agenda-21.pdf - Page 25

n. Development of public participatory techniques and their implementation in decision- making, particularly the enhancement of the role of women in water resources planning and management;
o. Development and strengthening, as appropriate, of cooperation, including mechanisms where appropriate, at all levels concerned, namely:
a. At the lowest appropriate level, delegation of water resources management, generally, to such a level, in accordance with national legislation, including decentralization of government services to local authorities, private enterprises and communities;
b. At the national level, integrated water resources planning and management in the framework of the national planning process and, where appropriate, establishment of independent regulation and monitoring of freshwater, based on national legislation and economic m easures;
c. At the regional level, consideration, where appropriate, of the harmonization of national strategies and action programmes;
d. At the global level, improved delineation of responsibilities, division of labour and coordination of international organ izations and programmes, including facilitating discussions and sharing of experiences in areas related to water resources management;
p. Dissemination of information, including operational guidelines, and promotion of education for water users, including th e consideration by the United Nations of a World Water Day.
Means of implementation

(a) Financing and cost evaluation

18.13. The Conference secretariat has estimated the average total annual cost (1993 -2000) of implementing the activities of this programme t o be about $115 million from the international community on grant or concessional terms. These are indicative and order -of-magnitude estimates only and have not been reviewed by Governments. Actual costs and financial terms, including any that are non-concessional, will depend upon, inter alia, the specific strategies and programmes Governments decide upon for implementation.

(b) Scientific and technological means

18.14. The development of interactive databases, forecasting methods and economic planning models
appropriate to the task of managing water resources in an efficient and sustainable manner will require the application of new techniques such as geographical information systems and expert systems to gather, assimilate, analyse and display multisectoral information and to optimize decision - making. In addition, the development of new and alternative sources of water -supply and low-cost water technologies will require innovative applied research. This will involve the transfer, adaptation and diffusion of n ew techniques and technology among developing countries, as well as the development of endogenous capacity, for the purpose of being able to deal with the added dimension of integrating engineering, economic, environmental and social aspects of water resou rces management and predicting the effects in terms of human impact.

18.15. Pursuant to the recognition of water as a social and economic good, the various available options for charging water users (including domestic, urban, industrial and agricultural water -user groups) have to be further evaluated and field -tested. Further development is required for economic instruments that take into account opportunity costs and environmental externalities. Field studies on the willingness to pay should be conducted in ru ral and urban situations.

18.16. Water resources development and management should be planned in an integrated manner, taking into account long -term planning needs as well as those with narrower horizons, that is to say, they should incorporate environmental, economic and social considerations based on the principle of sustainability; include the requirements of all users as well as those relating to the prevention and mitigation of water -related hazards; and constitute an integral part of the socio -economic development planning process. A prerequisite for the sustainable management of water as a scarce vulnerable resource is the obligation to acknowledge in all planning and development its full costs. Planning considerations should reflect benefits investment, environmental protection and operation costs, as well as the opportunity costs reflecting the most valuable alternative use of water. Actual charging need not necessarily burden all beneficiaries with the consequences of those considerations. Charging mech anisms should, however, reflect as far as possible both the true cost of water when used as an economic good and the ability of the communities to pay.

18.17. The role of water as a social, economic and life -sustaining good should be reflected in demand management mechanisms and implemented through water conservation and reuse, resource assessment and financial instruments.

18.18. The setting afresh of priorities for private and public investment strategies should take into account (a) maximum utilization of existing projects, through maintenance, rehabilitation and optimal operation; (b) new or alternative clean technologies; and (c) environmentally and socially benign hydropower.

18.19. The delegation of water resources management to the lowest appropriate level necessitates educating and training water management staff at all levels and ensuring that women participate equally in the education and training programmes. Particular emphasis has to be placed on the introduction of public part icipatory techniques, including enhancement of the role of women, youth, indigenous people and local communities. Skills related to various water management functions have to be developed by municipal government and water authorities, as well as in the pri vate sector, local/national non-governmental organizations, cooperatives, corporations and other water -user groups. Education of the public regarding the importance of water and its proper management is also needed.

18.20. To implement these principles, communi ties need to have adequate capacities. Those who establish the framework for water development and management at any level, whether international, national or local, need to ensure that the means exist to build those capacities. The means will vary from case to case. They usually include:
a. Awareness-creation programmes, including mobilizing commitment and support at all levels and initiating global and local action to promote such programmes;
b. Training of water managers at all levels so that they have an ap propriate understanding of all the elements necessary for their decision -making;
c. Strengthening of training capacities in developing countries;
d. Appropriate training of the necessary professionals, including extension workers;
e. Improvement of career struct ures;
f. Sharing of appropriate knowledge and technology, both for the collection of data and for the implementation of planned development including non -polluting technologies and the knowledge needed to extract the best performance from the existing invest ment system.
(d) Capacity-building

18.21. Institutional capacity for implementing integrated water management should be reviewed and developed when there is a clear demand. Existing administrative structures will often be quite capable of achieving local water resources management, but the need may arise for new institutions based upon the perspective, for example, of river catchment areas, district development councils and local community committees. Although water is managed at various levels in the socio -political system, demand-driven management requires the development of water -related institutions at appropriate levels, taking into account the need for integration with land -use management.

18.22. In creating the enabling environment for lowest -appropriate-level management, the role of Government includes mobilization of financial and human resources, legislation, standard -setting and other regulatory functions, monitoring and assessment of the use of water and land resources, and creating of opportunities for pu blic participation. International agencies and donors have an important role to play in providing support to developing countries in creating the required enabling environment for integrated water resources management. This should include, as appropriate, donor support to local levels in developing countries, including community -based institutions, non - governmental organizations and women's groups.
B. Water resources assessment
Basis for action

18.23. Water resources assessment, including the identification of potential sources of freshwater supply, comprises the continuing determination of sources, extent, dependability and quality of water resources and of the human activities that affect those resources. Such assessment constitutes the practical basis for th eir sustainable management and a prerequisite for evaluation of the possibilities for their development. There is, however, growing concern that at a time when more precise and reliable information is needed about water resources, hydrologic services and r elated bodies are less able than before to provide this information, especially information on groundwater and water quality. Major impediments are the lack of financial resources for water resources assessment, the fragmented nature of hydrologic services and the insufficient numbers of qualified staff. At the same time, the advancing technology for data capture and management is increasingly difficult to access for developing countries. Establishment of national databases is, however, vital to water resou rces assessment and to mitigation of the effects of floods, droughts, desertification and pollution.

Objectives

18.24. Based upon the Mar del Plata Action Plan, this programme area has been extended into the 1990s and beyond with the overall objective of ensu ring the assessment and forecasting of the quantity and quality of water resources, in order to estimate the total quantity of water resources available and their future supply potential, to determine their current quality status, to predict possible confl icts between supply and demand and to provide a scientific database for rational water resources utilization.

18.25. Five specific objectives have been set accordingly, as follows:
a. To make available to all countries water resources assessment technology that i s appropriate to their needs, irrespective of their level of development, including methods for the impact assessment of climate change on freshwaters;
b. To have all countries, according to their financial means, allocate to water resources assessment finan cial resources in line with the economic and social needs for water resources data;
c. To ensure that the assessment information is fully utilized in the development of water management policies;
d. To have all countries establish the institutional arrangements needed to ensure the efficient collection, processing, storage, retrieval and dissemination to users of information about the quality and quantity of available water resources at the level of catchments and groundwater aquifers in an integrated manner;
e. To have sufficient numbers of appropriately qualified and capable staff recruited and retained by water resources assessment agencies and provided with the training and retraining they will need to carry out their responsibilities successfully.
18.26. All States, according to their capacity and available resources, and through bilateral or multilateral cooperation, including cooperation with the United Nations and other relevant organizations, as appropriate, could set the following targets:
a. By the year 2000, to have studied in detail the feasibility of installing water resources assessment services;
b. As a long-term target, to have fully operational services available based upon high- density hydrometric networks.
Activities
18.27. All States, according to their capacity and available resources, and through bilateral or multilateral cooperation, including the United Nations and other relevant organizations as appropriate, could undertake the following activities:
a. Institutional framework:
a. Establish appropriate policy frameworks and national priorities;
b. Establish and strengthen the institutional capabilities of countries, including legislative and regulatory arrangements, that are required to ensure the adequate assessment of their water resources and the provision of flood and drought forecasting services;
c. Establish and maintain effective cooperation at the national level between the various agencies responsible for the collection, storage and analysis of hydrologic data;
d. Cooperate in the assessment of transboundary water resources, subject to the prior agreement of each riparian State concerned;
b. Data systems:
a. Review existing data-collection networks and assess their adequacy, including those that provide real-time data for flood and drought forecasting;
b. Improve networks to meet accepted guidelines for the provision of data on water quantity and quality for surface and groundwater, as well as relevant land-use data;
c. Apply standards and other means to ensure data compatibility;
d. Upgrade facilities and procedures used to store, process and analyse hydrologic data and make such data and the forecasts derived from them available to potential users;
e. Establish databases on the availability of all types of hydrologic data at the national level;
f. Implement "data rescue" operations, for example, establishment of national archives of water resources;

g. Implement appropriate well -tried techniques for the processing of hydrologic data;
h. Derive area-related estimates from point hydrologic data;
i. Assimilate remotely sensed data and the use, where appropriate, of geographical information systems;
c. Data dissemination:
a. Identify the need for water resources data for various planning purposes;
b. Analyse and present data and information on water resources in the forms required for planning and management of countries' socio -economic development and for use in environmental protection strategies and in the design and operation of specific water-related projects;
c. Provide forecasts and warnings of flood and drought to the general public and civil defence;
d. Research and development:
a. Establish or strengthen research and development programmes at the national, subregional, regional and international levels in support of water resources assessment activities;
b. Monitor research and development ac tivities to ensure that they make full use of local expertise and other local resources and that they are appropriate for the needs of the country or countries concerned.
Means of implementation

(a) Financing and cost evaluation

18.28. The Conference s ecretariat has estimated the everage total annual cost (1993 -2000) of implementing the activities of this programme to be about $355 million, including about $145 million from the international community on grant or concessional terms. These are indicative and order-of-magnitude estimates only and have not been reviewed by Governments. Actual costs and financial terms, including any that are non-concessional will depend upon, inter alia, the specific strategies and programmes Governments decide upon for imp lementation.

(b) Scientific and technological means

18.29. Important research needs include (a) development of global hydrologic models in support of analysis of climate change impact and of macroscale water resources assessment; (b) closing of the gap between terrestrial hydrology and ecology at different scales, including the critical water -related processes behind loss of vegetation and land degradation and its restoration; and (c) study of the key processes in water -quality genesis, closing the gap between hydrologic flows and biogeochemical processes. The research models should build upon hydrologic balance studies and also include the consumptive use of water. This approach should also, when appropriate, be applied at the catchment level.

18.30. Water resources assessment necessitates the strengthening of existing systems for technology transfer, adaptation and diffusion, and the development of new technology for use under field conditions, as well as the development of endogenous capacity. Prior to inaugurating the above activities, it is necessary to prepare catalogues of the water resources information held by government services, the private sector, educational institutes, consultants, local water -use organizations and others.

18.31. Water resources assessment requires the establishment and maintenance of a body of well -trained and motivated staff sufficient in number to undertake the above activities. Education and training programmes designed to ensure an adequate supply of these trained personnel should be established or strengthened at the local, national, subregional or regional level. In addition, the provision of attractive terms of employment and career paths for professional and technical staff should be encouraged. Human r esource needs should be monitored periodically, including all levels of employment. Plans have to be established to meet those needs through education and training opportunities and international programmes of courses and conferences.

18.32. Because well-trained people are particularly important to water resources assessment and hydrologic forecasting, personnel matters should receive special attention in this area. The aim should be to attract and retain personnel to work on water resources assessment who are s ufficient in number and adequate in their level of education to ensure the effective implementation of the activities that are planned. Education may be called for at both the national and the international level, with adequate terms of employment being a national responsibility.

18.33. Recommended actions include:
a. Identifying education and training needs geared to the specific requirements of countries;
b. Establishing and strengthening education and training programmes on water -related topics, within an environmental and developmental context, for all categories of staff involved in water resources assessment activities, using advanced educational technology, where appropriate, and involving both men and women;
c. Developing sound recruitment, personnel an d pay policies for staff of national and local water agencies.
(d) Capacity-building

18.34. The conduct of water resources assessment on the basis of operational national hydrometric networks requires an enabling environment at all levels. The following nation al support action is necessary for enhanced national capacities:
a. Review of the legislative and regulatory basis of water resources assessment;
b. Facilitation of close collaboration among water sector agencies, particularly between information producers and users;
c. Implementation of water management policies based upon realistic appraisals of water resources conditions and trends;
d. Strengthening of the managerial capabilities of water -user groups, including women, youth, indigenous people and local communiti es, to improve water -use efficiency at the local level.
C. Protection of water resources, water quality and aquatic ecosystems

Basis for action

18.35. Freshwater is a unitary resource. Long -term development of global freshwater requires holistic management o f resources and a recognition of the interconnectedness of the elements related to freshwater and freshwater quality. There are few regions of the world that are still exempt from problems of loss of potential sources of freshwater supply, degraded water q uality and pollution of surface and groundwater sources. Major problems affecting the water quality of rivers and lakes arise, in variable order of importance according to different situations, from inadequately treated domestic sewage, inadequate controls on the discharges of industrial waste waters, loss and destruction of catchment areas, ill -considered siting of industrial plants, deforestation, uncontrolled shifting cultivation and poor agricultural practices. This gives rise to the leaching of nutrien ts and pesticides. Aquatic ecosystems are disturbed and living freshwater resources are threatened. Under certain circumstances, aquatic ecosystems are also affected by agricultural water resource development projects such as dams, river diversions, water installations and irrigation schemes. Erosion, sedimentation, deforestation and desertification have led to increased land degradation, and the creation of reservoirs has, in some cases, resulted in adverse effects on ecosystems. Many of these problems hav e arisen from a development model that is environmentally destructive and from a lack of public awareness and education about surface and groundwater resource protection. Ecological and human health effects are the measurable consequences, although the mea ns to monitor them are inadequate or non -existent in many countries. There is a widespread lack of perception of the linkages between the development, management, use and treatment of water resources and aquatic ecosystems. A preventive approach, where app ropriate, is crucial to the avoiding of costly subsequent measures to rehabilitate, treat and develop new water supplies.

Objectives

18.36. The complex interconnectedness of freshwater systems demands that freshwater management be holistic (taking a catchment management approach) and based on a balanced consideration of the needs of people and the environment. The Mar del Plata Action Plan has already recognized the intrinsic linkage between water resource development projects and their significant physical, chemical, biological, health and socio -economic repercussions. The overall environmental health objective was set as follows: "to evaluate the consequences which the various users of water have on the environment, to support measures aimed at controlling wa ter-related diseases, and to protect ecosystems". 1/

18.37. The extent and severity of contamination of unsaturated zones and aquifers have long been underestimated owing to the relative inaccessibility of aquifers and the lack of reliable information on aquifer systems. The protection of groundwater is therefore an essential element of water resource management.

18.38. Three objectives will have to be pursued concurrently to integrate water -quality elements into water resource management:
a. Maintenance of ecosystem integrity, according to a management principle of preserving aquatic ecosystems, including living resources, and of effectively protecting them from any form of degradation on a drainage basin basis;
b. Public health protection, a task requiring not only the provision of safe drinking -water but also the control of disease vectors in the aquatic environment;
c. Human resources development, a key to capacity -building and a prerequisite for implementing water -quality management.
18.39. All States, according to their cap acity and available resources, through bilateral or multilateral cooperation, including the United Nations and other relevant organizations as appropriate, could set the following targets:
a. To identify the surface and groundwater resources that could be de veloped for use on a sustainable basis and other major developable water -dependent resources and, simultaneously, to initiate programmes for the protection, conservation and rational use of these resources on a sustainable basis;
b. To identify all potential sources of water -supply and prepared outlines for their protection, conservation and rational use;
c. To initiate effective water pollution prevention and control programmes, based on an appropriate mixture of pollution reduction -at-source strategies, envir onmental impact assessments and enforceable standards for major point -source discharges and high -risk non- point sources, commensurate with their socio -economic development;
d. To participate, as far as appropriate, in international water -quality monitoring a nd management programmes such as the Global Water Quality Monitoring Programme (GEMS/WATER), the UNEP Environmentally Sound Management of Inland Waters (EMINWA), the FAO regional inland fishery bodies, and the Convention on Wetlands of International Import ance Especially as Waterfowl Habitat (Ramsar Convention);
e. To reduce the prevalence of water -associated diseases, starting with the eradication of dracunculiasis (guinea worm disease) and onchocerciasis (river blindness) by the year 2000;
f. To establish, ac cording to capacities and needs, biological, health, physical and chemical quality criteria for all water bodies (surface and groundwater), with a view to an ongoing improvement of water quality;
g. To adopt an integrated approach to environmentally sustaina ble management of water resources, including the protection of aquatic ecosystems and freshwater living resources;
h. To put in place strategies for the environmentally sound management of freshwaters and related coastal ecosystems, including consideration o f fisheries, aquaculture, animal grazing, agricultural activities and biodiversity.
Activities

18.40. All States, according to their capacity and available resources, and through bilateral or multilateral cooperation, including United Nations and other relevan t organizations as appropriate, could implement the following activities:
a. Water resources protection and conservation:
i. Establishment and strengthening of technical and institutional capacities to identify and protect potential sources of water -supply within all sectors of society;
ii. Identification of potential sources of water -supply and preparation of national profiles;
iii. Preparation of national plans for water resources protection and conservation;
iv. Rehabilitation of important, but degraded, catchment are as, particularly on small islands;
v. Strengthening of administrative and legislative measures to prevent encroachment on existing and potentially usable catchment areas;
b. Water pollution prevention and control:
i. Application of the "polluter pays" principle, where appropriate, to all kinds of sources, including on -site and off -site sanitation;
ii. Promotion of the construction of treatment facilities for domestic sewage and industrial effluents and the development of appropriate technologies, taking into account sound traditional and indigenous practices;
iii. Establishment of standards for the discharge of effluents and for the receiving waters;
iv. Introduction of the precautionary approach in water-quality management, where appropriate, with a focus on pollution minimization and prevention through use of new technologies, product and process change, pollution reduction at source and effluent reuse, recycling and recovery, treatment and environmentally safe disposal;
v. Mandatory environmental impact assessment of all major water resource development projects potentially impairing water quality and aquatic ecosystems, combined with the delineation of appropriate remedial measures and a strengthened control of new industrial installations, solid waste landfills and infrastructure development projects;
vi. Use of risk assessment and risk management in reaching decisions in this area and ensuring compliance with those decisions;
vii. Identification and application of best environmental practices at reasonable cost to avoid diffuse p ollution, namely, through a limited, rational and planned use of nitrogenous fertilizers and other agrochemicals (pesticides, herbicides) in agricultural practices;
viii. Encouragement and promotion of the use of adequately treated and purified waste waters in agriculture, aquaculture, industry and other sectors;
c. Development and application of clean technology:
i. Control of industrial waste discharges, including low-waste production technologies and water recirculation, in an integrated manner and through application of precautionary measures derived from a broad-based life-cycle analysis;
ii. Treatment of municipal waste water for safe reuse in agriculture and aquaculture;
iii. Development of biotechnology, inter alia, for waste treatment, production of biofertilizers and other activities;
iv. Development of appropriate methods for water pollution control, taking into account sound traditional and indigenous practices;
d. Groundwater protection:
i. Development of agricultural practices that do not degrade groundwaters;
ii. Application of the necessary measures to mitigate saline intrusion into aquifers of small islands and coastal plains as a consequence of sealevel rise or overexploitation of coastal aquifers;
iii. Prevention of aquifer pollution through the regulation of toxic substances that permeate the ground and the establishment of protection zones in groundwater recharge and abstraction areas;
iv. Design and management of landfills based upon sound hydrogeologic information and impact assessment, using the best practicable and best available technology;
v. Promotion of measures to improve the safety and integrity of wells and well-head areas to reduce intrusion of biological pathogens and hazardous chemicals into aquifers at well sites;
vi. Water-quality monitoring, as needed, of surface and groundwaters potentially affected by sites storing toxic and hazardous materials;

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