25, No. 1, 2000, pp. 127-138, available online as of March
2006.
� People in industrialized countries demand more water-intensive products and
services
� Urbanization and migration to urban areas strains water resources
� Per capita, smaller households consume more water and produce more waste
than do larger households, consume more land for housing, etc.
Water Utilization - Development
28
India – water use balance
Water Demand Development
29
Water Demand Gap Fill- India
30
Open Basin
Closing Basin Closed Basin
Basin Development leads to:
Over-commitment,
degradation,
diversion, control
Overlooked functions, e.g. of
outflow into sea,
environmental flows
Downstream needs
River Basin Development
31
(Bhave P.R., 2011)
Water
Development:
�structures to
abstract water
Abstraction is
above total
annual
renewable
resources:
when almost
all water can
be stored or
pumped (incl.
flood events)
River Basin Development - India
32
Note:
Temporal and
spatial
interconnectivity
across scales in
both
hydrologic and
governance
terms 33
Current Adjustment strategies:
Water Conservation, Water Allocation, Water Development
Reflect mere spatial redistribution of the resource water
� No increase in control
� No change in amount and quality of water
Water conservation � ”paper savings”:
“losses” to one user are return flows for another user
Saved water from drip-irrigation offset by expansion of irrigated
fields if land is available
Groundwater is not an additional source/stock
Water Adjustments
34
Approaches to Water Management
o Ad hoc
o Economic Analysis -- Single Project or Basin
o Multi-Objective Planning
o Comprehensive Multi-Purpose River Basin Planning
and Management
o Strategic Planning and Implementation through
IWRM
35
�River Basin Development
Traditional methods of water provision are purely engineering
based and are today
unable to provide sustainable solutions to the mismatch between
water demand and supply, and the arising conflicts from this
�Integrated Water Resources Management – Sustainable River
Basin Management
Today’s water projects require more negotiation, extensive
environmental impact assessments and stakeholder participation.
Trans-boundary river basins require international and national
regulations
Institutional capacity
Changes in Water Management
36
“the coordinated development and management of
water, land, and related resources in order to
maximize economic and social welfare without
compromising the sustainability of vital
environmental systems.”
(Global Water Partnership, UNDP)
Integrated Water Resources
Management - Definition
37
Sustainability in River Basin Management
River basins are internally interdependent
at social, economical, and political scale, and
hydrologic interactions express itself in competitive uses
between
Upstream downstream users,
Agriculturalists urbanites,
Subsistence-oriented farmers fishermen commercial
enterprises,
Off-stream on-stream uses
All users have themselves different
• Priorities,
• Objectives,
• Political power 38
The Dublin principles (1992)
• Water is a single, finite resource
• Water management and development should include stakeholders
• Water is an economic good
• Women play a central role in management and conservation of water
The Dublin Principles have served as guide for the global water dialogue
IWRM Framework
39
Water Governance to address
1. Good water governance
2. Securing water for ecosystems
3. Securing water for people
4. Securing water for food
5. Gender disparities
6. Managing risks (droughts, floods, pollution,
upstream-downstream interventions)
7. Valuing water
8. Water for industries and cities (secure bulk water)
9. Trans-boundary water
40
�Legal aspects of Water
�The Water Cycle
�Water Resource Management Priorities
�Water Resource Management Approaches
�Water Institutions and Water Services
�Conflict Management Mechanisms
Adequate Legal Frame
41
Economic
efficiencyEquity
Environmental
sustainability
Balance
Water for livelihoods
And
Water as resource
Management
instruments
• Assessments
• Allocation
instruments
Enabling
environment
• Policies
• Legislation
Institutional
framework
• Central-local
• River basin
• Public-private
Resistance to change advantageous conditions to benefit others (e.g. downstream)
Unwillingness to adhere to own countries laws (e.g. environmental pollution)
Pillars of sustainability in water
resources management
42
A systemic process for linking water and water-related policy,
objectives, and uses to improve decision making in:
– operation and management of natural resources and
environmental systems;
– design and implementation of programs and policies.
A coordinating framework for integrating sector needs, water
and water-related policy, resource allocation, and
management within the context of social, economic, and
environmental development objectives.
Integrated Water Resources
Management
43
• A process, not a product
• Considered scale independent - applies at all
levels of development
• A tool for self assessment and program
evaluation
• A tool for policy, planning, and management
• A mechanism for evaluating competing demands,
resource allocation, and tradeoffs
Integrated Water Resources
Management
44
Governance
Hea
lth
Wat
er Q
ualit
y
Wat
er S
uppl
y
Flo
ods/
Dro
ught
s
Ene
rgy
Agr
icul
ture
Indu
stry
Pol
lutio
n P
rev
Coa
stal
Mgt
.
Eco
syst
em M
gt.
Activity Sectors
(water uses)
Social
Development
Economic
Development
Env.
ProtectionObjectives
Policy/Inst.Framework
Management Institutions
Feedback
Prosperity
IWRM Water and water related policies review and revi sion
IWRM Resource development, management, monitoring, and evaluation
IWRM Resource availability/use analysis and allocation
45
•Stocks
•Flows
•Feedback Loops
•Information / Communication
Flows
Systems analysis to implement IWRM
With intrinsic capacities of:
• Self-organization
• Resilience
• Construction of
hierarchies
Water management unit (catchment, watershed) is composed of:
46
�Balancing feedback loop
�Commons
�Low performance
�Escalation
�Competitive exclusion
�Dependence and burden-shifting systems
�Appearance of achieving goals
�Wrong goals
System traps / paradigms
47
Has stabilizing role
Can create a resistance to change
trapped in an unwanted system - no one likes it
yet all spend considerable effort to maintain it
e.g. Poverty alleviation: “Bred for Work”
Fertilizer subsidy schemes
Centralized over-dimensioned water treatment
technology due to more efficient water use
Ways out:
Definition of larger commonly shared goals
Harmonization of objectives, reforms
Balancing feedback loop
48
Commons systems
Tendency of:
•Overexploitation of renewable resources
•Over-usage of common sinks (shared
places where pollution is dumped)
•Every user benefits directly but shares
the costs of its abuse with everyone else
Commons systems make selfish behavior
more convenient and profitable than
behavior that is responsible to the whole
community or future
e.g. Discharge pollutants into a river
49
� Educate and exhort
about consequences of unconstrained use of commons
appeal to morality, social disapproval
� Privatize commons
divide and make people live the consequences of their
own actions
people may destroy their own resource but not harm all
� Regulate commons
prohibition, restriction, rationing, quotas, permits,
taxes, incentives
must be monitored and enforced/enforceable
Overcome misuse of commons - Water
50
Performance standards shifting based on past experiences
can result in a negative feedback loop and a shift to low
performance
� performance measurement against worst
e.g. “how things used to be”
lower effort, lower expectations, lower performance
Desired state of the system is influenced by the perceived state
e.g. “we are just like everybody else having troubles to get
around”
Instead:
Keep absolute standards or
Use goal-sensitive standards based on best past performance
Low performance
51
Escalation
Is a reinforcing feedback loop – leading to exponential growth
and collapse
Competition to keep ahead of someone else
hard to stop independent from whether it is initially
thought to be positive
e.g.
Population numbers
Cheap boreholes and subsidized electricity
Instead:
Refuse competition and interrupt reinforcing loop
Create new balancing loops to control escalation
52
Competitive exclusion
Success influences following success and leads to:
� Resources appropriation
� Domination of access to a resource
� Elimination of competition and diversity
“the rich become richer, the poor become poorer”
e.g. Land ownership, farmers, water rights
Instead:
� Diversification
� “leveling the playfield” – increasing advantages
for weaker or removing advantages of strongest
� Antitrust laws, policies 53
Dependence and burden-shifting systems
A way of reducing symptoms of a systemic problem (hiding the
solutions)
Loss of control
Increased vulnerability and loss of adaptive capacity
e.g.
Dependence on subsidy schemes
Reliance of farmers on fertilizers
Dependence of economies on oil
Dependence of regions on desalination for water supply
Instead:
Remove focus from short-term relief
Emphasize on long-term restructuring / reforms54
Appearance of achieving goals
Rules which create distortions in a system
Self-organizing capabilities of a system used in negative
feedback loops
Provides appearance of obeying rules or achieving goals
e.g. farmer loses water permit, if he uses less water due to his
investment into water efficient technologies;
Institutions receive less money in the following year, if less
money was spent
Instead:
Redesign rules to release creativity for positive feedback loops
55
Wrong goals
Efforts and results get confused
Goals of feedback loops define the direction / behavior of a
system
If set wrong or incomplete the system ends up working for the
achievement of unwanted outcomes
Following perfectly rules and procedures which nobody
wanted
e.g. GDP –gross domestic product –measures consumption
and not welfare
Daily water consumption as measure of welfare
Instead:
Goals and their indicators must reflect what is wanted56
Thank you for your attention
57
