Water Policy

Pre-treatment of wastewater discharged from a potato-chips factory was the subject of this study. Wastewater discharged from this factory is characterized by high values of BOD, TSS and oil and grease (3,685, 4,115 and 169mg/l, respectively). Treatability studies via continuous aerobic and anaerobic methods treatment have been investigated. The results obtained showed marked improvement in the quality of the treated effluent using packing material versus the upflow anaerobic sludge bed reactor (UASB) without packing. An extra removal in COD (53 per cent), BOD (61 per cent), TSS (52 per cent) and oil and grease (46 per cent) was obtained. Corresponding residual values were 398mgO 2 /l, 235mgO 2 /l, 108mg/l and 38mg/l, respectively. Based on the laboratory results, engineering designs and economic evaluation of the different treatment systems were developed.

El presente artículo analiza los orígenes de la protección internacional de los derechos económicos, sociales y culturales (DESC) en el marco de la Sociedad de Naciones, con énfasis en la creación y la temprana labor normativa de la Organización Internacional del Trabajo (OIT). Desde un enfoque histórico-jurídico, el trabajo cuestiona la narrativa tradicional que presenta a los DESC como derechos de incorporación y protección tardía en el Derecho Internacional. Asimismo, el estudio demuestra que, a diferencia de lo ocurrido en el ámbito constitucional interno, en el plano internacional, se comenzó brindando protección a los DESC a través de la creación de la OIT en 1919. Este organismo contribuyó al establecimiento de estándares mínimos en materia de DESC, así como a la creación de mecanismos permanentes de supervisión, configurando un modelo temprano de protección internacional de derechos humanos. De esta manera, el artículo concluye que la internacionalización de los derechos humanos comenzó antes de 1945, lo que permite revalorar el lugar histórico y jurídico de los DESC en el Derecho Internacional contemporáneo.

The connections between organizations, through their main decision-making bodies, create links known as Board Interlocking, with effects that extend beyond the operational sphere. Based on Social Network Analysis and interviews, this study investigates these connections and their implications in cooperatives in Southern Brazil. The motivations for the phenomenon were compared with the reasons traditionally presented in the literature, and real cases are transcribed to demonstrate worrying impacts on governance and democratic equity in cooperatives. The results confirmed the existence of interconnections in cooperatives and demonstrated their use as part of a controversial strategy for maintaining political and institutional power.

This study examines women's involvement, lived experiences, and opportunities in community governance in Northern Ghana, focusing on how socio-cultural norms and resource constraints shape participation and influence. Grounded in feminist standpoint theory and community development theory, it adopts a phenomenological qualitative design with an interpretative phenomenological analysis to generate in-depth insights into women's subjective experiences of governance engagement. Data were collected through focus group discussions from 23 purposively selected women engaged in varying forms of community governance participation. Findings show that women's participation is increasingly visible and embedded in everyday community life through engagement in meetings, associations, religious organizations, and informal leadership spaces. However, participation is largely experienced as having a voice rather than exercising formal authority, revealing a persistent gap between civic engagement and substantive decision-making power. Women's lived experiences position them as critical knowledge holders, particularly in relation to household welfare, sanitation, health, and education, yet these contributions remain underutilized. While participation fosters empowerment, confidence, and collective agency, entrenched patriarchal norms, limited financial resources, and identity-based exclusions continue to constrain women's participation. The study further highlights a paradox of inclusion, where increased visibility does not necessarily translate into meaningful influence. Integrating feminist standpoint theory and community development theory, it demonstrates both the transformative potential of women's participation and the structural barriers that limit it. The study concludes that achieving inclusive governance in Northern Ghana requires moving beyond tokenism toward transformative participation that institutionalizes women's experiential knowledge, redistributes decision-making power, and addresses socio-cultural and economic constraints for sustainable community development.

The Water Framework Directive (WFD) focuses on reduction of nutrients in individual water bodies. Innovative drainage filter technologies currently being tested in Denmark could facilitate nutrient reductions at the sub-river basins and catchment levels. The implementation strategy for these technologies, however, remains a challenge. Using both primary and secondary data, this paper presents an in-depth analysis of the role of these technologies in implementation of the WFD in Denmark. Concepts of impact assessment are used to identify the most suitable approach for incorporating these technologies into environmental measures based on a three-faceted policy instrument typology. A voluntary approach supported by investment subsidies, or incentives that could replace existing requirements, is deemed more appropriate.

Transboundary water systems are often characterized by the coexistence of conflict and cooperation. Drawing on critical hydropolitics, this article promotes the concept of 'conflictual cooperation' to capture the cyclical and fluid nature of both processes inherent in transboundary water interactions. Using the International Water Events Database (IWED), the article analyses key water events, actors, third-party engagement, and interaction types in the Euphrates-Tigris Basin from 1946 to 2020, demonstrating how conflict and cooperation coexist and coevolve over time. In doing so, it provides a holistic, data-driven approach to analysing hydropolitical tensions, with implications for transboundary water governance scholarship and policy.

El reconocimiento del derecho humano al agua y al saneamiento en el artículo 4º constitucional representó un avance jurídico relevante en México. Sin embargo, más de una década después, la sobreexplotación de acuíferos, la desigualdad territorial en el acceso, la fragmentación institucional y los impactos del cambio climático evidencian una brecha entre el reconocimiento jurídico y su garantía efectiva. Este artículo analiza esa distancia desde los enfoques de seguridad hídrica, gobernanza adaptativa y justicia hídrica, argumentando que garantizar el derecho requiere algo más que normas: exige coherencia institucional, adaptación climática y decisiones públicas basadas en participación social, equidad y sostenibilidad ecosistémica.

La investigación tuvo como objetivo estimar el caudal ecológico del río Lurín para favorecer la conservación del camarón de río (Cryphiops caementarius) en el sector de Antapucro, considerando su importancia ecológica y socioeconómica. Se aplicó un método hidrológico con enfoque cuantitativo, no experimental y de nivel explicativo, utilizando series históricas de datos hidrológicos de 1964 a 2024 proporcionadas por la Autoridad Nacional del Agua, las cuales integraron información modelada y observacional. Los resultados mostraron una marcada estacionalidad hídrica, con valores máximos de 7,98 m³/s en marzo y mínimos de 0,29 m³/s en septiembre, lo que evidencia la vulnerabilidad del ecosistema durante el estiaje. La caracterización biológica del hábitat reveló que Cryphiops caementarius presenta actualmente una distribución restringida, limitada a zonas medias del río con hábitats profundos y sustratos estables, mientras que se registraron ocho especies ícticas representativas, entre ellas pejerrey de río, bagre, lorna, carachita, sapo, cangrejo de agua dulce y libélula. Asimismo, se identificaron presiones antrópicas significativas, como pesca ilegal, vertimientos domésticos, pasivos mineros y uso de agroquímicos, que amenazan la integridad ecológica de la cuenca. En conclusión, los resultados constituyen un insumo técnico clave para la gestión sostenible del caudal ecológico, la restauración del hábitat fluvial y la conservación de C. caementarius en el río Lurín.

La Ley General de Aguas (LGA) representa un avance en el reconocimiento del derecho humano al agua (DHA) en México. No obstante, su incorporación el 11 de diciembre de 2025 al marco jurídico nacional no asegura, por sí misma, su cumplimiento efectivo. Este artículo analiza su diseño normativo evaluar en qué medida traduce el DHA en disposiciones exigibles y operativas. Se argumenta que, aunque la ley retoma estándares internacionales persisten problemas que limitan su eficacia: ambigüedades conceptuales, debilidad en los mecanismos de exigibilidad, escasa incorporación de enfoques diferenciados, vacíos en la regulación de la participación privada y restricciones presupuestales. La principal aportación consiste en identificar los principales desafíos para que el acceso al agua en México deje de ser una promesa normativa y se convierta en una realidad.

This paper examines the devastating impact of the ongoing war in Sudan on environmental and civil peace in the Kordofan region, encompassing North, South, and West Kordofan. Since the outbreak of conflict in April 2023 between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the region has experienced unprecedented ecological destruction, social fragmentation, economic collapse, and humanitarian suffering. The study explores how the war has transformed environmental resources—such as land, water, forests, livestock, and oil fields—into central drivers of violence and instability. It highlights the destruction of biodiversity, contamination caused by oil spills and military operations, disruption of agricultural and pastoral livelihoods, and the collapse of traditional environmental governance systems.
The paper further analyzes the interconnected relationship between environmental degradation, forced displacement, resource competition, and the fragility of civil peace in Kordofan. Particular attention is given to the role of women as key actors in sustaining community resilience, environmental management, grassroots peacebuilding, and social cohesion despite severe insecurity and gender-based violence. Women’s leadership in local mediation, humanitarian response, and environmental protection demonstrates their critical contribution to survival and peacebuilding in conflict settings.
By situating the Kordofan crisis within broader debates on environmental peacebuilding, conflict ecology, and gender-responsive peace processes, this paper argues that the Sudanese conflict is not only a political and military crisis but also an environmental and social catastrophe with long-term consequences for future generations. The paper concludes that sustainable peace in Kordofan requires an integrated approach that combines environmental justice, inclusive governance, gender-responsive peacebuilding, and equitable resource management.

Transboundry water systems in South Asia are emerging as critical sites of geopolitical tension, where hydrological interdependence intersects with strategic state behavior and evolving regional security architectures. This paper develops a hydro-strategic governance framework to analyze how river basin politics are shaped by asymmetries of power, infrastructure competition, and institutional limitations in managing shared water resources. Focusing on major river basins in South Asia, the study examines how upstream-downstream relations are structured through infrastructure development, data control, and allocation practices that function as instruments of both cooperation and strategic leverage. It argues that conventional water governance models, which emphasize legal agreements and technical cooperation, are insufficient to explain the increasing strategicization of water in the region. Instead, water is conceptualized as a strategic resource embedded within broader geopolitical calculations, where infrastructure projects, timing of water release, and informational asymmetries operate as subtle mechanisms of influence. Using a qualitative policy analysis approach, the paper integrates insights from international water law, political geography, and security studies to construct a multi-layered analytical framework. The findings indicate a gradual shift from cooperative water management toward a competitive strategic equilibrium, characterized by trust deficits, infrastructural imbalance, and governance fragmentation. The paper concludes by proposing an integrated governance model combining institutional reform, data transparency mechanisms, and regional confidence-building measures to stabilize transboundary water relations and reduce strategic uncertainty.
​ Publication: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=6754083

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This study aimed to investigate young adults' intention regarding water conservation in Iran. To achieve this goal, we applied a modified theory of planned behavior, with moral norm and self-identity being two additional determinants of intention and behavior. A face-to-face survey (N ¼ 428) was undertaken in two universities, in south-western Iran. The reliability and validity of the instruments were examined and approved. Data were analyzed using structural equation modeling. The key findings were that self-identity, moral norm, attitude, and perceived behavioral control were all significant in determining intention, while subjective norm was not a significant predictor of intention. The findings of this study provided preliminary support for the theory of planned behavior and an extended model being used as an effective framework for examining water conservation among Iranian citizens. In addition, we found that self-identity and moral norm can capture a significant proportion of the variation in intention regarding water conservation.

This study aimed to investigate young adults’ intention regarding water conservation in Iran. To achieve this goal, we applied a modified theory of planned behavior, with moral norm and self-identity being two additional determinants of intention and behavior. A face-to-face survey (N = 428) was undertaken in two universities, in south-western Iran. The reliability and validity of the instruments were examined and approved. Data were analyzed using structural equation modeling. The key findings were that self-identity, moral norm, attitude, and perceived behavioral control were all significant in determining intention, while subjective norm was not a significant predictor of intention. The findings of this study provided preliminary support for the theory of planned behavior and an extended model being used as an effective framework for examining water conservation among Iranian citizens. In addition, we found that self-identity and moral norm can capture a significant proportion of...

The American West is defined first and foremost by aridity, scarcity, and variability of water resources. In response to this geographic imperative, the region has evolved a robust menu of legal, institutional, and community-based approaches to managing water and conflicts at local, state, and national levels. While far from perfect, this framework may offer lessons to other regions throughout the world that are increasingly faced with water conflicts due to scarcity and variability of water resources. The resulting menu of approaches reflects an adaptive, collaborative, and nested system of governing water resources.

The American West is defined first and foremost by aridity, scarcity, and variability of water resources. In response to this geographic imperative, the region has evolved a robust menu of legal, institutional, and community-based approaches to managing water and conflicts at local, state, and national levels. While far from perfect, this framework may offer lessons to other regions throughout the world that are increasingly faced with water conflicts due to scarcity and variability of water resources. The resulting menu of approaches reflects an adaptive, collaborative, and nested system of governing water resources.

This paper introduces hydro-transparency as an analytical concept that refers to how and why water data/information is disclosed, who transfers and receives such data/information, and the political-economic structures shaping information flows. Informed by a synthesis of critical transparency studies with hydropolitical analysis, it invites examination of the political conditions shaping differential availability of information about the movement, storage and management of water. Such an approach challenges three common assumptions about transparency in transboundary water governance: that it is a positive-sum attribute of cooperation, that it operates as a simple binary of openness versus secrecy, and that it is a fixed condition. It is argued instead that transparency is a dynamic, political process where disclosure and concealment of water data can coexist based on strategic interests rather than technical considerations. These claims are unpacked through an examination of hydro-transparency in the Euphrates-Tigris Basin (ETB), testing empirically the proposition that, within a transboundary basin, there is an inverse relationship between water securitisation and hydro-transparency. While, for the ETB, there is little evidence of concerted reductions in hydro-transparency during heightened periods of water securitisation, the desecuritisation of shared water resources tends to be associated with increased disclosure and sharing by states of water data. At the same time, the riparian states tend to engage in selective disclosure or concealment of water data based on geopolitical interests rather than cooperative norms. Turkey's upstream position and governance capacity allows it to maintain information advantages regardless of shifts in the intensity of water securitisation.

This review synthesizes empirical and theoretical evidence on the nexus between climate variability and avian biodiversity dynamics in the Hadejia-Nguru wetlands, northeastern Nigeria. The wetlands represent one of the most important floodplain ecosystems in the Sudano-Sahelian region and serve as a critical habitat for resident and Palearctic migratory bird species along the African-Eurasian flyway. Over recent decades, the region has experienced pronounced rainfall variability, temperature increases, and hydrological alteration driven by both climatic factors and upstream dam regulation. These changes have significantly modified flood regimes, wetland extent, vegetation structure, and trophic resources. Using a structured narrative review approach, peer-reviewed literature published between 2000 and 2025 was systematically screened and synthesized. Evidence indicates linkages between hydroclimatic variability, floodplain contraction, and shifts in avian species richness and abundance (Polet, 2000; Sulaiman et al., 2015; Sabo, 2016). The review highlights ecological mechanisms underpinning observed changes and identifies critical research gaps for climate-resilient conservation planning. The main objectives of this paper isTo examine documented climate and hydrological variability in the Hadejia-Nguru wetlands and assess their ecological implications. And to evaluate reported patterns in avian species composition, richness, and abundance in relation to hydroclimatic changes. This study employed a structured narrative review approach. Literature was sourced from Google Scholar, Scopus, Web of Science, Academia and ResearchGate using keywords such as 'Hadejia-Nguru wetlands', 'avian diversity Nigeria', 'climate variability Sahel', and 'wetland hydrology Nigeria'. Studies published between 2000 and 2025 were included.

Agriculture is the largest consumer of water through evapotranspiration and percolation. Irrigated agriculture remains the largest user of water globally, which may increase the risk of water scarcity for agricultural sector in the future. So, there is an immense need for enhancing per drop more crop. The present study focuses on assessment of rice water productivity for Pindrawan command area using ANN model and GIS. 20 years meteorological data and crop coefficient (Kc) of rice at different crop growth stages were analyzed to estimate crop evapotranspiration (ETc). Production and productivity data of the study area were obtained from the Agriculture Department Government of Chhattisgarh. The values of Crop Water Productivity (CWP) using ANN models (A1, A2 and A3) ranged A1(0.583-0.615), A2 (0.582-0.614) and A3 (0.573-0.604) kg-m-3 , while Field Water Productivity (FWP) ranged A1(0.329-0.347), A2(0.329-0.347), A3(0.326-0.344) kg-m-3 in study area. The values of CWP as estimated by CROPWAT and ANN models were found to be quite close. However, the ANN models estimated CWP little higher side (3.21%). Three different ANN models have been integrated in this study, depending on the combination of inputs to be given to the network. The first model (A1PC) has six inputs, the second model (A2PC) only has 4 inputs and third model (A3PC) only has 2 inputs. Performance evaluation of the models has been carried out by calculating the mean absolute deviation (MAD), root mean square error (RMSE), Absolute Prediction Error (APE), coefficient of correlation (CC), Nash-Sutcliffe coefficient efficiency (CE), and Index of Agreement (IOA).

Understanding the socio-cultural and economic factors that influence people's sanitation behavior in the community can help achieve the sanitation-related Sustainable Development Goals. This study examined the sanitation situation in Bole Township, focusing on household latrine ownership and use, open defecation, and the relationship between sanitation practices and disease. The study employed an explanatory sequential design, integrating both quantitative and qualitative methods. Data were gathered from 392 respondents, mainly household heads, through a questionnaire survey, interviews, and observations. The findings showed that socio-cultural beliefs continued to influence sanitation behavior in Bole Township, with 30% of respondents indicating a preference for open defecation because it was their tradition. The study further revealed that many household latrine toilets were in poor condition: 35% of respondents reported that their toilets were poorly constructed but still in use. In comparison, 25% confirmed that their toilets had collapsed or stopped working. 40% of respondents stated that the high cost of construction materials deterred them from building toilets. Furthermore, the study found that most sanitation projects and interventions did not achieve lasting results, with 35% of respondents reporting that earlier sanitation projects were ineffective. Diseases linked to poor sanitation, particularly diarrhea, remained common in Bole Township, with 32% of respondents reporting having suffered sanitation-related illnesses. The study recommends that the District Assembly, the Environmental Health Unit, and NGOs involved in sanitation should collaborate to support toilet construction, enhance health education, and improve waste management through greater community participation, stronger monitoring, and enforcement of sanitation legislation. Contribution/Originality: This study contributes to the existing literature by exploring the sanitation situation in Bole Township. It offers new insights into the poor sanitation situation and enhances understanding of how it can be attributed to a combination of poverty, cultural practices, and weak enforcement of sanitation laws.

The deficiencies of water resources and poor sanitation levels hinder the implementation of Sustainable Development Goal 6 (SDG 6) Clean Water and Sanitation for All throughout India. The Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) and Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) have enhanced sanitation and drinking water availability in terms of access yet ongoing groundwater depletion and poor water administration and changes to natural water systems because of environmental change create ongoing difficulties. A research analysis investigates SDG 6 progress in India through the assessment of local water management systems Johads in Rajasthan and Kudimaramathu in Tamil Nadu while studying their effects on sustainable water resources. The study examines Indian water management together with world-class methods from leading countries that achieved SDG 6 like Finland, Singapore and Denmark and Germany which achieve AI-based water control and sewage reprocessing as well as public-private collaboration. The research discusses how modern technologies including Internet of Things (IoT) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies together with satellite water monitoring help improve water usage effectiveness and stop resource exhaustion. Through policy innovations alongside communal conservation strategies and state-of-the-art technological developments India can boost its progress toward SDG 6 and build an autonomous sustainable water system. The study shows that establishing partnerships between government institutions and private entities and local residents will lead to permanent water supply safety improvements and sanitation progress. This research establishes comprehensive recommendations which focus on technological scaleup alongside government policy enforcement and funding of smart water systems to provide all people with secure water services.

Purpose: Understanding formation mechanisms of regional collaborative innovation networks is crucial for effective innovation policy design, yet existing research lacks comprehensive empirical examination of how multiple mechanisms operate simultaneously across network evolution phases. Design/methodology/approach: This study conducts the first longitudinal multi-mechanism analysis by examining 57,846 collaborative patent applications among 3,582 organizations in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (2009-2023). Using phase-segmented exponential random graph models across three developmental stages, we assess five key mechanisms: preferential attachment, triadic closure, brokerage potential, organizational homophily, and experience accumulation. Findings: Our findings reveal a paradoxical "elite-driven community closure" trajectory. Despite network expansion, declining density indicates heightened partner selectivity. Preferential attachment effects persist throughout all phases, sustaining elite hub dominance, while experience accumulation effects diminish over time. Strengthening triadic closure alongside persistently negative brokerage effects creates closure-dominated topologies limiting cross-boundary knowledge flows. Most critically, persistent organizational homophily constrains industry-university-research integration despite policy incentives, demonstrating that structural inertia resists policy intervention more than previously assumed. Research limitations: The analysis focuses on collaboration quantity rather than quality outcomes and applies specifically to patent-based collaboration networks. Practical implications: Three targeted policy adjustments are recommended: (1) reducing cross-type collaboration transaction costs through institutional innovation, (2) counteracting preferential attachment concentration via peripheral engagement strategies, and (3) creating reputation-sharing infrastructure to extend trust beyond homophily clusters. Originality/value: Our mechanism-based approach advances network evolution theory by revealing how microlevel collaboration decisions aggregate into macro-level structural patterns.

Pakistan has suffered 28 major floods since 1950, causing USD 53 billion in damages and displacing millions, yet policy remains reactive, fragmented, and dominated by costly engineering fixes. Floods here are less “natural” disasters than failures of governance, planning, and cultural framing. A unified, nationally owned water action plan, linking policy, institutions, technology, and communities, can transform floods from recurring crises into opportunities for resilience, water security, and sustainable growth.

This article aims to provide a comprehensive review of the empirical literature on irrigation water tariffs in several countries, particularly in Mediterranean European countries, and to offer insights into the Portuguese status quo. We analyze a wide variety of tariffs, and the largest differences among them are discussed. In various countries, in those regions with a higher demand for water, irrigation water tariffs are more complex and higher, varying from country to country and, within the same country, from region to region. Large differences in irrigation water tariffs among different water-use associations were found, mostly because each one has its own objectives. A SWOT analysis was performed for Portuguese irrigation water tariffs. It concludes that there is much to do to enact the proposed strategies, including recovering operation and maintenance costs and promoting the efficient use of water and efficient water allocation. Furthermore, the farmers' position in the v...

Potential Consequences of Attacks on Water Infrastructure in Armed Conflict.
Erosion of Human Rights Norms and the Re-Securitization of Water
Dursun Yıldız
C.E Hydropolitcs Expert (M.Sc.)
Hydropolitics Association,
Ankara-Türkiye
e-mail:[email protected]
April 10  2026
Abstract
Attacks on water infrastructure during armed conflicts have increased in frequency and strategic importance over the past decade. These attacks not only violate core principles of International Humanitarian Law (IHL) but also undermine the broader human rights regime by directly targeting systems indispensable for civilian survival. This article examines the legal, political, and hydropolitical implications of such attacks. It argues that the growing normalization of water infrastructure targeting reflects a deeper transformation: the re-securitization and weaponization of water within contemporary conflict environments. Drawing on legal frameworks, recent conflict patterns, and hydropolitical theory, the study highlights the risks of norm erosion and proposes policy pathways to reinforce protection and resilience.
Keywords: water security, hydropolitics, international humanitarian law, infrastructure warfare, human rights

A água está no centro dos grandes desafios do século XXI — das mudanças climáticas às tensões geopolíticas, da produção de alimentos à segurança energética. Este livro reúne análises atuais e interdisciplinares que demonstram como a gestão dos recursos hídricos se tornou uma questão estratégica global.
Ao articular teoria e estudos de caso em diferentes regiões — como a Amazônia, a China, a Índia e a África Austral — a obra revela como crises hídricas, eventos extremos e disputas por recursos estão transformando territórios, políticas públicas e relações internacionais.
Mais do que um diagnóstico, o livro oferece uma leitura essencial para compreender as interdependências entre água, clima, energia e sociedade, apontando caminhos para uma governança mais integrada, sustentável e cooperativa.
Um material fundamental para pesquisadores, estudantes e todos os que desejam entender por que a água é um dos temas mais urgentes do nosso tempo.

This paper focuses on the fact that the water–energy nexus remains an irrelevant issue on the energy policy agenda and on the priorities of the energy leaders in Spain. This is a striking fact given that this takes place in the most arid country in Europe, where almost two-thirds of electricity generation would have to be halted in the absence of an adequate water supply. We contend that part of the explanation may lie in the lack of official statistics and inconsistent sources of information on the water–energy nexus in Spain. To illustrate this point, we provide examples of the uneven data available for one of the most intensive freshwater users in the thermoelectric sector in Spain: nuclear power plants. Our research demonstrates the need for improved indicators as policy instruments in the water–energy nexus in Spain since it is impossible to improve what cannot be measured.

The impacts of low water flow and drought are largely non-structural and generally cover a large geographical area. This makes it difficult to assess the effects of drought and to unambiguously link cause and effect. This project did not go into the details of the overall impact of economic on community livelihoods, rice production and fish yields.

Extreme rainfall variability, record droughts, floods and high temperatures have had a major impact on social wellbeing, economic productivity and environmental functionality of urban settings in Australia. Compounded by urban growth and ageing water and wastewater infrastructure, Australia's urban water arrangements have undergone major reforms to effectively manage the challenges of recent years. This paper is a synthesis of urban water reform in Australia during a decade of unforeseen natural extremes. It summarises the evolution of urban water policy, outcomes from recent government reforms and investment, and presents future challenges facing the sector. As governments at state and federal levels in Australia have moved to diversify supply options away from the traditional reliance on rainfall-dependent catchment storages, they have been confronted by issues relating to climate uncertainty, planning, regulation, pricing, institutional reforms, and community demands for sustainable supply solutions. Increases in water prices to pay for new water infrastructure are illustrative of further reform pressures in the urban water sector. In the past 10 years the Australian urban water sector has weathered new extremes in drought and flood and emerged far different to its predecessor. The provision of safe, secure, efficient and sustainable water and wastewater services remains the primary driver for urban water reform. However the challenges and opportunities to improve nationally significant social, economic and environmental outcomes from urban water have evolved considerably. The focus now is on creating the institutional, regulatory and market conditions favourable for the integration of urban water services with the objectives for productive and liveable cities.

In this study, we explored what river health means to ordinary citizens in the community through a survey of residents ( n = 302) living in the peri-urban region of the Hawkesbury–Nepean River catchment in south-east Australia. Community responses concerning the meaning of river health included explanations that were simple and used everyday words but integrated a number of perspectives of the river as a natural and community resource which have often been lacking in descriptions pursued by experts and government agencies. A considerable proportion of participants surveyed related river health to its ecological integrity, visual appeal, hydrologic balance and ability to serve the community. The description of river health was not really affected by participants9 age, gender or the distance they live from the river. The study provides a number of insights that can assist in the engagement of communities in future river monitoring and management programmes.

Extreme rainfall variability, record droughts, floods and high temperatures have had a major impact on social wellbeing, economic productivity and environmental functionality of urban settings in Australia. Compounded by urban growth and ageing water and wastewater infrastructure, Australia's urban water arrangements have undergone major reforms to effectively manage the challenges of recent years. This paper is a synthesis of urban water reform in Australia during a decade of unforeseen natural extremes. It summarises the evolution of urban water policy, outcomes from recent government reforms and investment, and presents future challenges facing the sector. As governments at state and federal levels in Australia have moved to diversify supply options away from the traditional reliance on rainfall-dependent catchment storages, they have been confronted by issues relating to climate uncertainty, planning, regulation, pricing, institutional reforms, and community demands for sust...

In this study, we explored what river health means to ordinary citizens in the community through a survey of residents (n ¼ 302) living in the peri-urban region of the Hawkesbury-Nepean River catchment in south-east Australia. Community responses concerning the meaning of river health included explanations that were simple and used everyday words but integrated a number of perspectives of the river as a natural and community resource which have often been lacking in descriptions pursued by experts and government agencies. A considerable proportion of participants surveyed related river health to its ecological integrity, visual appeal, hydrologic balance and ability to serve the community. The description of river health was not really affected by participants' age, gender or the distance they live from the river. The study provides a number of insights that can assist in the engagement of communities in future river monitoring and management programmes.

Every water policies which are succeeded each other in the history, have left traces in memories such as in the landscapes. In the context of the implantation of EU Water Framework Directive and Flood Directive, the Romanian government establishes new strategies for water management. In order to better understand the territory in which these new logics are introduced and evaluate their significance, it is necessary to analyze and to spatialize the old strategy. This work focuses on the Lower Siret River, heavily arranged from 1970 to 1990, and especially on the villages of Bilieşti and Suraia. The aim of this work is to demonstrate the impacts, on this sector of 10 km length, of the 70's water policy, on the channel planform and the floods nowadays. A GIS was developed to compare, over time, the evolution of the Lower Siret River, from 1940 to present, and to quantify these changes. The study of technical literature and various reports and laws made over this period, provide the analysis of the arrangement strategy. Finally, field surveys, reports of various arrangements, testimonials, from 2010 to 2012, have enhanced this work. This study shows the density of arrangements on a reduce area whose aim was to control and avoid all the harmful effects of the water, i.e. bank erosion or flood. This sector of the Siret River has undergone significant changes: the active zone decreased over 50%, the bed channelized is disconnected from the floodplain, etc… Many morphological dynamics were determined by floods (especially the July 2005 flood).

El cambio climático resulta en variaciones regionales de los riesgos y oportunidades para la mayoría de los agricultores del Mediterráneo en las próximas décadas. La identificación de políticas y acciones adaptación, políticas y acciones por parte de los agricultores, es difícil puesteo que es difícil comprender la incertidumbre asociada a los impactos en distintas zonas y en distintos cultivos. En este estudio evaluamos algunos aspectos relacionados con esta incertidumbre en la agricultura mediterránea. El resultado final es una evaluación del nivel de riesgo que tienen distintos cultivos en distintas zonas para apoyar la toma de decisiones relacionadas con la adaptación. Utilizamos proyecciones múltiples de impactos basados en 16 escenarios de cambio climático y modelos respuesta del cultivo para evaluar la probabilidad de los impactos proyectados en sistemas agrícolas tradicionales del mediterráneo. Los resultados muestran la amplia variabilidad de la incertidumbre según el cultivo y su ubicación y nos dejan concluir que la prioridades de adaptación dependerán en el enfoque de riesgo de los planes de adaptación.

El cambio climático resulta en variaciones regionales de los riesgos y oportunidades para la mayoría de los agricultores del Mediterráneo en las próximas décadas. La identificación de políticas y acciones adaptación, políticas y acciones por parte de los agricultores, es difícil puesteo que es difícil comprender la incertidumbre asociada a los impactos en distintas zonas y en distintos cultivos. En este estudio evaluamos algunos aspectos relacionados con esta incertidumbre en la agricultura mediterránea. El resultado final es una evaluación del nivel de riesgo que tienen distintos cultivos en distintas zonas para apoyar la toma de decisiones relacionadas con la adaptación. Utilizamos proyecciones múltiples de impactos basados en 16 escenarios de cambio climático y modelos respuesta del cultivo para evaluar la probabilidad de los impactos proyectados en sistemas agrícolas tradicionales del mediterráneo. Los resultados muestran la amplia variabilidad de la incertidumbre según el cultivo y su ubicación y nos dejan concluir que la prioridades de adaptación dependerán en el enfoque de riesgo de los planes de adaptación.

The paper could be of interest for HESS but probably it would fit better in a journal related with water management. The difficulty with the paper is that supporting concepts are not clear, including they may be wrong, and material and methods are insufficiently described and include wrong assumptions. We are very interested in this journal because it is a multi-disciplinary approach that enables a broadening of the hydrologic perspective and the advancement of hydrologic science through the integration with other cognate sciences. In this case, our paper has an economic vision of hydrological processes and their interactions with human activity. The subject area of our paper is Water Resources Management and the Technique and Approach is: Modelling Approaches 2. Page 5897 lines 17-18: there is confusion on the use of the terms water use, consumption and demand: water demand corresponds to water use and therefore includes non-consumptive uses. In the Ebro Basin, which is a highly populated and industrial area, agriculture cannot reach up to 90% or more of water demand; may be authors pretend to refer to water consumption. 90% or more of water demand for agriculture only occurs in non-industrial areas with low population. We agree with the comment, it was our mistake to mention water demand instead of water consumption. We have changed it in to the text as follows: "In Spain, irrigated agriculture accounts for 80% of national consumption of water (Gómez-Limón and Riesgo, 2004) and only 40% of the land area is suitable for cultivation . This paper focuses on the Ebro basin, where agriculture can reach up to 90% or more of water consumption." Page 5897 line 19: I suppose that the National Irrigation Plan ( ) is deeply changed in the last years, thus such a tremendous increase is not likely to occur. However it is of interest to assess what could happen if it would be applied.

The increasing pressure on water systems in the Mediterranean enhances existing water conflicts and threatens water supply for agriculture. In this context, one of the main priorities for agricultural research and public policy is the adaptation of crop yields to water pressures. This paper focuses on the evaluation of hydrological risk and water policy implications for food production. Our methodological approach includes four steps. For the first step, we estimate the impacts of rainfall and irrigation water on crop yields. However, this study is not limited to general crop production functions since it also considers the linkages between those economic and biophysical aspects which may have an important effect on crop productivity. We use statistical models of yield response to address how hydrological variables affect the yield of the main Mediterranean crops in the Ebro river basin. In the second step, this study takes into consideration the effects of those interactions and analyzes gross value added sensitivity to crop production changes. We then use Montecarlo simulations to characterize crop yield risk to water variability. Finally we evaluate some policy scenarios with irrigated area adjustments that could cope in a context of increased water scarcity. A substantial decrease in irrigated land, of up to 30% of total, results in only moderate losses of crop productivity. The response is crop and region specific and may serve to prioritise adaptation strategies.

Settlements vary in many ways and certainly by function and population size. In this paper, resource towns in the Mackenzie Basin are examined. Resource town are established to house a labour force necessary to exploit a resource in a remote area. Consequently, their very existence is dépendent on this industry -unless, of course, thèse centres take on other functions. In this paper, the resource towns in the Mackenzie Basin are examined from the perspective of changes in their population size. Such changes are considered within the framework of a population life-style model. The original life-cycle model for resource towns was developed by Lucas (1971) and later modified by others (Bradbury and St. Martins, 1983; Bradbury, 1984). While Lucas devised the life-cycle of resource towns to deal with planning issues, this model is modified to focus on three goals: • To adapt the life-cycle model to focus on changes in population size • To classify resource towns on the basis of changes in their population size • To provide case studies of each type of resource town

This article investigates emerging governance arrangements at the intersection between forest management and climate policy. The authors deploy the symposium\u27s three-dimensional framework to describe and evaluate developments within two distinct policy sectors (forestry/climate change adaptation and mitigation) at several levels of governance (bi-national, national, and sub-national) to explore the nature and operation of the emerging governance arrangements, and assessing and measuring change within these arrangements over time. Drawing on four contemporary case studies from the US and Canada, New Zealand, British Columbia and Alaska, the authors discern little evidence of a generalized, linear trend from ‘government to governance’. Instead, they conclude, across institutional, political and regulatory dimensions of governance, a more variegated and diverse picture emerges. Their analysis also lends support for the Trubek and Trubek (2007) hypothesis that emerging governance arr...

This paper explores the intricate issues that prompt water pricing reform in China and India. China adopts a comprehensive pricing framework of cost of resources, treatment and distribution, and environmental requirements, which has been gradually developed part by part since 1980 based on the perception and change of water issues in the country. India follows a simple approach of cost recovery, though its recent policy guidelines talk about more systematic pricing. The results present that both countries fail to realize water pricing policy targets regardless of different pricing structures. But China and India are on the same road and direction of water pricing and China goes a little farther. The treatment of water resources and its services, and property rights have a significant impact on pricing, and costs, including service, resources and environment, are difficult to recover.

Ostrom posits clear boundaries as the first design principle for successful self-governance of irrigation systems. This neo-institutional theory to craft institutions came to inspire much contemporary water policy. However, defining such boundaries does not preempt their contestation and re-negotiation in practice. The article argues that capitalized outsiders can become insiders and insiders can shift the perimeter outwards to multiply rents and profits through modernizing irrigated agriculture. We explore this policy issue through four in-depth case studies from Portugal, where existing irrigation schemes are confronted with outsider investors called precários. The research question we pose is how do precarios emerge, what drives the shifts in irrigation perimeter over time, who benefits and how? The discussion shows how rent-seeking stimulates the outward expansion of perennial cultures outside of the official perimeters. A government resolution in 2019 reversed this trend to one where outsiders became insiders through land acquisition assisted by publicly financed irrigation modernization projects. This allowed public institutions to regain control over irrigation intensification, while precario investors converted their 'speculative rent' into tangible gains. Therefore, rent-seeking does not only shift the physical and collective limits of irrigation systems, but also boundaries between public and private.

O problema de perdas de água nos processos de abastecimento Ainda assim, pouca atenção tem sido dada as dimensões econômica, ambiental e social associadas ao processo de perdas de água. Esta pesquisa tem como principal objetivo identificar as principais práticas de gestão de perda de água e suas implicações na dimensão econômica, ambiental e social na gestão de recursos hídricos do Brasil e Equador. Os procedimentos metodológicos adotam revisão sistemática da literatura e a análise documental. A pesquisa comparada incluindo Brasil e Equador mostra que, apesar de avanços no sistema de gestão de perdas, eles se mostram insuficientes para modificar significativamente os impactos econômicos, ambientais e sociais dos processos de distribuição de água. É necessário ampliar os estudos empíricos em países em desenvolvimento de forma aprofundar o conhecimento sobre impactos ambientais e sociais da distribuição de água visando uma gestão mais sustentável das atividades de abastecimento.

Water reform has become a global concern and process. Numerous organizations-multilateral, governmental and non-governmental have suggested that all nations shift to water policies that are based upon: decentralization of water management, water as an economic good, the environment as a water user in its own right and greater and fairer to water access by disadvantaged sectors of a population. The proposed research addresses current efforts in two countries in Southern Africa- Malawi and Zimbabwe- to reduce inequality in access to the critical resource of water. The research will examine the constraints posed by current policies of decentralization, increased reliance upon market and gender differentiation linked to increasing access to resources. The broader policy reform and implementation environment do not take sufficient account of how modes of access to water are interlinked with those of land. One important goal of our research will be to identify opportunities in formal and ...

This study investigates the dual impact of knowledge management (KM) practices within higher education and their application in sustainable smart hydrological ecosystems, aimed at fostering green innovation. By leveraging data collected from university students and faculty regarding KM practices, alongside environmental data from hydrological sensors and monitoring systems, this research bridges educational insights with environmental sustainability. The study utilizes radial basis function networks to analyze complex, multi-source data, including real-time environmental parameters and knowledge dissemination metrics within educational institutions. The findings reveal how effective KM practices within higher education can influence broader environmental sustainability outcomes, particularly in enhancing the resilience of hydrological ecosystems. This integrated approach underscores the potential of AI-driven KM systems to contribute significantly to both educational excellence and global green innovation efforts.

Europea a principios del siglo XXI, el derecho a una buena administración ha, desde entonces, circulado por ordenamientos jurídicos muy variados. Concepto abierto destinado principalmente a reforzar los derechos de la defensa durante el procedimiento administrativo, el derecho a una buena administración se convierte, en muchos casos, en un conjunto de derechos ya existentes. Este artículo demuestra su polisemia, tanto en los textos jurídicos como en la jurisprudencia. Para justificar su tesis, la autora ofrece un análisis crítico y comparado de los sistemas europeo y español poniendo de relieve el carácter redundante del derecho a una buena administración en esos ordenamientos. A modo de conclusión, y como alternativa, propone una definición de la buena administración con un enfoque restrictivo y, entonces, posiblemente innovador.