1. Integrated Watershed Management
MRC – GTZ WATERSHED MANAGEMENT PROGRAMME
Integrated Watershed Management
as a Strategy for Sustainable Use of Natural Resources and Biodiversity Preservation
Presented by
Dr. Simonetta Siligato
Biodiversity & Climate Change – Links with Poverty and Sustainable Development
Melia Hotel, Hanoi - Vietnam, May 2007

2. The Mekong Basin - water contributors (mean annual flow):
Introduction
The Mekong Basin - water contributors (mean annual flow):
Upper Mekong (18 %)
China – 16 %
Myanmar – 2 %
Lower Mekong (82 %)
Lao PDR – 35 %
Cambodia – 18 %
Thailand – 18 %
Viet Nam – 11 %
The mean annual water flow of the Mekong River is about 470km3 per year in the delta.
About 18% of this amount of water come from the Upper Mekong Basin, of this 16% runoff Chinese territory, and 2% from Myanmar.
The Lower Mekong Basin contributes 82% to the mean annual water flow. With 35 % most of the water comes from Lao PDR, 18 % from Cambodia and Thailand, respectively, and 11 % from Vietnamese territory,
To ensure sustainable use of water resources in the region a balanced management across national borders is required. Therefore the four least mentioned riparian countries formed the Mekong River Commission (MRC) in 1995, which’s mandate is the establishment and maintenance of this balance.
- formed the Mekong River Commission (MRC) in 1995
WSMP – Hanoi, May 2007

3. Challenges for the Region
Population growth
Population growth: 2 % per year  100 mio by 2025
Associated with rapid population growth are the increase in urbanisation, economic development, pollution.
Poverty
Some of the riparian countries are among the poorest countries in the world, in Thailand people living in the Lower Mekong Basin have considerably lower income than the national average.
Population pressure has not jet reached alarming levels as in other basins
Water & food security
50-80 % of the population in Laos and Cambodia do not have access to safe drinking water and proper sanitation.
WSMP – Hanoi, May 2007

4. Challenges for the Region
Climate Change
most severe influence through temperature rise
More rapidly melting of Himalayan glaciers  increase of water flow in dry season;
changed rainfall patterns and severe other changes in hydrology
disrupted monsoon patterns  more rain but fewer rainy days, more people affected by drought
rising sea levels  saline intrusion and freshwater loss in river delta systems
Population pressure has not jet reached alarming levels as in other basins
Direct negative influence on freshwater ecosystems – loss of aquatic species and biodiversity!
WSMP – Hanoi, May 2007

5. Challenges for the Region  need for keeping the balance!
increase of negative impacts on the availability of water and aquatic resources, and on natural resources in general
growing pressure on natural resources  potential source of conflict between people and countries
 need for keeping the balance!
Population pressure has not jet reached alarming levels as in other basins
Growing pressure on natural resources is also a potential source of conflict between the countries and the people;
Integrated watershed management may be a suitable tool for keeping this balance and a strategy for sustainable use of natural resources and biodiversity preservation !
WSMP – Hanoi, May 2007

6. What is watershed management?
What is a river basin?
= all the land contributing water to a river system, e.g. Mekong Basin
What is a watershed?
= land contributing water to a tributary of a river system; a river basin consist of several watersheds;
Up and downstream relation!!!!!!!!!
WSMP – Hanoi, May 2007

7. What is watershed management? Policy im-plementation
Policies and arrangements, strategies and planning systems, implementation guidelines, monitoring procedures
top down
bottom up
MAINTAINANCE
OF WATERSHED FUNCTIONS
Formulation of watershed functions, management guide-lines, monitoring activities
Negotiating process between all stakeholders
Policies and arrangements (global, regional, national)
Greater Mekong Subregion priorities (economic and biodiversity corridors) Strategies and planning systems
Implementation guidelines
Monitoring procedures
Local needs & expectations
Social security
Economic prosperty
Stakeholder participation
The objective of watershed management is the maintainance of watershed functions!
Participatory
processes
Local needs & expectations
social security , economic prosperity
WSMP – Hanoi, May 2007

8. What is watershed management?
Watershed management has therefore to be the co-ordinated multi-stakeholder management of water resources within an area, it hat to be a participatory process of all people using the water resources in some way.
= co-ordinated multi-stakeholder management of land, water and other resources within a region to maintain watershed functions and assure water availability.
WSMP – Hanoi, May 2007

9. Watershed functions Economic Ecological Social
provision of services, especially water in required quantity and quality
Economic
Ecological
sustain livelihoods
provide services as timber, water for hydropower production, irrigation, etc.
support income generation
sustainable
develop-
ment
being habitat to plants and animals, ensuring biodiversity, ecological cycles, etc.
providing water flow in required quantity and quality within the watershed and further downstream
Social
The most important function of watersheds is of course the ecological function, to provide habitats for typical plants and animals of the eco-region.
A healthy river ecosystem has enough water and water in good a quality required by humans for a healthy life.
support indigenous culture
provide recreational opportunities
WSMP – Hanoi, May 2007

10. WSM levels of concern A D M I N I S T R A T I V E L E V E L S
National
Province
Village
A D M I N I S T R A T I V E L E V E L S
District
Government
Private
Sector
NGO’s
User
Organizations
National
River Basin
Watershed
Catchment
Regional
Energy
Interior
Agriculture
Forestry
Water
Resources
Rural
Development
Planning
Women
Affairs
Land
Management
Government
Private
Sector
NGO’s
User
Organizations
Consistency among sectors
Government
Private
Sector
NGO’s
User
Organizations
Government
Private
Sector
NGO’s
User
Organizations
Institutional / organisational consistency 11

11. Rational of WSM To facilitate necessary processes to optimise:
consistencies in different sectors/disciplines
on the different administrative levels and
within the basin/catchment hierarchy
National
Province
Village
A D M I N I S T R A T I V E L E V E L S
District
Government
Private
Sector
NGO’s
User
Organizations
National
River Basin
Watershed
Catchment
Regional
Government
Private
Sector
NGO’s
User
Organizations
Government
Private
Sector
NGO’s
User
Organizations
Government
Private
Sector
NGO’s
User
Organizations
WSMP – Melia Hanoi, May 2007 12

12. Value added of WSM Sustainable development within the watershed
Ecological health, economic prosperity, social security
External sustainable development
Ecological health, upstream – downstream relationship
Involvement of all relevant stakeholders
Participatory process, local ownership, policy implementation
supports sustainable development within a watershed and in downstream areas by maintaining watershed functions through an established and accepted process with all relevant stakeholders
Establishment of a process accepted by all people
involved
Well operating institutional / organisational framework
WSMP – Hanoi, May 2007

13. WSMP support to institutional development
Common understanding of watershed management
Institutional requirements in and for watersheds
Information management
awareness creation
information distribution
in depth training
Policy analysis and advice
Policy analysis and advice = Which institutional arrangements and human capacities are required)
Institutional development for sustainable watershed management
Capacity building
WSMP – Melia Hanoi, May 2007 14

14. WSM & Climate Change?
WSM can substantially contribute to the preservation of natural resources and biodiversity:
watersheds and stream catchments, respectively, are treated as units
WSM considers geographical units without denying the importance of administrative entities
the WSM approach respects biological and ecological processes and complexity
integration of different political and administrative units and sectors - successful and sustainable management is enabled
WSM can substantially contribute to the preservation of natural resources and biodiversity
it considers a (zoo)geographical unit, without denying the importance of administrative entities
The concept incorporates watersheds and stream catchments, respectively, as units where every single action leads to effects somewhere else in the area. This corresponds to their ecological characteristic.
Political and administrative borders and sectoral limits are to be crossed for successful and sustainable management if they hinder to treat watersheds as units. Integrates different units
This relatively new approach to natural resources management respects biological and ecological processes and complexity.
WSMP – Melia Hanoi, May 2007 15

15. WSM & Climate Change?
multiple uses of and interests in natural resources services create multiple management challenges  climate change is expected to add to naturally occurring fluctuations!
continuous adaptation is required and possible due to continuous negotiation processes  intensive communication and negotiation is crucial
increases the demand for institutional arrangements to define and manage natural resources services needed by society
adaptation to changing environmental conditions will have to take place in a coordinated and long-term institutionalised manner
multiple uses of and interests in natural resources services create multiple management challenges  climate change is expected to add to naturally occurring fluctuations!
continuous adaptation to changing environmental conditions is required and possible due to continuous negotiation processes
increases the demand for institutional arrangements that can define, and adaptively manage, the level of provision and allocation of natural resources services needed by society.
intensive communication and negotiation between stakeholders to clarify needs and expectations and governance to balance competing demands for natural resources is crucial.
Moreover, against the background of increasing climate fluctuations and uncertainty, adaptation, currently often understood as individual, short-term coping, will have to take place in a coordinated, long-term, i.e. institutionalised manner.
WSMP – Melia Hanoi, May 2007 16

16. WSM & Climate Change?
Even though mitigation measures are immediately put into action, climate change effects are inevitable  adaptation to changes is required!
Existing pressures on streams and rivers should be removed or at least minimized to improve resiliency, but:
Which are the most practical strategies?
Which is the appropriate governance level to do so?
Even though mitigation measures are immediately put into action, climate change effects are inevitable  adaptation to changes is required!
To facilitate “biological adaptation” existing pressures on streams and rivers should be removed to improve resiliency.
Key question: which are the most practical strategies for supporting and developing such resilience?
Which is the appropriate governance level to do so?
Integrated watershed management might be a suitable and sufficiently practical strategy, as it integrates a multitude of different points of view with one common goal – the sustainable management and preservation of natural resources functions along with the preservation of biodiversity.
Watershed management integrates a multitude of different points of view with one common goal – the sustainable management and preservation of natural resources functions along with the preservation of biodiversity.
WSMP – Melia Hanoi, May 2007 17

17. Special thank to: Dr. Cornelis von Tuyll, programme coordinator, Mr
Special thank to: Dr. Cornelis von Tuyll, programme coordinator, Mr. Christoph Feldkötter, technical advisor, the project coordination team in Vientiane, LAO PDR the country offices in: Hanoi, Viet Nam Vientiane, Lao PDR Phnom Penh, Cambodia Bangkok, Thailand

18. Thank you very much for your attention!
MRC – GTZ WATERSHED MANAGEMENT PROGRAMME
Thank you very much for your attention!