Reflections on the use of Bayesian belief networks for adaptive management

A broad range of tools are available for integrated water resource management (IWRM). In the EU research project NeWater, a hypothesis exists that IWRM cannot be realised unless current management regimes undergo a transition toward adaptive management (AM). This includes a structured process of learning, dealing with complexity, uncertainty etc. We assume that it is no longer enough for managers and tool researchers to understand the complexity and uncertainty of the outer natural system-the environment. It is just as important, to understand what goes on in the complex and uncertain participatory processes between the water managers, different stakeholders, authorities and researchers when a specific tool and process is used for environmental management. The paper revisits a case study carried out 2001-2004 where the tool Bayesian networks (BNs) was tested for groundwater management with full stakeholder involvement. With the participation of two researchers (the authors) and two water managers previously involved in the case study, a qualitative interview was prepared and carried out in June 2006. The aim of this ex-post evaluation was to capture and explore the water managers' experience with Bayesian belief networks when used for integrated and adaptive water management and provide a narrative approach for tool enhancement.     

Water saving effect on integrated water resource management

This study proposes an improved integrated water resource management (IWRM), in which water conservation was analyzed for the entire water use process. A multi-objective optimization method was applied to optimize the IWRM, which investigated the reduction of freshwater consumption and the total water supply cost. Customer's preference for saving water and an end use analysis (EUA) was applied in the water conservation analysis. Taking Tianjin as the study area, a reduction in customer's economic pressure (EP) was utilized to evaluate the degree of the customer's preference for saving water. The results revealed that agriculture had a greater preference for saving water than other sectors, where as the public had the weakest motivation for saving water. Improving the transportation method could contribute 62.1% of the total water savings in the agriculture sector. The optimization of the IWRM demonstrated that the local freshwater savings would be 21.5%, and the total cost for water supplies would decrease by 13%. However, a government subsidy of 87.5 million Yuan would be needed. Additionally, by analyzing the change in the amount of water savings affected by water price, the appropriate water price increase range was suggested to be 1.5–1.7 times the original price.     

IWRM视角下污水治理体系问题系统诊断与对策研究——以浙江省为例

基于集成水资源管理理念框架,较系统地构建了污水治理体系问题诊断指标体系并明确了诊断标准.实证研究表明,浙江省污水治理体系仍存在政策不协调,投资结构不合理,体制横向不协调、纵向不到位、职责分散,民主参与决策与监督机制不健全,排污行为监测监管不到位,经济激励不够、行业自律不足等问题.建议浙江省应进一步协调区域发展政策,优化污水治理城乡投融资结构,完善机构设置,优化部门协调,加强政府监测监管等,以提高污水治理绩效.     

Putting the cart before the horse: Water governance and IWRM

Water governance has emerged as perhaps the most important topic of the international water community in the 21^st century, and achieving “good” water governance is now a focus of both policy discourse and innumerable development projects. Somewhat surprisingly in light of this attention, there is widespread confusion about the meaning of the term “water governance”. This paper reviews the history of the term's use and misuse to reveal how the concept is frequently inflated to include issues that go well beyond governance. Further, it highlights how calls to improve water governance often espouse predetermined goals that should instead be the very function of water governance to define. To help overcome this confusion, the paper suggests a more refined definition of water governance and related qualities of good water governance that are consistent with broader notions of the concepts. In light of the substantial resources allocated in its name, this paper's findings show there is significant potential to strengthen efforts at improving water governance.     

Water reforms in Brazil: opportunities and constraints

The last decade saw repeated attempts to adopt and implement an integrated management of water in Brazil. Internationally established principles, such as water economics and public participation, have influenced the development of a novel regulatory framework for water use and conservation in the country. However, despite changes in policies and in the legislation, the opportunity to address old and new management problems has been largely frustrated by the internal contradictions of the ongoing institutional reforms. A case study of the Paraíba do Sul River Basin demonstrates the distance between, on the one hand, calls for decentralisation and responsibility sharing and, on the other hand, the persistence of bureaucratised and exclusionary practices. The main distortion is the excessive effort expended on the introduction of water pricing and environmental charges, a controversial policy instrument that has dominated the agenda of the new river basin committee, at the expense of addressing river restoration, public mobilisation and environmental justice.     

Water security: Old concepts,new package,what value?

“Water security” has come to infiltrate prominent discourse in the international water and development community, and achieving it is often viewed as a new water sector target. Despite the elevated status that the concept has increasingly acquired, understandings of the term are murky and quantification is rare. To promote a more tangible understanding of the concept, this paper develops an index for evaluating water security at a country level. The index is comprised of indicators in five components considered to be critical to the concept: (i) basic needs; (ii) agricultural production; (iii) the environment; (iv) risk management; and (v) independence. Achieving water security in these components can be considered necessary but insufficient criteria to measure the achievement of security in related areas such as health, livelihoods, and industry. After populating indicators with data from Asia‐Pacific countries, results are interpreted and the viability of methods is discussed. This effort comprises an important first step for quantifying and assessing water security across countries, which should spur more concrete understanding of the term and discussion of its added value.     

Local IWRM organizations for groundwater regulation: The experiences of the Aquifer Management Councils (COTAS) in Guanajuato, Mexico

Evidence of groundwater management by aquifer users emerging under Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) initiatives is presented, by analyzing the Consejos Técnicos de Aguas (COTAS; Technical Water Councils or Aquifer Management Councils) in the state of Guanajuato, Mexico, established between 1998 and 2000 by the Guanajuato State Water Commission (CEAG). Two contrasting models influenced this attempt to promote user self-regulation of groundwater extractions: locally autonomous aquifer organizations with powers to regulate groundwater extractions versus aquifer organizations with advisory powers only. The COTAS were conceived as locally autonomous IWRM organizations consisting of all aquifer users that would work together to reduce groundwater over-extraction and stabilize aquifer levels, at a later stage. CEAG followed an expedient IWRM approach to develop the COTAS, setting achievable targets for their development and explicitly focusing on active stakeholder participation. The article shows that, due to struggles between the state and federal levels, the COTAS have become advisory bodies that have not led to reductions in groundwater extractions. It concludes that achieving user self-regulation of groundwater extractions requires a fuller delegation of responsibilities to the COTAS which would not be possible without addressing the institutional struggles over water governance at the state and federal levels.     

Reconceptualizing water management in Khorezm,Uzbekistan

The Khorezm region is located in the northwest of Uzbekistan, approximately 350 km from the current shore of the Aral Sea. It comprises a large‐scale irrigation system that conveys water from the river Amu Darya to agricultural land cropped mainly with cotton, wheat, and rice. Khorezm's water resources are vulnerable as they depend on upstream developments and are indispensable to rural livelihoods and state budgets. Since water scarcity is expected to increase in the future, sustainable water management is a necessity. Hence, the objectives of the paper are to: (1) conceptualize the distinctive features of water management in Khorezm; (2) provide an integrated analysis of water management by establishing linkages between society, technical infrastructure, and the bio‐physical environment; and (3) make policy and technology recommendations for improved water management. To conceptualize water management in Khorezm, the paper distinguishes three types of practices: formal practices, strategic practices, and discursive practices. Based on these, it presents an analysis of water management on the state water management level, the water user association level, and the farmer and field level. For each level, recommendations are given. The paper concludes that elements of integrated water resources management (IWRM) such as transparency, accountability, participation, and technical efficiency are relevant to improve water management in Khorezm, as elsewhere. In addition, it underlines the need to create legal space for agency and innovation. Technical tools such as models are increasingly important for facilitating transparency and enabling agents to access and make use of information across the management hierarchy.     

Practicalities of participation in urban IWRM: Perspectives of wastewater management in two cities in Sri Lanka and Bangladesh

As the demand for water in cities increases, the quantity of wastewater being produced is growing at a phenomenal rate. If resources are to be managed effectively, a new paradigm is required for urban wastewater management. This paper reviews the initial findings of a participatory action planning process for managing wastewater for agricultural use. It finds that such processes need considerable facilitation, capacity building and knowledge sharing, but that if a plan can be devised that meets the needs of the stakeholders, even if some compromise is required, then certain stakeholders are likely to take responsibility for specific aspects. This may not meet the entire integrated water resources management (IWRM) vision of the plan but provided the plan is developed in such a way that incremental implementation will be beneficial then this will produce some success and may stimulate further cooperation.     

Plenty of water,not enough strategy: How inadequate accessibility,poor governance and a volatile government can tip the balance against ensuring water security: The case of Nepal

Water security is arguably the single most important factor regarding the future sustainability of our planet. Without water we have no life, and with depleting freshwater resources conflict can easily ensue. The intersection between hydrology and politics requires a delicate balancing from decision-makers to ensure policy is well-informed and science is well communicated. In this paper, we discuss water issues currently faced by Nepal, a nation where freshwater resources are abundant yet political pressures are threatening future water security. We argue that despite adequate water supplies a nation may still experience severe water insecurity, particularly if effective governance and equitable access are not prioritised. We explore potential policy options necessary to achieve a holistic framework for water resources management, which we suggest, need to consider water resource reliability, accessibility and governance as fundamental pillars for ensuring water security.