water resources in a changing world
TRANSCRIPT
Water resources in a changing world
Jeremy Bird International Water Management Institute24 March 2015
Photo: John Hamish Appleby/IWMI
5Remote sensing
and spatialanalysts
22Economists and
agriculturaleconomists
5Ecologists/Wetland
specialists
8Soil scientists
23Social
scientists
14Irrigation andagriculturalengineers
30Specialists in
ground/surfacewater
5Water quality
and healthspecialists
Inter-disciplinaryapproach
IWMI – Research for Developmentoperating across Asia and Africa
Photo: IWMI
Fresh water a finite resource
All the Earth’s water as a single bubble, to scale. Freshwater is the smaller bubble. Water in lakes and rivers is the tiny bubble. Source: USGS
https://water.usgs.gov/edu/earthhowmuch.html
Globalization – water is traded across borders in food crops – Virtual water
0
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10 100 1000 10000 100000
GDP per capita (2000 constant dollars per year)
me
at
co
ns
um
pti
on
(kg
/ca
p/y
r)
Meat China
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20
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60
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10 100 1000 10000 100000
GDP per capita (2000 constant dollars per year)
milk
con
sum
ptio
n
(kg/
cap/
yr)
Milk
China
India USA
USA
As economies grow, diets change,…more meat >>> more water
Source: IWMI
Agriculture’s challenge…..
To feed 9 billion people in 2050, we need to produce 50-70% more food…
…and reverse environmental degradation
…and reduce vulnerability to climate shocks
…and a reduction in species
Living Planet Index. 2005. http://rstb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/360/1454/289.short
Population index = 100 in 1970
Safe
Semi-critical
Critical
Over exploited
Saline
‘Free’ electricity encouraged groundwater overuse
Groundwater has supported crop expansion
Source: IWMI
Source: IWMI
Research showing signs of over-pumping and groundwater pollution in Jaffna
Solar power will reduce emissions from groundwater pumps – need to combine with efficient irrigation systems Courtesy Jain Irrigation
Photos: Hamish John Appleby/IWMI
Industry can also be more efficient in reducing water use – e.g. Coca Cola
• Reduced water use ratio. Since 2001 cut water use by more than a fifth.
• Recycling water used in manufacturing processes and returning it to the environment
• Replenishing water in communities and nature through the support of healthy watersheds
Hyderabad, India 2003-14
Population rapidly becoming more urban
Source: IWMI
www.iwmi.org
Water for a food-secure world
Waste management in cities in developing countries cannot keep pace with urbanization
Photo: Neil Palmer/IWMI
Techniques to use
waste water safely….
Photo: IWMI
Turning waste into an organic fertilizer
Source: IWMI
Climate change -
floods and droughts
are increasing in
frequency
River flows are naturally highly variable –climate change makes it more extreme and uncertain
Source: Mekong River Commission
Mekong River Flow regime at Chiang Saen, 1993-2010
Bangkok floods 2011
Insurance loss: $12 billion
commons.wikimedia.org
“Underground Taming of Floods for Irrigation (UTFI)” – store peak floods underground and use for irrigation in the dry season
Source: Pavelic 2012
Food prices depend on many factors – water is becoming a more prominent influence
Food shortages as food prices rise, Mozambique
Photo: ILRI 2008
Using geo-spatial data to improve our response to floods
• Improve planning capacity• Target flood management measures• Provide basis for crop flood insurance • Improve flood relief efforts
Identifying climate change Vulnerability Hotspots –to design locally relevant adaptation measures
Climate Change Vulnerability Index
Anuradhapura
Nuwara-Eliya
RatnapuraSensitivity Index
Exposure Index
Adaptive Capacity Index
Source: IWMI
Using Mobile Apps to provide flood and
drought information
Photo: IWMI
Breeding flood and drought tolerant crop varieties
Swarna-Sub117 day submergence
Photo: International Rice Research Institute (IRRI)
It’s a big challenge, but there are solutions…
More efficient water use
Sustainable management of surface and
groundwater
Increasing resilience to climate shocks
Recycling waste and recovering nutrients
Reversing land and soil degradation
Balancing the built and natural environment
