5.9 Water Supply and Management

Hard engineered schemes and natural and sustainable approach

• These need capital, technology and long-term maintenance to be successful
• Schemes include:
○ Water transfer schemes
○ Mega dams
○ Desalination plants

• These attempt to make up for water deficits through constructing systems of canals, pipes, and dredging over long distances to transfer water from a drainage basin of surplus supplies to areas of deficit
• The Kielder reservoir in Northumberland supplies water to the cities of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Sunderland, Durham, Darlington and Middlesbrough via a water transfer

• One of the largest water transfer projects in the world
• Planning began in 1952, with work starting in 2002, and is expected to be completed by 2050
• It aims to divert 45bnm³ of water a year from surplus river basins in the south and east to the north, where there are frequent water deficits in places such as Beijing and Tianjin
• The project will cost US$62 billion to complete and will involve the resettlement of people, which is not popular

• Western route - started in 2010, through difficult, high-altitude terrain. As the route will pass high industrial activity, it is feared that water will become polluted on transfer, as well as reduce the volumes in the Yangtze, causing issues with sediment and the ecosystem
• Central route - this is a 1267km diversion with some of the water from the Three Gorges Dam being used to help
• Eastern route - this route is 1,155km long, a diversion from the Yangtze River next to Shanghai to Beijing and Tianjin in the north

The main stakeholders are the government-sponsored ‘South to North’ Water Transfer Project Company and corporate civil engineering companies building 3 major canals, pipelines, tunnels and pumping stations

• Dams block rivers so that reservoirs of water build up behind, rather than drain away
• Dams provide large, reliable supplies of drinking water and reduce water insecurity, especially in areas of seasonal precipitation
• Dams and reservoirs can also prevent flooding, as the flow of the river is controlled, and can generate electricity through hydroelectric power (HEP)
• Nearly 60% of the world's major rivers have large dams, of which the Aswan, Hoover and 3 Gorges are amongst the largest
• Although thought of as environmentally friendly, mega dams have issues aside of the huge economic costs of construction
○ Dams alter ecosystems - downstream ecosystems rely on water and sediment, both of which are held back by big dams, making downstream land less fertile
○ Dams displace people, communities and destroy cultural heritage
○ Flooding of the reservoir submerges land and destroys plants and animals
○ Dams reduce water quality and waste water - large surface areas of reservoirs increase rates of evapotranspiration and trap sediment and agricultural runoff, increasing rates of eutrophication and vector-borne diseases

• Extracts the salt from seawater to enable it to be used for drinking and irrigation
• Expensive salt waste can damage marine ecosystems, and the process uses large amounts of energy
• As the price of freshwater increases, some countries will look to the sea for water supplies
• Dubai has already done this, as have Kuwait and Saudi Arabia
• Alicante II Seawater plant in Spain and Tampa Bay Water plant, USA
• Although it is a sustainable process, it is considered a hard-engineered process due to the inputs of technology and energy, and it has an ecological impact on marine life

• Minimise wastage and pollution
• Provide access to safe, potable water at an affordable price to all
• Consider the views of all stakeholders
• Guarantee equitable distribution of water between and within countries

• Smart irrigation - replace traditional irrigation methods of sprinklers and surface flows with automated spray technology and drip irrigation systems
• Rainwater harvesting - precipitation is collected from roofs and stored in water butts for repurposing in toilets and watering gardens
• Restoration of damaged lakes, rivers and wetlands to return them to their part in the natural water system
• Filtration - sophisticated systems are used to remove even the finest particulates from dirty water, rendering it safe to drink again
• Recycle - grey water is a low-cost option for use domestically and in agriculture (irrigation, flushing toilets, etc.), not for drinking
• Hydroponics - crops are grown in shallow trays that are drip-fed nutrients and water; there is no soil involved

• Singapore has very few natural water resources and has made water management one of its priorities for its 6 million residents
• Based on 3 key ideas:
○ Collect all water - the government educates its citizens on using water carefully, and since 2003, domestic water consumption has fallen by 24 litres per person per day (24 x 6 = 144 million litres per day is a lot of water)
○ Re-use water - Singapore has cutting-edge technology to re-use its grey water called NEWater
○ Desalinate - Singapore now has 5 desalination plants meeting up to 25% of demand

• Water is used to maximum efficiency
• Equitable distribution
• Conserve the environmental quality of rivers and its catchments

• UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) - the convention promotes joint management and conservation of all shared freshwater ecosystems
• UN Watercourses Convention - offers guidelines for the protection and use of transboundary rivers like the Nile
• EU Water Framework Directive (2000) - committed all members to ensure their 'status' of water bodies, which included marine waters up to 1 nautical mile offshore
• Helsinki (1966) and Berlin (2004) Rules - ensure that all have an 'equitable use' and 'equitable shares' concept
• The Water Convention and the Protocol on Water and Health, jointly serviced by UNECE and WHO-Europe, is a unique legally binding framework that aims to protect human health through improved water management and reduction of water-related diseases. The Protocol provides practical advice on how to provide the human rights to water and sanitation
• With the increasing risks of climate change, there is the potential for water wars to be global, despite the degrees of international cooperation at present
• Proper management of current water supplies is crucial and binding international agreements need to be in place for a sustainable water supply for future generations

• The Colorado River flows through seven US states and into Mexico, supplying water to about 40 million people and large areas of farmland
• It is one of the most over-allocated rivers in the world — more water is promised to users than actually flows, especially during the long drought since 2000
• Stakeholders with competing demands include:
○ farmers — around 70% of the water is used for irrigation
○ cities such as Las Vegas, Phoenix and Los Angeles
○ Native American tribes with long-standing water rights
○ Mexico, which is promised a share at the border
○ environmental groups, who want water left in the river for wetlands and wildlife
○ Conflicts: as Lake Mead and Lake Powell(the basin’s main reservoirs) fell to record lows, the states argued over who should cut their use
○ Management (integrated approach):
§ the Colorado River Compact (1922)and later agreements (the “Law of the River”) share the water between the states
§ Minute 323 (2017), an agreement with Mexico, shares shortages and restores some environmental flows
§ in 2021 a federal water shortage was declared for the first time, forcing cuts to Arizona and Nevada
§ Outcome: integrated agreements have shared out the shortage and returned some water to the environment — but with climate change reducing flows, the basin remains water-insecure